Past Graduate Award Winners

2022 Winners 2021 Winners 2020 Winners 2019 Winners

A listing of graduate award winners, event information, and event photos from the past four years are available below.

View previous graduate award winners.

2022 Graduate Award Winners

The winners for 2022 are as follows:

Robert P. Guertin Student Leadership Award
- Gloria Huangpu (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
Rob Hollister Award for Community Service and Citizenship
- Kayla Patel (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
GSAS Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Heather Urry (Psychology)
SOE Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Ron Lasser (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Samuel Liggero (Gordon Institute)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Veritas Gassmann (Physics and Astronomy)
- Victoria Sharpe (Psychology)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education
- Jacqueline Ludwig (Biology)
- Jo Rezes (Theatre and Performance Studies)
- Alia Wulff (Psychology)
SoE Award for Outstanding Graduate Contributor to Engineering Education
- Nilay Vora (Biomedical Engineering)
SoE Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Giles Blaney (Biomedical Engineering)
- Rahul Rajendran (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Shishir Rao (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
Department of the History of Art and Art Architecture – Rhonda Saad Graduate Prize
- Atineh Movsesian
- Franklin Redner
Department of Child Study and Human Development – Eliot-Pearson Master’s and Doctoral Research Practice Integration Awards in Child Study and Human Development
- Julius Anastasio (Doctoral Level)
- Lok-Wah Li (Doctoral Level)
- Sarah Merisier (Master’s Level – Applied Award)
Department of Classical Studies – Sarah Plummer Memorial Prize
- Iván Montalvo Duque
Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies – Professor Kalman A. Burnim Prize for Scholarly Excellence in Drama and Dance
- Mia Levenson
Department of Mathematics – Mary Glaser Distinguished Teaching Prize for Graduate Students in Mathematics
- Casey Cavanaugh
- Christopher Guevara
Department of Occupational Therapy – Marjorie B. Greene Award
- Sarah Grey
Department of Psychology – Innovations in Psychological Science Award
- Julia Mertens
- Samer Nour Eddine
Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning – Ann Urosevich Outstanding Student Award in Policy and Planning
- Shravanthi Gopalan Narayanan
- Joshua Petro

Graduate Student Council (GSC) Awards

Outstanding Faculty Contribution to Graduate Education
- James Van Deventer (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Undergraduate Education
- Elisabetta Ruggeri (Biomedical Engineering: Math, Science, & Engineering)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Diversity and Inclusion
- Parnian Mokri (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
Outstanding Graduate Student Organization
- Graduate Society of Women Engineers (GSWE)
Graduate Student Council Service Awards
- Administration: Erica Schonman (Health Services)
- Student: Nigel Kidder-Wolff (Chemistry)

Graduate Alumni Awards

GSAS Outstanding Career Achievement Award
- Celia Rumsey, J’84, AG‘90
GSAS Outstanding Service Award
- Allentza Michel, AG’15
SOE Outstanding Career Achievement Award
- Henry Finneral, EG’99

2021 Graduate Awards

The winners for 2021 are as follows:

Robert P. Guertin Student Leadership Award
- Breanna Duffy (Biomedical Engineering)
Rob Hollister Award for Community Service and Citizenship
- Cecilia Hinojosa (Psychology)
GSAS Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Noe Montez (Theatre and Performance Studies)
SOE Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Luisa Chiesa (Mechanical Engineering)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Julia Beebe (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
- Andrew Clark (Physics and Astronomy)
- Tyler Farmer (Philosophy)
- Kathleen Sicinski (Chemistry)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education
- Itamar Allali (Physics and Astronomy)
- Patrece Joseph (Child Study and Human Development)
SoE Award for Outstanding Graduate Contributor to Engineering Education
- Emily Carlson (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Ab Mosca (Computer Science)
SoE Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Tyler Morris (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Rachel Owyeung (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
- Natalie Rubio (Biomedical Engineering)
- Jessica Stieglitz (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
- Morgan Taylor (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Department of the History of Art and Art Architecture – Rhonda Saad Graduate Prize
- Natalie Gearin
Department of Child Study and Human Development – Eliot-Pearson Master’s and Doctoral Research Practice Integration Awards in Child Study and Human Development
- Elizabeth Hunt (Master’s Level – Thesis Award)
- Grace Murphy (Master’s Level – Applied Award)
- Patrece Joseph (Doctoral Level)
Department of Classical Studies – Sarah Plummer Memorial Prize
- Zachary Fletcher
Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies – Professor Kalman A. Burnim Prize for Scholarly Excellence in Drama and Dance
- Tara Brooke Watkins
Department of Mathematics – Mary Glaser Distinguished Teaching Prize for Graduate Students in Mathematics
- Merek Johnson
- Daniel Keliher
Department of Occupational Therapy – Marjorie B. Greene Award
- Augusta Polhemus
Department of Psychology – Innovations in Psychological Science Award
- Paige Hickey
- Aeroelay Chyei Vinluan
Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning – Ann Urosevich Outstanding Student Award in Policy and Planning
- Rebecca Eidelman

