Graduate School Honors Graduate Dean’s award winners

73 students were awarded in 2025 with fellowships or scholarships

Impact & Student Success | October 21, 2025
Loren Pietsch
A large group of grad student recipients pose with Dean Kemmelmeier while holding their certificates.

Several awardees honored by Graduate Dean Markus Kemmelmeier.

Graduate School Honors Graduate Dean’s award winners

73 students were awarded in 2025 with fellowships or scholarships

Impact & Student Success | October 21, 2025
Loren Pietsch

Several awardees honored by Graduate Dean Markus Kemmelmeier.

A large group of grad student recipients pose with Dean Kemmelmeier while holding their certificates.

Several awardees honored by Graduate Dean Markus Kemmelmeier.

The Graduate School and the Graduate Student Association honored its top graduate students at the annual Graduate Dean’s awards reception on October 6, celebrating excellence, innovation, and impact across disciplines. Every year, the Graduate School awards a combination of merit-based fellowships and scholarships to an elite selection of master’s and doctoral students who show the potential to make substantive contributions to their discipline. The 2025 competition drew a record number of nominations from graduate program directors across campus. Nominations are reviewed by a committee and awarded to students on a highly competitive basis.

Dean Kemmelmeier shakes the hand of one of the student recipients during the ceremony.

This year, nine doctoral students across nine different programs were awarded the prestigious $50,000 Graduate Dean’s Merit Fellowship. Additionally, 64 master’s and doctoral students were awarded the Graduate Dean’s Merit Scholarship, ranging from $5,000-10,000. Students are nominated by the director of their graduate program and awarded based on a holistic review of their academic performance, research and work experience, and broader impacts in their discipline and community.

The students awarded represent 39 different graduate programs, showcasing the diversity of research and excellence across the University. From engineering and education to business and health sciences, these students make up a select group of scholars supporting the University’s commitment to fostering high-impact research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and community engagement.

Congratulations to all 2025 Graduate Dean’s Awardees – your achievements continue to elevate the University of Nevada, Reno’s reputation for excellence in graduate education.

2025 Graduate Dean’s Fellowship Awardees

  • Aditi Sharif, Anthropology
  • Fengsai Bie, Epidemiology
  • James Moore, Biochemistry
  • Karina Olmos, Social Psychology
  • Mohammadamin Atharirad, Economics
  • Navaraj Pokhrel, Geography
  • Nicole Heredia Osuna, Cellular & Molecular Biology
  • Quang Vu, Neuroscience
  • Tawfique Elahi, Business Administration

2025 Graduate Dean’s Scholarship Awardees

  • Abel Gbogbolu
  • Abigail Renee Histed
  • Alex Mounde
  • Antoinette Lynn Cavanaugh
  • Aubrey E. Garrard
  • Aurora G. Trejo
  • Benjamin Brittain
  • Bethany Rose Ponte
  • Brooke Patsy O'brien
  • Caden Joseph Natale
  • Chiara Ferrari
  • Claire Aileen Herr
  • Clare Mikaela Dittemore
  • Connor John Ball
  • Cooper Dayne Gillespie
  • Dalia Gudino Landeros
  • Dana Andrea Marino
  • Diepriye Zikiye Ikete
  • Eliza Madyson Fries
  • Elizabeth Mercedes Krause-Marcos
  • Emily Brewer
  • Gabriela E. Smith
  • Gaylene Marie Williams
  • Greta Jane Jones
  • Greyson Hulet
  • Hyun Woo Chung
  • Iram Bano
  • Iris Hyunjin Hwang
  • Isa Shimura
  • Isabela Laura Blanco
  • Jacob Harrell
  • Jamiika Philvanna Thomas
  • Jessica Braun
  • Jiayi Jiang
  • Katherine Anne Johnson
  • Katrina Leandra Haas
  • Kristen Grace Quigley
  • Kristina Priotto
  • Lily An Zao Raymond
  • Liuyin Wang
  • Ludving Adolfo Cano Fernandez
  • Maryam Barancheshmeh
  • Mavis Esaawa Turkson
  • Md Rafieu Hossain Arnob
  • Mia Rose Leutzinger
  • Nathan Andrew Bakken
  • Nikhil Bhoumik
  • Oluwagbemiga Ayotomide Adegoke
  • Oluwatobi Akindele Mogbojuri
  • Parvaneh Aliniya
  • Purushoth Velayuthan
  • Ruize Chen
  • Ryan Stanley Rogers
  • S M Kamrul Hassan
  • Sifat Parveen Sheikh
  • Sridhar Lanka
  • Susmita Trisha
  • Tanmay Borman
  • Theodore Maranets
  • Tory Diana Alexandra Taylor
  • Travis Nielsen
  • William S. Wells
  • Xinhan Li
  • Yasmin Dianni Porto Barbosa
Impact & Student Success | October 21, 2025
Loren Pietsch
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