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Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµHosts 57th Annual Honors Convocation

Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµPresident Adam Hasner, along with Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Ken Dawson-Scully, recently hosted the 57th annual Honors Convocation.

From left, Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµPresident Adam Hasner, Distinguished Teacher of the Year Parvathi Perumareddi, and Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Ken Dawson-Scully


By jonathan fraysure | 4/23/2026

Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµ President Adam Hasner, along with Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic AffairsÌýKen Dawson-Scully, recently hosted the 57th annual Honors Convocation to recognize the university’s most outstanding students and faculty.

Awards and recognition included eight university scholars; the Distinguished Student award; the University Club Merit award; the Hersker, Shaw, Gosser Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi scholar; the Stan and Renee Wimberly scholar; the Undergraduate Researchers awards; the Student-Athletes of the Year awards; and the Fraternity and Sorority scholars. Faculty honors included the Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµAlumni Association’s Degree of Difference award; Researchers and Scholars of the Year awards; Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµOnline Faculty award; Teaching and Advising awards; as well as the Distinguished Mentor of the Year in Undergraduate Research award.

The winner of the Distinguished Teacher of the Year award, determined by Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµstudents, was Parvathi Perumareddi, D.O., an associate professor in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine. A board‑certified family medicine physician, Perumareddi joined the faculty in 2015 and teaches and mentors medical students across all four years of the curriculum. With a primary focus on first‑ and second‑year learners, she serves as course director for the foundational pathophysiology and therapeutics course – encompassing the renal, reproductive and endocrine systems – and also teaches across a spectrum of small‑group sessions ranging from cardiology to clinical documentation to diabetes. Nationally, she has contributed to the medical licensing exams taken by all U.S. medical students and interns by authoring exam items.

2026 Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµ Honors Convocation Awardees
Ìý
University Scholars
Marissa Spurr, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Annika Zarazua, College of Business
Layann Abdallah, College of Education
Reza Zilouchian, College of Engineering and Computer Science
Valentina Campos, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Sydney Taylor Gibbons, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing
Siena Botzer-Gunter, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Sarah G. Hamel, College of Social Work and Criminal Justice
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Distinguished Student award
Isabelle Solages, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
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University Club Merit award
Macy Butler, Charles E. Schmidt College of ScienceÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý
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Stan and Renee Wimberly Scholar
James Levi, College of Engineering and Computer Science
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Hersker, Shaw, Gosser Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi Scholarship award
Aaron Thon, College of Business
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Undergraduate Researchers of the Year
Kezia Abraham, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Taylor Smith, College of Business, Allen E. Smith Awardee
Isabelle Yi, College of Education
Mark Zagha, College of Engineering and Computer Science
Shyla Grant, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Adina Silverstein, Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine
Sarah Lievano, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing
Kayla Mosteller, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
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Gilman Scholarship
Celeste Diaz, Recipient
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Goldwater Scholarship
Danylo Fedkiv, Awardee
Kyle Loh, Awardee
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Distinguished First-Year Undergraduate Student of the Year
Domenico Guadalupe, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
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Fraternity and Sorority Scholars
Melyssa Mitchell, Alpha Kappa Alpha
James Levi, Alpha Epsilon Pi
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Student-athletes of the Year
Autumn Courtney, Softball
Daniel Laureyssens, Men’s swimming and diving
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Alumni Degree of Difference award
Mary Ann Leavitt, Ph.D., associate professor, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing
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Researchers of the Year
Borko Furht, Ph.D., professor, College of Engineering & Computer Science
James VanZwieten, Ph.D., associate professor, College of Engineering & Computer Science
Lea Sacca, Ph.D., assistant professor, Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine
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Scholars of the Year
Waseem Asghar, Ph.D., professor, College of Engineering & Computer Science
Kevin Wilt, DMA, associate professor, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Diana Sun, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Social Work & Criminal Justice
ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý
Âé¶¹¾«Æ·ÊÓÆµOnline Faculty award
Donna Marion, Ph.D., university instructor, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
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Excellence and Innovation in Undergraduate Teaching
Heather Ligler, Ph.D., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Armiel Suriaga, Ph.D., Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing
Sareh Taebi, Ph.D., College of Engineering and Computer Science
William O’Brien, Ph.D., Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Ìý
Excellence and Innovation in Undergraduate Advising
David Flanigan, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Elizabeth Kennedy, Undergraduate Studies
Casey Thomas, College of Business
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Distinguished Mentor of the Year in Undergraduate Research
Rindy Anderson, Ph.D., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
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2026 Distinguished Teacher of the Year
Parvathi Perumareddi, D.O., Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine

-FAU-