Graduate School Honors 9 Students With Annual Research, Creative Work Awards
Nine graduate students have been selected to receive the Graduate Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Work at a ceremony hosted by the Graduate School on .
The event takes place from 3 to 5 p.m. in 312 Lyman Hall and will include presentations by the recipients. The campus community is invited to attend; .
This year’s competition drew applicants from programs and departments across the University. Winners were chosen by a panel of faculty members who serve on the . Honorees receive a certificate of recognition and a $500 award.
The 2026 Graduate Dean’s Award winners are:
- Yanbei Chen (instructional design, development and evaluation, School of Education), “Preparing Future Teachers for Responsible AI Use: AI-Related Teaching Anxiety, Protective Resources and Implications for Teacher Education”
- Jessica Hogbin (history, Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs), “Innumerable Melancholies: Medicine, Mental Health and Human Nature in Renaissance Italy, 1450-1650”
- Dian Ling (multimedia, photography and design, Newhouse School of Public Communications), “Documentary Film, ‘The Cycle Breaker’”
- David Ojomakpene Moses (chemical engineering, College of Engineering and Computer Science [ECS]), “Designing ‘Smart’ Catalysts for Cleaner and More Efficient Chemical Manufacturing”
- Christine Eunseol Park (public relations, Newhouse School), “Narrative Structure and Explanatory Link Strength in Low-Fit Corporate Social Advocacy: An Experimental Study of Perceived Authenticity”
- Michael Seitz (bioengineering, ECS), “Engineering Poly(ethylene) Glycol Hydrogels as Synthetic ECM”
- Aditya Srinivasa (social science, Maxwell School), “Imagining Infrastructure: The Rise and Fall of Interstate 81”
- Elina Ruiqi Su (social psychology, College of Arts and Sciences [A&S]), “Perceiving to Provide: How Partner Attachment Perceptions Inform Buffering Behaviors”
- Jiayue Yu (art photography, College of Visual and Performing Arts [VPA] ), “After the Photograph”
In addition, five students received honorable mention:
- Kaia Kirk (political science, Maxwell School), “The Black Cabinet: The Role of Movement-State Actors in Institutional Development and Policy Change”
- Katie Mulligan (illustration, VPA), “Tales of Rattlesnake Gulch: An Illustrated History of Cicero Swamp”
- Bixuan Ren (mass communications, Newhouse School), “Who Deserves to Belong? The Influence of Partisan News and Anti-Immigrant Misinformation on Immigrant Deservingness and Policy Preferences”
- Aliza M. Willsey (mechanical and aerospace engineering, ECS), “Development of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Emission Control Technology for Combustion Systems”
- Wusirige (human development and family science, A&S), “Family Processes and Children’s Development across Social and Cultural Contexts”
“The Graduate School is pleased to recognize these students as among the many talented scholars who are contributing to our community every day,” says Peter Vanable, Graduate School dean. “We applaud their ongoing progress in research projects and creative initiatives and enjoy the opportunity to showcase their work to the University.”
