The Eller College awarded the 2002 Kalt Prize for Doctoral Placement to Edella Schlager, associate professor of public administration and policy in the School of Public Administration and Policy (SPAP).

Schlager, known for her research on water rights and natural resources, was the dissertation advisor of Tanya Heikkila, who received the Ph.D. in Management from the Eller College in May 2000.

Heikkila spent the past year at Indiana University at Bloomington as a post-doctoral researcher in the prestigious Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis. She has just accepted a position with Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs as assistant professor of earth systems science, policy, and management.

The Kalt Prize was established by Eller College dean, Mark Zupan, in honor of his mentor Joseph Kalt and Kalt's mother Margie Peggs Kalt (a UA alumna). Joseph Kalt, professor of political economy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, was instrumental in Zupan's own decision to pursue a doctorate.

"The professors who inspire and influence the lives of students affect the world in ways too numerous to measure," said Zupan. "The Kalt Prize is just one way to acknowledge and honor the importance of our mentors."