We are very proud of the accomplishments of our graduate students. BSD students have an excellent record of obtaining competitive fellowships, receiving national awards for their research, and publishing findings that move their fields forward. The most recent student accomplishments are shown below.
Xingruo (Summer) Zhang is a third-year student in Public Health Sciences. She shares the Divisional Teaching Assistantship Award for her teaching assistantship in Winter 2022, PBHS 33300, Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis. She was cited for her kindness and warmth to the students, her enthusiasm, and the depth of her knowledge base about the material. Students noted she was proactive in helping both students and instructors as needed, and was very informative and well-organized. Students felt her encouragement and emotional support were very important to their success in the class.
Gabriella Wheeler Fox is a third-year student in the graduate program in Computational Neuroscience. She shares the Divisional Teaching Assistantship Award for her teaching in the undergraduate course Systems Neuroscience, NSCI 20130, in Spring 2022. She was cited for her terrific lecture, her ability to explain course content in new and interesting ways, and her quickness in answering questions. One student noted that Gabriella had gone out of her way to keep the student up to date on content after the student had COVID and ongoing health issues during the quarter, and was incredibly kind.
Diane Schnitkey is a fifth year student in the graduate program in Biophysical Sciences. She shares the Divisional Teaching Assistantship Award for her work in MGCB 32000, Quantitative Analysis of Cellular Dynamics in Spring 2022. She was cited for being super helpful, extremely knowledgeable, and her patience. Her students appreciated her ability to connect with students in a hybrid situation, with both her in-person and virtual students. Other comments stressed her flexibility, her ability to explain difficult concepts, her emails with background information, and her kindness to her students.
The 2021-2022 Dean’s Outstanding Teaching Assistant Prize for the best performance by a BSD graduate student who is TAing in fulfillment of the Divisional Teaching Requirement was awarded to both Amruta Nayak and Rob Rodriguez, both from the graduate program in Cell and Molecular Biology. Rob Rodriguez is a fourth year student in the program in Cell and Molecular Biology. He receives the prize in recognition of his teaching assistantship in MGCB 31400, Genetic Analysis of Model Organisms. The course director, Doug Bishop, noted that “Rob was exceptionally helpful and proactive in helping keep the class organized.” Student comments noted “Really friendly and approachable and helped me so much with studying the class material and working on problem sets. Really clear at explaining. Maintained an encouraging and engaging environment at his office hours. Really knowledgeable at course content.” Another student noted that he was “not condescending when answering questions.” Multiple students noted he would extend office hours when needed during particularly busy/stressful times, as well as noting “He was also really accessible by email outside of class hours, and was always willing to explain as much content as necessary to make sure we understood course content.”
The 2021-2022 Dean’s Outstanding Teaching Assistant Prize for the best performance by a BSD graduate student who is TAing in fulfillment of the Divisional Teaching Requirement was awarded to both Amruta Nayak and Rob Rodriguez, both from the graduate program in Cell and Molecular Biology.
Amruta Nayak is a fifth-year student in the program in Cell and Molecular Biology. She receives the prize in recognition of her teaching assistantship in MGCB 31700, Cell Biology II, in Winter 2022. Comments from both faculty and her students reflected that she went over and beyond the normal teaching assistant duties, showing a devotion to her students that was truly exceptional. One student commented “Amruta has a really good sense of humor. I truly believe that humor is often an overlooked quality, but humor is so important in establishing a comfortable teaching environment that is conducive to learning. Amruta’s humor helped lighten the mood, break the ice, and made me feel more connected to a class of graduate students … Also, I suspect that Amruta was a big part of what held the entire class together, including the parts she was not explicitly in charge of. She is always on our side and she truly is deserving of the best in life.” Another student commented “Amruta created a very comfortable environment for discussions and was able to keep interest high throughout the quarter. She was also able to explain material in a manner which was helpful for both undergraduate and graduate students.” Finally, from a third student, “She made discussion sections fun and helped us with our proposal presentations in a fun and constructive way.”
Paul Maurizio receives the BSD Diversity Equity and Inclusion Award in recognition of Exceptional DEI Leadership and Service from the BSD Diversity Committee (BDC).
