Martin B. Travis Political Science Award
This award is made annually to a student completing a major in political science who
plans to attend law school. The award honors the founding chair of the Department,
Professor Emeritus Martin B. Travis (1917-2006). Dr. Travis came to Stony Brook from
Stanford University in 1961, a year before the University actually moved to Stony
Brook. Upon retirement, Dr. Travis retired to his farm, The Homestead, in Laurel Hollow,
where he served as village trustee, police commissioner, and mayor. He also served
as President of the Cold Spring Harbor school district. In 1992, Dr. Travis's wife,
Olivia Travis (1916-2005), and former student James Weller ('85) established the Martin B. Travis Endowed Scholarship. Dr. Travis passed away in 2006, at the age of 88.
Award Criteria:
- All class standings eligible (U1-U4).
- Minimum GPA of 3.00 for SBU coursework.
- Major in Political Science.
- Full-time matriculation.
- Demonstrate potential and promise in the subject matter, as evidenced by a reference and personal statement.
2027 Award Amount: TBD
Application Deadline: Check back soon
Apply: This application is currently closed.
Previous Recipients:
| Award Year | Award Recipient |
| 2024 | Madelin Silva (Hofstra Law) and Johan Arias Chacon (USC Gould School of Law) |
| 2023 | Emily Bishop (Penn State Law) and Benjamin Joffe (Cornell Law) |
| 2022 | William Russell (Fordham Law School) |
| 2021 | Brandon Dixon (Albany Law School) |
| 2020 | Andrew Bearkland (St. John's University School of Law), Rebecca Oestreicher (UConn School of Law), and Nouhaila Saboula (New York Law School) |
| 2019 | Thor Hawrey (University of Minnesota Law School) |
| 2018 | Tina McAuliffe (University of Virgina School of Law) |
| 2017 | Elizabeth Morgan (New York University School of Law) |
| 2016 | Shawna M. Burke (New York Law School) |
| 2015 | Kyle Gruder (Deane School of Law at Hofstra University) |
| 2014 | Anthony Lomonaco (New York University School of Law) |
| 2013 | Joshua M. Sinclair, Samuel H. Cushner (St. John's University School of Law), Kyle Stefurak (Deane School of Law at Hofstra University), and Katherine Chu (University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School) |
| 2012 | Deborah Machalow (Indiana University Maurer School of Law) and Christopher Cash (Deane School of Law at Hofstra University) |
| 2011 | Michelle Mbekeani (University of Chicago Law School) and Tiffany Villalobos |
| 2010 | Sarah Millings |
| 2009 | Patrick Dolan (Deane School of Law at Hofstra University) and Syeda Nuruzzaman |
| 2008 | Alexsandra Borodkin |
| 2007 | Kiran Siddiqi (New York Law School) |
| 2006 | Peter Sluka (University of Virginia School of Law) |
| 1998 | Marilyn Lord-James (Touro University Fuchsberg Law Center) |
| 1996 | Tracey J. Schneider and Dawn M. Schneider |
| 1995 | Thomas S. Russo |