BMB Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Awards
Outstanding Graduate Student Award
Given to a student who has excelled in scholarship, research and teaching activities during his or her career in this department. Candidates should be graduate students in their final year of study.
| Year | Awardee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Kayla Johnson | Arjun Krishnan |
| 2021 | Quynh Dong | Jason Bazil |
| 2020 | Alyssa Preiser | Tom Sharkey |
| 2020 | Joel Rankin | Bob Hausinger |
| 2019 | Geoffrey Severen | Christopher Waters |
| 2018 | Kelly Fader | Tim Zacharewski |
| 2017 | Sebastian Raschka | Leslie Kuhn |
| 2016 | Rance Nault | Tim Zacharewski |
| 2015 | Mark Faruggia | Robert Hausinger |
| 2014 | Fei Li | Shelagh Ferguson-Miller |
| 2013 | Youssef Kousa | Brian Schutte |
| 2012 | Nitin Raj | Bill Henry |
| 2012 | Adam Cornish | Eric Hegg |
| 2011 | Jodi Boer | Bob Hausinger |
| 2010 | Eric Moellering | Christoph Benning |
| 2009 | Michael Ruckle | |
| 2009 | Jana Simmons |
Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award
Presented to a student who has excelled in research during his or her career. (Candidates should be graduate students who have successfully passed their prelim examination)
| Year | Awardee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Joel Rankin | Bob Hausinger |
| 2020 | Martin Ogrodzinski | Sophia Lunt |
| 2019 | Bryan Leong | Robert Last |
| 2018 | Peter Dornbos | John LaPres |
| 2018 | Meng-Lun Hsieh | Chris Waters |
| 2017 | Kun "Kenny" Wang | Christoph Benning |
| 2016 | Yiliang Wei | David Arnosti |
| 2016 | Anthony Parenti | Amy Ralston |
| 2015 | Ronghui Pan | Jianping Hu |
| 2014 | Disha Srivastava | Chris Waters |
| 2013 | Mark Farrugia | Bob Hausinger |
| 2012 | Zhen “Jenny” Wang | Christoph Benning |
| 2012 | Ziru “James” Li | Tom Sharkey |
| 2011 | Marcos Oliveira | Laurie Kaguni |
| 2010 | Fei Zheng | Hongbing Wang |
| 2009 | Hoo Sun Chung | |
| 2008 | Leron Katsir | Gregg Howe |
| 2008 | James Johnson | Charles Hoogstraten |
Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Award
Given to a student for exceptional performance as a graduate teaching assistant during his or her graduate program.
| Year | Awardee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Elise Rivett | Eric Hegg |
| 2020 | Ana-Marie Raicu | David Arnosti |
| 2020 | Jennifer Watts | Amy Ralston |
| 2019 | Anastasiya Lavell | Christoph Benning |
| 2018 | Jagannath Silwal | Honggao Yan |
| 2017 | Han Nguyen | Bruce Uhal |
| 2016 | Natalia Hubbs | Kirsten Parent |
| 2015 | Sandra Olenic | Lee Kroos |
| 2014 | Eric Poliner | David Arnosti |
| 2011 | Alison Gjidoda | Bill Henry |
| 2010 | Yi Zheng | Michael Garavito |
| 2009 | Emily Harper | |
| 2008 | Anna Kopec | Tim Zacharewski |
Jack Throck Watson Graduate Fellowship
Former students and colleagues of Dr. Jack Throck Watson, Professor of Biochemistry and Chemistry, have established the graduate fellowship to honor their teacher, mentor, friend, and colleague. Awards will be made to graduate students. Preference given to individuals engaged in research related to mass-spectrometry and its applications.
| Year | Awardee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Deanna Broadwater | Sophia Lunt |
| 2020 | Paul Fiesel | Rob Last |
| 2019 | Jason Schrad | Kristin Parent |
| 2018 | R. Michael Sgambelluri | Jonathan Walton |
| 2017 | Daniel Lybrand | Robert Last |
| 2016 | Alyssa Preiser | Tom Sharkey |
| 2015 | Jie Li | Susanne Hoffmann-Benning |
| 2012 | Fei Li | Shelagh Ferguson-Miller |
Dr. Richard U. and Claire M. Byerum Fellowship
Mrs. Claire Byerrum has established the Dr. Richard U. and Claire M. Byerrum Endowed Fellowship to aid the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in attracting or retaining outstanding graduate students.
| Year | Awardee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Qianjie Wang | Peter Lundquist |
| 2020 | Quynh Duong | Jason Bazil |
| 2019 | Joel Rankin | Robert Hausinger |
| 2018 | Alyssa Preiser | Tom Sharkey |
| 2017 | Peter Dornbos | John LaPres |
| 2016 | Daniel Parrell | Lee Kroos |
Outstanding Postdoctoral Scholar Award
This award is open to any postdoctoral researcher working in BMB faculty member’s laboratory. (Postdoctoral researcher is defined as an individual being within 5 years of their PhD being granted, 8 years based on extenuating circumstances (e.g. parental or medical leave, etc.) granted by the awards committee. Research Assistant Professors are also eligible if within 5 years of their PhD, 8 years based on extenuating circumstances (e.g. parental or medical leave, etc.) granted by the awards committee. The award will recognize outstanding postdoctoral progress towards developing an independent scientific career as an academic PI or industrial scientist. Evidence of such progress may include a significant record of peer reviewed publications and extramural talks, attaining a competitively reviewed postdoctoral fellowship or other honor/award from an extramural agency, establishing a clear set of research aims for future work as an independent scientist, and laying the groundwork for the research (via collaborations and preliminary results) while at MSU.
| Year | Awardee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Shao Thing Teoh | Sophia Lunt |
| 2020 | Sarah Doore | Kristin Parent |
| 2019 | Rance Nault | Tim Zacharewski |
| 2018 | Tuo Zhang | Jian Hu |
| 2017 | Gaurav Moghe | Robert Last |
| 2016 | Pengxiang Fan | Robert Last |
| 2016 | Sarathi Wijetilleke | Tom Sharkey |
| 2015 | Ruthie Angelovici | Dean DellaPenna |
| 2014 | Parimal Kar | Michael Feig |
| 2012 | Rebecca Roston | Christoph Benning |
| 2009 | Anthony Schilmiller | Robert Last |
Clarence Suelter Endowed Postdoctoral Fellowship Award
|
New in 2022, this award is open to any postdoctoral researcher (received PhD within
the last five years) working in a BMB faculty member's laboratory. The award will
recognize outstanding postdoctoral accomplishments and also encourage and support
career development. In addition to a $3,000 award to the recipient, up to $5,000 will
be made available for a career development opportunity. Career development activities
may include: intensive training courses, workshops on teaching, career coaching fees,
and other opportunities that a PI would not be expected to fund. Once a recipient is selected for the award, the PI of the postdoctoral fellow must sign an acknowledgement stating the additional career development will be supported, as it will take time away from the postdoctoral fellow’s main lab duties. It is a good idea to discuss this ahead of time with your PI. |