Postdoc Paul Maurizio helped found the PAN Asian Student Coalition. He recruited faculty member Dr. Hae Kyung Im to advise the student group and also hired two student interns to assist in group management. Paul’s passion for inclusion is infectious and his energy and enthusiasm has helped many of his fellow trainees feel at home in the BSD.
Rosemary Huggins receives the BSD Diversity Equity and Inclusion Award in recognition of Exceptional DEI Leadership and Service from the BSD Diversity Committee and University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCCCC).
Rosemary Huggins is a member of the Cancer Biology Steering Committee and the “Cancer Research Community Building Committee,” formerly known as the Cancer Biology DEI committee. In these roles, Rosie organized many events to serve our diverse research community. She helped organize visits to cultural heritage museums like the DuSable African American History Museum and the Museum of Mexican American Art. She also created a four-episode podcast called Black in Rx which interviewed researchers and DuSable historians about cancer and health care. Rosie was also instrumental in organizing the DEI book nook with Dr. Wei Jen Tang.
Lizeth Tamayo receives the BSD Diversity Equity and Inclusion Award in recognition of Exceptional DEI Leadership and Service from the BSD Diversity Committee (BDC).
Lizeth is a co-founder of the National Association of LSAMP (Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation) Alumni (NALA). LSAMP is an NSF-funded program meant to increase the representation of marginalized groups in science. As a recipient of LSAMP grant, she co-led an initiative to unite all LSAMP alliances across the country to allow past trainees to stay connected and be a resource for current trainees. Lizeth participated in numerous panel discussions hosted by LSAMP that address topics including women in science, imposter syndrome, and the experience of underrepresented students in graduate education.
Lizeth is also a member of the Graduate Recruit Initiative Team (GRIT). Within GRIT, she co-led an initiative to create a team focused on international and immigrant students.
Juan Ibarra receives the BSD Diversity Equity and Inclusion Award in recognition of Exceptional DEI Leadership and Service from the BSD Diversity Committee (BDC) and the UChicago Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCCCC).
Juan is passionate about playing a leadership role in deconstructing institutionalized forms of racism/exclusion and lending a voice to those who feel marginalized. His personal warmth and ease at advocacy win him committed allies at all levels. In 2021, he served as a mentor for our SHE in Oncology program, and he currently serves as both a peer mentor and advisory committee member for our Chicago EYES on Cancer program.
As student co-chair of the BDC, Juan worked with a small committee to plan and organize the 1st BSD, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice retreat, which provided a space to design collaborative programing and policies to enhance inclusion within the BSD and the greater scientific community. The retreat attracted 200+ faculty and trainees with former U.S. Government Assistant to the Office of Public Engagement, Valerie Jarrett, serving as keynote speaker.
Juan has also established enduring partnerships between the UChicago BSD and the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center and the National Museum of Mexican Art. Through these, the BDC has launched a series of divisional-wide educational museum visits. Juan currently serves as president of the UChicago chapter of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). He has focused on empowerment through science and cultural identity via a series of conversations led by Latinx leaders across STEM public and private sectors.
Joash Lake receives the BSD Diversity Equity and Inclusion Award in recognition of Exceptional DEI Leadership and Service from the BSD Diversity Committee (BDC).
In addition to his research, Joash has dedicated his time to making science accessible to students of color. He has served as a tutor and mentor to black and brown students in Chicago for nonprofits such as Tutoring Chicago and Target Hope. He also currently serves as the STEM Faculty Lead Lecture for Target Hope, where he teaches over 60 high school students weekly on Saturdays In this role, Joash has also brough UChicago professors to share their research with Target Hope students in areas related to Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, Microbial Ecology, and Paleontology. Joash also mentors undergraduate researchers through his involvement in the Pritzker SOM's CAMP summer research program.
Joash has simultaneously held many leadership positions across multiple URM serving student organizations, such as the Black Graduate Coalition. He also contributed to UChicago’s COVID-19 Vaccine Drive where BSD graduate students and medical students partnered with Howard Brown Health to distribute vaccines directly to South Side citizens at their local churches and community centers.