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First Chermside award presented
By Sally HarrisVirginia Tech Spectrum, June 27, 1996
At the English department Commencement in May, Caroline Pace Chermside presented the first Caroline Pace Chermside Award of $1,000 to graduate student Robert Brown.
Alumnus Robert Lazo, who received a B.S. in psychology in 1976 and an M.A. in English in 1979, both from Virginia Tech, endowed the award. Lazo went on to study medicine and has recently been practicing in Eau Claire, Wis.
In her introduction, Linda Anderson, chair of the Graduate Committee of the English department, said Lazo was so impressed by Chermside's teaching skills, wit, and intelligence that he established the fellowship in her honor.
Chermside holds a unique position in the history of the Virginia Tech English department. Although the department had women teachers before her, she was the first woman teacher on the professorial level.
Brown, a Blacksburg native, is working on a master's degree in English. He also won the Theresa Gillespie award for academic excellence. He holds a B.A. from James Madison University.