Additional Department Awards:

Department of Occupational Therapy – Bekenstein Family EndowmentDaniela Chavez Hernandez
- Victoria D'Ortenzio
- Sarah Grey
- Katherine LaMarre
- Katelyn Loring
- Sarah Lubic
- Emily Machado
- Dennise Peary
- Hailey Pister
- Jordan Soucy
Department of Occupational Therapy – Joy Ann Greisen Scholarship
- Jenna Becker
- Grace Connolly

Graduate Student Council (GSC) Awards

Outstanding Faculty Contribution to Graduate Studies
Kareem Khubchandani (Theatre, Dance and Performance Studies)
James Van Deventer (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Mentoring or Teaching Undergraduates
Daria Clark (Biology)
Outstanding Graduate Student Organization
Graduate Society of Women Engineers (GSWE)
Tufts Pollinator Initiative (TPI)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Diversity and Inclusion
Jessica Stieglitz (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Graduate Student Council Service Awards
Administration: Emily Edwards (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Student: Katelyn Loring (Occupational Therapy; Graduate Student Council)

15 Minute Talks
- Genevieve Pugesek, Biology (First Place), Ryan Hannagan, Chemistry (Second Place), Justin Birudavol, Child Study and Human Development (Third Place)
3 Minute Talks
- Thanh Will Le, Biomedical Engineering (First Place), Veronica Lima Gonsalez, Civil and Environmental Engineering (Second Place)
- Poster Session
- Jessica Rocha, Child Study and Human Development (First Place), Hannah Riehl, Child Study and Human Development (Second Place), Cecilia Hinojosa, Psychology (Third Place)
Art Exhibition
- Alexandra Khristich, Biology, and Khushbu Kshirsagar, Education

Graduate Student Research Competition

The Graduate Student Research Competition supports graduate students by providing funding for expenses of travel to conducting research. Funding is competitive and is based on the significance of the research and the clarity of the proposal.

Fall 2022

Simone Dufresne (Child Study and Human Development)
Melissa Gordon (UEP)
Yuexing Hao (Computer Science)
Hyejin Im (Human Factors Engineering)
Khushbu Kshirsagar (Education)
Juyon Lee (Studio Art)
Monsurat Olaosebikan (Computer Science)
Raea Rasmussen (Psychology)
Camila Sánchez-Longo (Studio Art)
Haitao Wang (History)
Xihan Yang (Child Study and Human Development)

Spring 2021

Spring 2021 Winners
TBD

2020 Graduate Awards

The 2020 Graduate Awards Ceremony is postponed for the time-being. Information on the rescheduled date will be shared with the community as soon as possible.

The winners for 2020 are as follows:

Robert P. Guertin Student Leadership Award
- Zijing Sylvia Chen (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Rob Hollister Award for Community Service and Citizenship
- Zoe Ackerman (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
GSAS Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Modhumita Roy (English)
SOE Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Erica Kemmerling (Mechanical Engineering)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Yuxian Chen (Economics)
- Mudit Jain (Physics)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education
- Renee DeCaro (Psychology)
- Alec Drobac (Physics and Astronomy)
SoE Award for Outstanding Graduate Contributor to Engineering Education
- Matthew Ahrens (Computer Science)
- Srijith Rajeev (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Sara Wilner-Giwerc (Mechanical Engineering)
SoE Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Amin Dehkharghani (Mechanical Engineering)
- Shreyas Kamath (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
- Matthew Watson (Mechanical Engineering)
Department of the History of Art and Art Architecture – Rhonda Saad Graduate Prize
- Micayla Bransfield
- Emily Chun
Department of Child Study and Human Development – Eliot-Pearson Master’s and Doctoral Research Practice Integration Awards in Child Study and Human Development
- Jessica Somogie (Master’s Level – Thesis Award)
- Nicholas Woolf (Master’s Level – Applied Award)
- Lauren Stargel (Doctoral Level)
Department of Classical Studies – Sarah Plummer Memorial Prize
- Kacey King
Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies – Professor Kalman A. Burnim Prize for Scholarly Excellence in Drama and Dance
- Yizhou Huang
Department of Occupational Therapy – Marjorie B. Greene Award
- Mary Gawron
Department of Psychology – Innovations in Psychological Science Award
- Gregory Hughes
- Rebecca Peretz-Lange
Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning – Ann Urosevich Outstanding Student Award in Policy and Planning
- Megan Morrow

