Riley H. Pittman Awards in Sociology and Social Work

The Riley H. Pittman Outstanding Student Award is available through the University of Central Missouri Alumni Foundation for the student pursuing a degree within the Department of Sociology and Social Work. The awards are made possible by way of a generous gift from the estate of Dr. Riley H. Pittman.

Dr. Riley H. Pittman earned his undergraduate degree at Texas Christian University, and his Master of Divinity and Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Chicago. From 1946 to 1953, he taught sociology and religion courses at Drake University. In 1954, he went to work for the State of Illinois in their Human Resources Department. In 1957, he was recruited by Central Missouri State College to teach sociology with the specific charge to develop a sociology program. He began by offering 20 hours of sociology; he taught most of the classes and used faculty from other social science departments to teach the rest. During his tenure as chair from 1957 to 1971, the program grew from the original 20 hours to include a minor in sociology, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, and Master of Arts degrees.

In 1971, he stepped down as chair and returned to full-time teaching until his retirement in 1976. Since that time the department has grown to include the Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Science in Social Gerontology degrees. After his retirement, a fund was established at a financial institution in Warrensburg to honor outstanding students. It began with generous personal gifts from Dr. and Mrs. Pittman, their friends, and colleagues. Always the entrepreneur, Dr. Pittman supplemented it with additional funding generated from the sale of a book he wrote called, “Pitticisms” (which he described as one-liners for all occasions), and a “Variety Show” featuring some “not-so-talented faculty members”. The result of this effort is this award, given to an outstanding student in each of the Department of Sociology and Social Work’s program areas.

CRITERIA FOR NOMINATION:
The faculty in any of the following program areas may nominate students: undergraduate sociology, social work, graduate sociology, and social gerontology. Nominations must be submitted to the Chair, Department of Sociology and Social Work and received by March 31. Awards will be announced no later than May 15 of any given year.

Criteria for nomination include:

• excellence in class-related activities;
• quality oral and written work;
• good leadership skills; and
• a belief that the student will represent UCM well in her/his chosen profession.