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Amie Brint, Katherine Deck, Christian Mitchell, and Dakota Redling received Outstanding Achievement Awards at the Graduate School's Winter Reception on Dec. 5 Image by Nathan Tidwell

Graduate School Honors Top Achievers at Awards Reception

Dec. 23, 2024 | The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Graduate School celebrated the successes of faculty and students at its Winter Awards Reception on Dec. 5.

“This reception recognizes the accomplishments of our students and the mentors who support them,” said Graduate School Dean Sean Taverna, Ph.D., from the Helen Guinn Adams Atrium in Biomedical Research Center I. “It’s great to see how they work together to make discoveries happen.”

Amie Brint, Katherine Deck, Christian Mitchell and Dakota Redling received Outstanding Achievement Awards. Brint was chosen for a fellowship from the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). Deck was selected for a Ruth L. Kirschstein Predoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (NRSA) through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Mitchell and Redling were both awarded a UAMS Training in Systems Pharmacology and Toxicology (T-SPaT) Fellowship.

Brint was one of seven ASTRO Clinical Awardees from 2024. The Kirschstein NRSA program gives promising doctoral students an advanced opportunity to develop into independent research scientists, as well as obtain mentored training while conducting their dissertation research. The UAMS T-SpaT program is for students pursuing dissertation research in pharmacological sciences at UAMS and is supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences Pharmacological Sciences Training Program.

“I’m very grateful for this opportunity,” said Brint, who completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. “Radiation oncology is what I want pursue, and I’m grateful for national recognition and research opportunities.” She also received an Achievement Award for a Research Supplement to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research.

“I’m happy to get this award. It was a lot of work, and I received a lot of help from my mentor and lab partners,” said Deck, a graduate of John Brown University. She was also recognized with an Achievement Award for receiving a grant to present at the International Society of Hypertension.

“I’m thankful for the support I have in the lab,” Mitchell said, a graduate of the University of Central Arkansas. “We’re a close-knit group and I couldn’t do this without them.”

“I’m thankful for my mentor, Dr. [Kimberly] Stephens. I wouldn’t have applied for the fellowship if it wasn’t for her pushing me,” said Redling, who graduated from Oklahoma Christian University.

Brint is in the M.D./Ph.D. program. Deck and Mitchell are in the Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Biomedical Sciences (GPIBS) — Pharmacology, Toxicology and Experimental Therapeutics track. Redling is in GPIBS — Cell Biology & Physiology.

Excellence in Mentoring Awards went to:

• Abdel Fouda, Ph.D., assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, for mentoring Mitchell
• Robert Griffin, Ph.D., professor in the College of Medicine Department of Radiation Oncology, for mentoring Brint
• Shengyu Mu, Ph.D., associate professor in the College of Medicine Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, for mentoring Deck
• Kimberly Stephens, Ph.D., assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, for mentoring Redling

“The students work really hard to apply for these fellowships, and it’s good that they’re being rewarded,” said Fouda.

The following students were recognized with Achievement Awards:

• Khandoker Usran Ferdous (GPIBS — Pathobiology): Cancer Therapeutics Pilot Project Procedural Grant. Ferdous was also recognized for a Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Core Travel Grant Award to the 2024 Cancer Biology Training Consortium
• Alicen James (GPIBS — Cell Biology & Physiology): American Society for Bone and Mineral Research Young Investigator Award
• Lachan Siebenmorgen (Health Promotion & Prevention Research): Maternal and Child Health Research Scholar Award

Additional student achievements:

