Congratulations to Bryan Reatini (Todd Vision’s lab), who has recently been awarded a “Fulbright Fellowship” and also a “Society for the Study of Evolution Graduate Research Excellence Grant (GREG)” – R.C. Lewontin Early Award.”
Congratulations to these Biology Honors students who received the indicated designations this spring upon completion of their Honors Thesis projects.
HIGHEST HONORS IN BIOLOGY: ALISON BONNER, ALEXANDER DAVIS, CLAIRE DRYSDALE, BRYAN GERBER (Fall 2017), TREVOR MCPHERSON, HALLE RONK, CATHLEEN RUECKEIS, LENO SMITH, CAROLINE TARALLO, LUYU WANG, SHAN YU, and CHASE YUAN.
HONORS IN BIOLOGY: SHAILY AGHERA, SETH ALEXANDER, MADISON BUTLER, SAMUEL CHAO, KIRSTEN CHEN, MARCO FANOUS, HANNAH JAGGERS, NICHOLAS KEITH, MAKAYLA LUND, FALECIA METCALF, CAITLIN MOFFATT, LYNDSEY MOORE, JEREMY MOROWITZ, REBECCA NOTINI, DANNY OH, ANNALEIGH POWELL, ADARSH RAO, CAROLYN RAPP, ZACHARY ROBBE, SCOTTIE SACKETT, SOPHIA SHWARTZ, DIVYA VENKATASUBRAMANIAN, and KRISTIN WEISS
Stephen Brantley Award – CLAIRE DRYSDALE
The Brantley Award is given to a senior biology major for excellence in research in molecular, cell, and developmental Biology.
Robert Coker Award – ALEXANDER DAVIS
The Coker Award is given to a senior biology major for excellence in research in organismal biology and ecology.
John Couch Award – LUYU WANG
The Couch Award is given to a senior biology major with interests in plant biology who has demonstrated the highest ideals of scholarship and research.
Lawrence Gilbert Award – KARA RITTERPUSCH and CAROLINE TARALLO
The Gilbert Award is given to two senior biology majors for excellence in serving as a supplemental instructor, peer mentor, or tutor in a Biology class.
Irvin Hagadorn Award – ALICIA CHEN
The Hagadorn Award is given to the top junior biology major based on academic and research excellence. (This award was presented by Chancellor Carol Folt at the Spring 2018 Chancellor’s Awards Ceremony.)
Frances LeClair Award – PATRICK WINNER
The LeClair Award is given to a senior biology major for academic excellence in biology with an emphasis in plant sciences.
Jane Pearce, a Junior Biology major, recently won first place and $1,500 in the 13th Annual American Association for Cancer Research Undergraduate Student Caucus and Poster Competition. This international meeting was held in Chicago and was attended by 22,000 cancer researchers. As the First Place Winner of the “Margaret Foti Foundation Undergraduate Prizes for Cancer Research,” Jane’s poster was judged based on her abstract, the research content of the poster, and on her ability to effectively answer questions about her work during the poster presentation. Jane works in the lab of Dr. Stephen D. Hursting in the Nutrition Department, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health.
Congratulations to Kelly Hogan, who was featured in a “Teaching in Higher Ed” podcast along with her Psychology and Neuroscience collegure Viji Sathy. In the podcast, Hogan and Sathy describe how interactivity and inclusivity can help close the achievement gap. The podcast was also accompanied by a blog.
Congratulations to Vincent Boudreau (PhD student in the lab of Paul Maddox) and Carlos Patiño Descovich (former member of Amy Maddox’s lab, currently a PhD student in Scott Williams’ lab), who will both be inducted into the “Frank Porter Graham Honor Society.” The Honor Society (FPGHS) recognizes outstanding service provided to the University and community and includes a very select group of faculty and graduate students. The contributions to research science by Vincent and Carlos are deeply appreciated by their peers and colleagues. Their contributions include research discoveries, computer vision software, and orchestrating conferences including the popular Triangle Cytoskeleton Meeting.
Congratulations to Teaching Professor Dr. Jean DeSaix, who was recently honored by the Department of Biology for her many years of service and teaching excellence. Current and former colleagues, friends, family, and students were all able to share their appreciation for her years of dedication to UNC and to the Department of Biology. Also in attendance were UNC Chancellor Carol A. Folt, UNC College of Arts & Sciences Dean Kevin Guskiewicz, and Senior Associate Dean Christopher Clemens. Additionally, the “Jean DeSaix Excellence in Teaching Fund” has been established to recognize Dr. DeSaix’s outstanding contributions to the department and the students whose lives she has touched. This fund will provide professional development awards for teaching faculty, and excellence awards to undergraduate and graduate students who support our teaching mission. Donations to the fund may be made online through the Arts & Sciences Foundation.
Congratulations to Dr. Justin Watkins (postdoc in Alan Jones’s Lab) who has been selected as a “3-yr SPIRE Fellow” beginning Sept 1st, 2018. The mission of “Seeding Postdoctoral Innovators in Research & Education” (SPIRE) is to provide multi-dimensional professional development for science researchers and educators to succeed in academic careers, to bring engaging teaching methods into the classroom, and to increase diversity in science professions.
Congratulations to these UNC-CH students, enrolled as Biology majors or minors, for their induction into Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest academic honor society. At the induction ceremony, new members receive certificates and Phi Beta Kappa keys, the organization’s symbol.
The new inductees are:
Courtney Elizabeth Cash, Angelo Ibrahim Chaia, Christian Jaeger Cook, Adelaide Rosalie Cooke, Brittany Cooper, Christiana Maria Cornea, Abigail Ann Drees, Khushnood Faraz, Briana Notterpek Fletcher, Hannah Rose Frediani, Franklin Richard Gergoudis, Tate Elizabeth Giddens, Marwan Ayman Hawari, Madisyn Ann Hill, Emily Susan Hollis, Sara Elaine Hudson, Kristin Michelle Isabell, Hannah Jaggers, Lindsay Gayle Jones, Gauri Joshi, Alexander Y.Z. Li, Zijin Lin, Jiacheng Liu, Frances Lee Mueller, Abigail R. Needell, Grace Elizabeth Nipp, Megan Rose Ogorchock, Jane Bradford Pearce, Carlos Antonio Perez-Heydrich, Lindsay Ann Player, Ashley Anne Privette, Samuel Lawrence Mulkern Raines, Kaitlin Eileen Sanzone, Ishan Jay Shah, Anna Catherine Silver, Hudson Duval Spangler, Nicholas McDaniel Teague, Kailyn Janelle Valido, Madeline Leigh Watson, Clark Alexander Williamson, Daniel Keith Winecoff, and Adrian Leia Wood.
Congratulations to Aaron Comeault (Daniel Matute lab postdoc) who was one of 4 recipients of the prestigious “Jasper Loftus-Hills Young Investigator Awards” from the American Society of Naturalists. The other three award recipients were Rachel Germain, Rachael Bay, and Gijsbert Werner.