Robin G. Walker Award for Mentoring

In collaboration with the Graduate School, the Fellowships Office established the Robin G. Walker Award for Mentoring in 2022 to recognize an MU faculty or staff member who has effectively supported an MU graduate or professional student’s efforts in applying for a globally or nationally competitive award.

Dr. Walker worked at the University of Missouri for 20 years, serving as a curriculum writer, grant writer, and director of leadership and professional development in the MU Graduate School. Dr. Walker mentored hundreds of NSF GRF applicants throughout her career. From 2012-2018, Dr. Walker created and curated a website of original content and handouts called GRFP insights that was used by over 10,000 unique visitors annually from 100+ college towns throughout the United States. The NSF endorsed Dr. Walker’s website as one of the best resources in the country for NSF GRF applicants. Since retiring from MU, Dr. Walker has voluntarily mentored many MU NSF GRF applicants, including several McNair Fellows and MARC/IMSD students.

This prestigious award honors faculty or staff who continue her legacy of student mentorship as it relates to graduate and professional education and fellowship advising. Those contributions may have come in the form of:

  • Effective advising with scholarly research or creative endeavors,
  • Counsel toward the role applying for a fellowship has in professional aspirations,
  • Guidance in developing a fellowship application, and/or
  • Other activities that supported a graduate or professional student in seeking one or more competitive fellowships.

Graduate and professional students who have submitted an application for a fellowship, grant, or scholarship in collaboration with the Fellowships Office will be invited to nominate deserving individuals for this award each spring.

Previous recipients of the Walker Award are as follows:

  • 2024
    • Nicole Campione-Barr (College of Arts & Science), nominated by Allyson Barraza
  • 2023
    • Haley Horstman (College of Arts & Science), nominated by Olivia Watson
  • 2022 (inaugural year)
    • Prasad Calyam (College of Engineering), nominated by Roland Oruche