• Alaa Marwan Abu Taha (Biomedical Informatics): American Chemical Society (ACS) Division of Toxicology and the Division of Chemical Information Travel Award for the ACS National Meeting
• Lokesh Akana (GPIBS — Biochemistry and Molecular Biology): IDeA proteomic internship from UAMS proteomic core; Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Travel Award
• Dannis Armikarina (Nursing Science): 2024 Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas; 2024 Arkansas Center for Nursing 40 Nurse Leaders Under 40; UAMS liaison for the Graduate Nursing School Academy by the American Associations of Colleges of Nursing
• Larrey Enoch (Bioinformatics): Radiation Research Society Scholar in Training Award
• Rachel Hale (Health Promotion and Prevention Research): Maternal and Child Health scholarship
• Md Enamul Hoq (Biomedical Informatics): Society of Imaging Informatics in Medicine Scholarship; Society of Critical Care Medicine Travel Grant
• Grishma KC (Pharmaceutical Evaluation and Policy): Top 5% finalist for two abstracts and a Spotlight Presentation at ISPOR 2024
• Catherine Kirkpatrick (M.D./Ph.D. program): Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Retreat Outstanding Graduate Student Poster Award
• Adam Kleinerman (Health Promotion and Prevention Research): Maternal and Child Health Research scholarship
• Philmar Mendoza Kabua (Nursing Science): Dr. Elois Field Nursing Endowed Scholarship
• Christoph Mora (GPIBS — Pharmacology, Toxicology & Experimental Therapeutics): International Society of Hypertension Travel Award
• Laura Osborn (GPIBS — Pharmacology, Toxicology & Experimental Therapeutics): Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Travel Award to the International Association for the Study of Pain World Congress on Pain
• Pritam Saha Podder (Pharmaceutical Sciences): Second-prize poster presentation from the UAMS American Association of Pharmaceutical Sciences student chapter
• Taiquitha Robins (Biomedical Informatics): Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Travel Award; Honorable mention at the Conductor Innovation Sprint
• Aubree Seibert-Jeffrey (Pharmaceutical Evaluation and Policy): Class of 2013 Endowed Scholarship from the UAMS College of Pharmacy; Rho Chi Honors Society Induction
• Lakyn Webb (Nursing Science): Third-place poster at the International Association of Forensic Nurses Conference; 2024 Arkansas Center for Nursing 40 Nurse Leaders Under 40
• Filmon Wolde (Pharmaceutical Evaluation and Policy): AbbVie Summer Internship

Several additional faculty members received Mentor Awards:

• Benjamin Amick, Ph.D., professor and associate dean of research in the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, for mentoring Alisha Crump (Epidemiology)
• Steven Barger, Ph.D., professor in the College of Medicine Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences, for mentoring Joseph Asante (Bioinformatics)
• Samantha Kendrick, Ph.D., assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, for mentoring Susie Brown (GPIBS — Biochemistry and Molecular Biology)
  

  Vladimir Lupashin, Ph.D., received a Mentor Award.Image by Nathan Tidwell

• Linda Larson-Prior, Ph.D., professor in the College of Medicine Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences, for mentoring Dylan Gilbreath (GPIBS — Ph.D. program)
• Vladimir Lupashin, Ph.D., professor in the College of Medicine Department of Cell Biology & Physiology, for mentoring Amrita Khakurel (GPIBS — Ph.D. program)
• Mark Mennemeier, Ph.D., professor in the College of Medicine Department of Neuroscience, for mentoring Helen Hayes (Interdisciplinary Biomedical Sciences)
• Fred Prior, Ph.D., professor and chair of the College of Medicine Department of Biomedical Informatics, for mentoring Saly Abouelenein (Biomedical Informatics)
• Amanda Stolarz, Pharm.D., Ph.D., assistant professor in the College of Pharmacy, for mentoring Soumiya Pal (Pharmaceutical Sciences)
• Graham Strub, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and director of the Arkansas Children’s Research Institute Vascular Anomalies Laboratory, for mentoring Ravi Sun (M.D./Ph.D. program)
• Michael Thomsen, Ph.D., professor in the College of Public Health and director of the Center for the Study of Obesity, for mentoring Antonije Lazic (Health Systems and Services Research)

Taverna also announced the initial award recipients from the Fellowship Initiative for Research Excellence (FIRE), a scholarship program that began in May and is designed to encourage postdoctoral fellows and graduate students to apply for extramural fellowships.

Those who apply receive $500 if the applicant’s mentor reviews the application and deems it is competitive. Those who are awarded a fellowship receive a one-time $5,000 payment from the FIRE program.

Amie Brint, Katherine Deck, and Carol Morris are $5,000 recipients. Journey Eubank, Madison McGraw, Christoph Mora, Laura Osborn, Randall Rainwater, Reham Sewilam, Sydnye Shuttleworth and Tsigereda Weldemichael each received $500.