Two Nunn School Students Honored with Ivan Allen Legacy Awards

Posted February 19, 2020

Abigail Burke, an Economics and International Affairs student in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs and School of Economics, and Rana Shabb, a doctoral candidate in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, have been named the 2020 Ivan Allen College Legacy Award recipients. 

The award honors faculty and students whose lives embody the spirit of Ivan Allen Jr, a Georgia Tech alumnus. The College champions teaching, research, and service that encompass Mayor Allen’s policies and values around courage, ethical action, and social justice. Both Shabb and Burke were nominated for their academic excellence, leadership, engagements, and extracurricular activities. 

As a doctoral student, Rana Shabb received numerous accolades, including the Presidential Fellowship, the Sam Nunn Security Fellowship, a Ph.D. Research Award, as well as a travel grant from the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA). In the fall of 2017, Shabb taught the Introduction to Global Development to 50 undergraduate students and received nearly perfect course instructor opinion survey scores. Shabb’s research focuses on the role of the private sector in civil conflict, and she published an op-ed on the topic in the Lebanese newspaper, The Daily Star. 

Abigail Burke has earned Faculty Honors multiple times for her 4.0 GPA, and she has been on the Dean’s List on several occasions. She is actively involved in student organizations across campus, including the Ivan Allen College Ambassador program, First-Year Leadership Organization, Ramblin’ Reps, and Student Government Association (SGA). As the SGA undergraduate representative, she was selected “Representative of the Week” for courage to voice her opinions. Professionally, Burke interned at the Carter Center.  She was subsequently promoted to a full-time program assistant with the Democracy Program, where she managed two interns. 

The Sam Nunn School of International Affairs is very proud of the accomplishments and trajectories of both Burke and Shabb. “These two students are clearly on the move in their own ways, and deserve special recognition for their intellectual achievements as much as their entrepreneurial zeal at leveraging the opportunities before them. They are not only fine credit to the program, but models for future cohorts,” according to Professor Adam N. Stulberg, Chair of the Nunn School. These students are demonstrating academic excellence in the classroom, leading student organizations, volunteering, and preparing to become global policy makers who will tackle the 21st Century challenges. 

On March 25, Shabb and Burke will be honored at the Academy of Medicine with a Frabel glass sculpture and a stipend of $1,000.

To learn more about the Ivan Allen Legacy Awards, please visit the Ivan Allen College website.