COSAM students, Liberal Arts professor named 2025 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award winners

Carolyn Herring and Carson Kim from Auburn University’s College of Sciences and Mathematics (COSAM) and John Morris, a professor of political science in the College of Liberal Arts, have been selected as this year’s prestigious Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award winners. 

Herring and Kim were selected for their excellence in the classroom and the community, and Morris was chosen for his decades of accomplishment both as a published scholar and a mentor to students. 

The Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award has been presented annually at Auburn since 1951 as a reminder of the noblest human qualities exemplified by Algernon Sydney Sullivan, a prominent humanitarian and first president of the New York Southern Society, now the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation. 

Originally from Auburn, Alabama, Herring earned the Spirit of Auburn Presidential Scholarship and has been a regular on the COSAM Dean’s List. She also has been a Lobby Board member and an at-large senator for the Student Government Association (SGA) and is the current SGA vice president. Herring is a member of The Cater Society, Omicron Delta Kappa and Alpha Epsilon Delta, as well as the Mortar Board, Cardinal Key and Lambda Sigma honor societies.

Herring also was a policy intern for Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and has been a student alumni ambassador for the Auburn Alumni Association, a recruiter for Auburn Athletics and the alumnae relations coordinator for Chi Omega. A 4.0 student who has dedicated hundreds of hours of service to area medical facilities, Herring will pursue a medical degree at the University of Alabama at Birmingham upon graduation. 

A Gardendale, Alabama, native, Kim has excelled in the biomedical sciences pre-dental program, balancing a challenging academic regimen with extensive community involvement. He is president of the COSAM Pre-Dental Association, vice president of COSAM Leaders and is a member of the Mortar Board and Omicron Delta Kappa honor societies. He has coordinated the packaging of more than 1,200 meals for the Food Bank of East Alabama, served as shift leader at Campus Kitchens and served as volunteer youth wrestling coach at Vicious Wrestling Academy and an assistant wrestling coach at Gardendale High School. 

Kim also has worked with individuals with intellectual disabilities through the Best Buddies program and exhibited humanitarian leadership at His Place, a recovery program for individuals battling drug and alcohol addiction. The Sloan Y. Bashinsky Sr. Endowed Scholarship recipient, Kim also earned the Spirit of Auburn Presidential Scholarship and has served as an Honors College ambassador and a student recruiter at Auburn. 

A three-time Auburn graduate, Morris is one of the most highly regarded faculty members and researchers in his field. With more than 1,000 career citations on Google Scholar and nearly $1 million in grant and contract funding, he is among the nation’s elite Public Administration and Public Policy faculty and is endlessly committed to his students. 

The author of 12 books and more than 120 scholarly articles, Morris has published papers with more than 40 different doctoral and graduate students and has helped students earn more than $125,000 in scholarships. 

A committed mentor, he created Student of the Year awards for graduate and doctoral students and works tirelessly to cultivate proteg é s and create opportunities for his students. On the Plains, at Mississippi State University and Old Dominion University, students have benefited from his guidance, instruction and generosity for nearly three decades. He has been nominated for or won dozens of teaching awards at all three institutions. Morris also is dedicated to outreach, working with groups ranging from the National Election Center to the Center for Governmental Services at Auburn.

Special scholarship

Ty Torbert from the College of Agriculture is this year’s W. James Samford Jr. ’72 Memorial Scholarship recipient. The scholarship is named in memory of James Samford, a 1972 alumnus and Board of Trustees member from 1987 until his death in 2003. Preference is given to juniors who have completed at least 61 but no more than 89 semester hours, and the scholarship committee also considers candidates’ philanthropic and leadership activities. 

Originally from Dothan, Alabama, Torbert is a multiple-time Agriculture Dean’s List honoree, a Spirit of Auburn Founder’s Scholar, a Financial Accounting STAR, past Dothan Rotary Club Scholar, ALFA Scholar and Burger King Scholar. The Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity member has been heavily involved in SGA during his time on the Plains and has served as a Camp War Eagle counselor and a student recruiter. He also has volunteered at campus outreach events ranging from Hey Day and Safety Walk to Creed Day and Ring Night. 

Torbert has approximately 350 registered community service hours and is involved with Onward Campus Ministry. He plans to intern with Birmingham International Forestry Products as a commodity trading trainee this summer.

The President’s Award recognizes one graduate in each college who has completed at least three semesters at Auburn with a minimum grade-point average of 3.40 and possesses outstanding qualities of leadership, citizenship, character and promise of professional ability. All honorees were celebrated at an annual ceremony. 

This year’s President’s Award honorees are: 

Steven Duy Mai, College of Agriculture 

Cody Neill Fuller, College of Architecture, Design and Construction 

Mia Leela Nathan, Raymond J. Harbert College of Business 

Madeline Grace Burdette, College of Education 

Carolina Vellenich Triboni, Samuel Ginn College of Engineering 

Alexandra Grace McGrew, College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment 

Rudy Maroun Al Ahmar, Graduate School 

Elizabeth Claire Congo, College of Human Sciences 

Victoria Lee Ashley, College of Liberal Arts 

Anna Christine Donegan, College of Nursing 

Briley Amanda LaDawn Graves, Harrison College of Pharmacy 

Carolyn Medora Herring, College of Sciences and Mathematics 

Sybil Elizabeth “Bea” Timms, College of Veterinary Medicine