Celebrating Greatness: 2024 Geographical Sciences Awards

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Professors Also Highlight PhD Graduates and Their Dissertation Work

The 2024 Annual Geographical Sciences Awards Ceremony took place on May 10 in the Adele H. Stamp Student Union's Prince George's room.

Hosted by Undergraduate Director Keith Yearwood, the event celebrate their accomplishments of students, faculty and staff throughout the 2023-2024 academic year.

The ceremony honored over 100 individuals for a variety of achievements, including academic milestones, prestigious fellowships and national awards, reflecting the Department's extensive successes.

This year, professors proudly introduced their PhD graduates and their dissertations, highlighting the rigorous research, professional ethic and significant contributions made by the soon-to-be doctors candidates. 

The  Department presented 30 awards during the ceremony, recognizing outstanding performance, innovative research and notable contributions to geographical sciences. Each recipient was celebrated for their dedication and efforts to advance the field.

Beyond the awards, the event served as a chance for the Department community to gather and celebrate their collaborative spirit.

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From top left to botom right: Undergraduate Director Keith Yearwood is the master of the ceremony; Professor and Associate Chair George Hurtt presents faculty and staff accolades; Senior Faculty Assistant Erin Jacobs distributes award certificates; Assistant Professor Laura Duncanson shares a few words about Ph.D. graduate Tuo Feng.

Here Are Our Department Award Winners:

Congratulations to all the honorees recognized in this year’s ceremony.

  • Excellence in Graduate Research 1st Place: Xiangjie Chen
  • Excellence in Graduate Research 2nd Place: Haijun Li and Zhihao Wang
  • Excellence in Graduate Research 3rd Place: Baobao Liu, Peiqi Zhang and Shuo Xu
  • Brian R. Melchior Endowed Research Fund: Melanie Reynolds
  • GIS Summer Fellowship: Mengyu Liao 
  • Jingli Yang Fellowship: Shuo Xu  
  • Jingly Yang Fellowship Runner-up: Quan Shen
  • Human Dimensions of Global Change Fellowship: Yuhao Wang
  • Graduate Student Appreciation Award: Jack O'Bannon
  • Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Assistant: Camilla Reggioli
  • Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant: Haley Mullen 
  • Outstanding Graduate Research Assistant: Mengye Liang and Shuo Xu
  • Robert A. Harper Undergraduate Research Paper Award: Iman Smith
  • Undergraduate Independent Research Award: Aboli Dahiwadkar
  • James R. Anderson Award: Aboli Dahiwadkar
  • Outstanding MS GIS Student: Molly Schreier
  • Outstanding MS GEOINT Student: Katherine Toren
  • O.E. Baker Award: Allison Bredder
  • Outstanding Faculty Specialist: Erik Duncan 
  • Outstanding Post-Doctoral Associate: Weishu Gong
  • Outstanding Research Faculty: Maria Zubkova 
  • Outstanding Instructional Faculty: Naijun Zhou
  • GEOG T-Shirt Design: Chin-Yun Kue
  • Maryland Sustainable Agriculture Crowdsourcing Campaign: Joseph Massaro, Cathy Wang and Alaina Goodwin

Check out the slideshow presentation:

Awards Slideshow

 

Published on Mon, 05/20/2024 - 10:04