Additional Department Awards:

Department of Occupational Therapy – Bekenstein Family Endowment
- Zahera Ali
- Caitlin Blaine
- Louisa Bradberry
- Teaghan Fallon
- Mary Gawron
- Katherine Grove
- Taylor Harris
- Sara Heath
- Amanda Huang
- Evan Hunter
- Jasmine Jean
- Kristen Kurihara
- Anais Lugo-Guercio
- Megan Maloney
- Erin McConnell
- Kara McSheehy
- Patricia Mygas
- Meaghan O'Connell
- Lia Stratton
- Amy Wilson
- Ruth Yeh
- Miranda Zenni
Department of Occupational Therapy – Joy Ann Greisen Scholarship
- Louisa Bradberry
- Teaghan Fallon
- Sara Heath
Department of Occupational Therapy – Helen Smith Scholarship
- Mary Gawron

Graduate Student Council (GSC) Awards

Outstanding Faculty Contribution to Graduate Studies
- Jon Witten (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Mentoring or Teaching Undergraduates
- Harry Hoke (Theatre and Performance Studies)
Outstanding Graduate Student Organization
- Student Occupational Therapy Association (SOTA)
- Graduate Society of Women Engineers (GSWE)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Diversity and Inclusion
- Gabriela Garcia (Biology, Graduate of Arts and Sciences Community Fellow)
- Anais Lugo-Guercio (Occupational Therapy, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Community Fellow)
Graduate Student Council Service Awards
- Administration: Margaret DeChiaro (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
- Student: Morgan Taylor (Chemical and Biological Engineering; Graduate Student Council)

3 Minute Thesis (3MT) Winners
- Natalie Rubio, Biomedical Engineering (First Place), Sam Lasser, Computer Science (Second Place), Andrew Clark, Physics and Astronomy (Third Place), Jessica Stieglitz, Chemical and Biological Engineering (People's Choice)
Graduate Student Research Symposium Winners
- 15 Minute Talks:
  - Genevieve Pugesek, Biology (First Place)
  - Ryan Hannagan, Chemistry (Second Place)
  - Justin Birudavol, Child Study and Human Development (Third Place)
- 3 Minute Talks
  - Thanh Will Le, Biomedical Engineering (First Place), Veronica Lima Gonsalez, Civil and Environmental Engineering (Second Place)
  - Poster Session
    - Jessica Rocha, Child Study and Human Development (First Place), Hannah Riehl, Child Study and Human Development (Second Place), Cecilia Hinojosa, Psychology (Third Place)
- Art Exhibition
  - Alexandra Khristich, Biology, and Khushbu Kshirsagar, Education

Graduate Student Research Competition

Fall 2019 Winners

Janani Baskaran (Biomedical Engineering)
Justin Birudavol (Child Study and Human Development)
Nathaniel Braddock (Music)
Gabriela Garcia (Biology)
Yizhou Huang (Theatre and Performance Studies)
Juyon Lee (Fine Arts)
Jiayi Liu (Child Study and Human Development)
Joanna McQuade (English)
Isaac Mudge (Civil and Environmental Engineering)
Yerin Park (Child Study and Human Development)
Nick Pittman (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
Arlinda Rezhdo (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Jessica Rocha (Child Study and Human Development)
Asha Tall (English)

Spring 2020 Winners

2019 Graduate Awards

The 2019 Graduate Awards Ceremony was held on April 26, 2019 in Distler Hall, Granoff Music Center.

The winners for 2019 are as follows:

Robert P. Guertin Student Leadership Award
- Alice Maggio (Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning)
Rob Hollister Award for Community Service and Citizenship
- Natalie Dillon (Occupational Therapy)
GSAS Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Keith Maddox (Psychology)
SOE Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award
- Kristen Bethke Wendell (Mechanical Engineering)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Rachael Barrett (History and Museum Studies)
- Ali-Reza Mirsajadi (Theater and Performance Studies)
GSAS Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education
- Chelsea Crittle (Psychology)
- Brenna Gormally (Biology)
SoE Award for Outstanding Graduate Contributor to Engineering Education
- Amin Nozari (Mechanical Engineering)
SoE Award for Outstanding Academic Scholarship
- Federica Pierro (Mechanical Engineering)
- Marlene Wolfe (Civil and Environmental Engineering)
SoE Award for Commitment to the Practice of Engineering
- Jon Manninen (Electrical Engineering)
Department of Art and Art History – Rhonda Saad Graduate Prize
- Earnestine Qiu
- Marina Schneider
Department of Child Study and Human Development – Eliot-Pearson Master’s and Doctoral Research Practice Integration Awards in Child Study and Human Development
- Jeremiah Powers (Master’s Level – Thesis Award)
- Lily Samuel (Master’s Level – Applied Award)
- Belinda Tanuwijaya (Master’s Level – Applied Award)
- Amanda Strawhacker (Doctoral Level)
Department of Classics and Classical Archaeology – Sarah Plummer Memorial Prize
- Katherine Cottrell
Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies – Professor Kalman A. Burnim Prize for Scholarly Excellence in Drama and Dance
- Ali-Reza Mirsajadi
Department of Occupational Therapy – Marjorie B. Greene Award
- Charlotte Davis
Department of Psychology – Innovations in Psychological Science Award
- Gizem Altheimer
- Emily Newman
Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning – Outstanding Student Award in Policy and Planning
- Carolyn Meklenburg

