On February 1, Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta described the William J. Griffith University Service Award as one of the University’s two “most prestigious awards for student leadership and engagement.” It was intended, declared Moneta, to “recognize the individuals whose influence and achievements have made a significant and positive impact on University life.”
The Student Affairs website states that the Griffith Award goes to “a select number of graduating students whose contributions to the Duke and larger communities have significantly impacted University life. Students whose efforts demonstrate an understanding of the responsibilities of effective university, communal and global citizenship are eligible for this award.”
Those who have followed the lacrosse case might recognize the names of two 2007 recipients: Chauncey Nartey and Shadee Malaklou.
Some people might consider sending an e-mail that prompted a Duke officer to file a harassment claim and being president of a fraternity suspended by its national overseers (Nartey) or publishing an op-ed in the local newspaper containing unsubstantiated, slanderous allegations against dozens of Duke students (Malaklou) to be disqualifying acts for an award that honors those who made a “significant and positive impact on University life” and understood the responsibilities of “effective university . . . citizenship.”