The Counseling Research Excellence Award is presented to the graduate counseling student who has demonstrated excellence in research.  This year's recipient is Laura Hogan.  Laura graduated from Tulane University in spring of 2007 with a B.S. in Psychology. She then served for one year as an Americorp Volunteer at The Good Shepherd School before she began taking classes at Loyola University in fall of 2008, becoming a Graduate Assistant in her first year.  Laura has submitted several research proposals independently, and was recently accepted to present a paper at the Louisiana Association for Marriage and Family Therapists.  She has submitted additional papers for presentation to the Louisiana Counseling Association and the American Counseling Association, and she has expressed interest in having one or more of her research projects published in a journal.  The faculty is impressed with her strong interest in research and self-motivation.