Additional Department Awards (not included in awards ceremony):

Department of Occupational Therapy – Bekenstein Family Endowment
- Maryam Abutaleb
- Trevor Bryant
- Zhiqing Chen
- Kathryn Colleran
- Charlotte Davis
- Rebecca Hutt
- Jiennie Kim
- Denise LaRocca
- Augusta Polhemus
- Larry Scannell
- Colleen Smith
- Caroline Ward
- Doris Yu
Department of Occupational Therapy – Joy Ann Greisen Scholarship
- Celine Tsui
- Natalie Dillon
Department of Occupational Therapy – Virginia Auty Nedved-Cook Student Research Fund
- Denise LaRocca
- David McElroy
- Amber Murray-Smith
- Ryan Whitney
Department of Occupational Therapy – Helen Smith Scholarship
- Lindsey Hoffman

Graduate Student Council (GSC) Awards

Outstanding Faculty Contribution to Graduate Studies
- Emmanuel Tzanakakis (Chemical and Biological Engineering)
- Heather Urry (Psychology)
Outstanding Graduate Contribution to Mentoring or Teaching Undergraduates
- Eleana Manousiouthakis (Biomedical Engineering)
Outstanding Graduate Student Organization
- Graduate Student Sports Organization
Graduate Student Council Service Awards
- Administration: Kim Ellwood (SOE Dean's Office)
- Student: Jenna Whalen (Biology; Graduate Student Council)
3 Minute Thesis (3MT) Winners
- Alec Drobac, Physics and Astronomy (First Place), Ritwika Mukherjee, Biology (Second Place), Victor Adegboye, Mechanical Engineering (Third Place), Sasha Khristich, Biology (People’s Choice)
Graduate Student Research Symposium Winners
- 15 Minute Talks
  - Eric Scott, Biology (First Place), Christopher Luby, Chemistry (Second Place), Sasha Khristich, Biology (Third Place)
- Poster Session
  - Keith Baillargeon, Chemistry (First Place), Nicholas Dorian, Biology (Second Place), Fakhteh Saadatniaki, Electrical Engineering (Third Place)

Graduate Student Research Competition

Fall 2018 Winners

Nicholas Dorian (Biology)
Tathagata Dutta (History)
Brenna Gormally (Biology)
Willoughby Hastings (Studio Art)
Lindsay Hinzman (Psychology)
Shreyas Kamath (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
Esther Miller (Biology)
Maria Veronica Mingo (Child Study and Human Development)
Kalina Nedkova (Physics and Astronomy)
Kelsey Petersen (Art History and Museum Studies)
Srijith Rajeev (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
Aeroelay Chyei Vinluan (Psychology)
Qianwen Wan (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
Natalya Zaika (Child Study and Human Development)

Spring 2019 Winners

Chelsey Becker (Studio Art)
Nathaniel Braddock (Music)
Brendan Carson (Biology)
Andrew Clark (Physics and Astronomy)
Chelsea Crittle (Psychology)
Bradley DeMatteo (Music)
Talya Feldman (Studio Art)
Maria Garay (Psychology)
Justinne Guarin (Biomedical Engineering)
Cecilia Hinojosa (Psychology)
Paulina MacNeil (Studio Art)
Michael Mandelkorn (History)
Gina Mantica (Biology)
Joanna McQuade (English)
Julia Mertens (Psychology)
Emily Newman (Psychology)
Rebecca Peretz-Lange (Psychology)
Neelum Sohail (History)
Lauren Stargel (Child Study and Human Development)
Lena Warnke (Psychology)

Graduate Alumni Awards

GSAS Outstanding Career and Service Achievement Award
- James Kanagy, AG73
- Thomas Varkey, AG92
SOE Outstanding Career Achievement Award
- Linda Borghesani, E88, EG90
SOE Outstanding Service Award
- Ahn Dao Tran-Moseman, E90, EG93