Certificates, Degrees, and Prizes Awarded During 2025 Graduation

Hartford International University for Religion and Peace awarded 52 degrees and certificates at our Graduation Ceremony on Thursday, May 15. 

During the ceremony, Imam Nasaruddin Umar, Minister of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, was awarded an honorary degree. Guests in attendance included Dr. Hafid Abbas, Chair of the Indonesian Association of Community Education, and Winanto Adi, Consul General for the Republic of Indonesia, as well as several rectors of Indonesian universities. 

PLEASE NOTE: Photographs from our professional photographer will be available for download next week. Graduates will receive instructions on how to access them. A video of the entire ceremony can be viewed below.

Each year, the faculty awards scholarship prizes. But this year, HIU also received a prize. An Impact Award was presented to HIU by Chaplain Muhammad Abbass Soumaoro, on behalf of the 2025 Graduating Class of Military Chaplains.

For the other prizes, student were nonimated by the faculty in areas that reflect the history, identity, and values of Hartford International University. 

Dr. Allison Norton, Associate Professor of Migration Studies and Congregational Life, Co-Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program, and Co-Director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research and Chaplain Aida Mansoor Instructor of Chaplaincy and Director of Field Education announced the awards.

• The Hartranft Prize is awarded to the degree program student who has “demonstrated excellence in written expression.” The prize is named for Chester David Hartranft, President of the Seminary from 1889 to 1903 and Professor of Biblical and Ecclesiastical History for 36 years. Our recipient this year was John Lund, nominated by Dr. Jan Fuller.
   
• The Ibrahim Abu Rabi Prize is awarded to a student whose proficiency in Christian-Muslim Studies or commitment to interreligious relations is noteworthy. The prize is named for the highly respected Professor of Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations at HIU, 1991–2008, and the first Muslim in the U.S. to hold such a post. This prize went to Hayden Shaw, nominated by Dr. David D. Grafton.
   
• The Mahmoud Ayoub Prize is awarded to a degree-program student who has demonstrated notable proficiency in Islamic Studies. The prize is named for a beloved Shia scholar who served HIU as a Faculty Associate of Christian-Muslim Relations for many years. This prize went to MD Kamrul Hassan, nominated by Dr. David D. Grafton.
   
• The Adelaide Locke Prize is awarded to a degree program student who “has demonstrated notable proficiency or interest in the field of scriptural studies.” The prize is in the name of Adelaide Locke who was part of the second class of women admitted fulltime in 1892, and captured the Hebrew, Greek, and Theology prizes during her studies. She served as the Professor of Biblical History at Wellesley College until 1924. This prize went to Hina Athar Khan, nominated by Phoebe Miliken and Aida Mansoor. 
   
• The Ephraim Isaac Leadership Awards are given to MAP students who bring to their peacebuilding work the qualities of perseverance, compassion for others, and respect for traditional wisdom exemplified by Dr. Isaac.  This year, we are giving two Ephraim Isaac Leadership Awards.  

Abdullahi Jalloh received the award for his tireless work to transform the chieftaincy crisis in Fullamansa and Sagalireh (sa-GA-leer-ray), Sierra Leone.  Even while here in the US, Jalloh has navigated the difficult position of being both a party in this conflict and advocating for peaceful processes to settle questions of leadership and the location of a new secondary school. 

The second Ephraim Isaac award went to Hannah Belsky. Hannah is receiving this award for work to promote understanding of diverse perspectives on Israel-Palestine within the Jewish community and to communicate about Jewish pluralism to people of other faiths. Hannah engages both empathetically and critically with a range of Jewish organizations.  Hannah was also an organizer of the Iftar-Shabbat this spring.

• The final award is an interfaith service award known as the Celie J. Terry Prize, awarded to a student or students who demonstrate a commitment to academic achievement and excellence in interfaith community work in his or her local context. This prize is given in honor of a cherished employee of Mr. Sanford Cloud, Jr., who is a former chair of the HIU board of trustees. The award is a monetary prize in addition to copies of the sacred texts from the three Abrahamic faiths. Balqis Moussa and Ali Saeed received the award, nominated by Phoebe Milliken.

Congratulations to our graduates!