Zimmerman Fellows

Zimmerman Fellows

Spring 2017 Zimmerman Fellows: (L-R) Rose Horowitz, Julia Cromwell & Meg Harney with Profs. Wilmer, Chen, & Kulik-Johnson

Named as a tribute to Psychology faculty member Claire Zimmerman, the Zimmerman Fellowship Program recognizes outstanding students whose hard work ethic, engagement in Psychology, and leadership skills demonstrate the potential to contribute to the Psychology Department as teaching fellows for Psychology 101.

Claire Zimmerman was a 57-year member of the Wellesley College Psychology Department whose boundless energy and passion for teaching Psychology influenced generations of Wellesley students. In 1983, Professor Zimmerman was awarded the Anna and Samuel Pinanski Teaching Prize with her citation highlighting her “extraordinary pedagogical energy and inventiveness” and her “uncanny ability to ‘read’ [her students] as the individuals they are.” Her popular introductory psychology course encouraged students to connect psychological concepts with social, cultural and political events in the real world.  

The Claire Zimmerman Fellowship Program creates a permanent means of recognizing her commitment to the College, to the Psychology Department and in particular to her students in Introduction to Psychology.  This Fellowship is presented annually to students who demonstrate excellence in Psychology and the ability to share with their peers the kind of enthusiastic engagement that was the hallmark of Professor Zimmerman’s teaching.