Schmidt College of Science Celebrates 2023 Honors Convocation Awardees

The Charles E. Schmidt College of Science is pleased to announce that four members of the College were recognized during Florida Atlantic University’s 54th annual Honors Convocation on Wednesday, April 12. The ceremony celebrates the University’s most outstanding students and faculty. “I am delighted to see our students and faculty recognized for their tremendous achievements and proud to have them as representatives of our college,” said Dean Valery Forbes, Ph.D.

University Scholar Award

Luis Carrillo, a senior in the College’s Biological Sciences degree program, is the recipient of the  University Scholar Award. Luis has always been interested in studying animals and joined the Terrestrial Ecology Lab led by Evelyn Marques Frazier, Ph.D., his freshman year to research gopher tortoises. Later, he worked with Colin Hughes, Ph.D., to examine the genetic composition of gopher tortoise populations in South Florida.

University Scholar Awards are given to one student in each of FAU’s eight undergraduate colleges in recognition of outstanding academic achievement and upon the recommendation of college faculty. Luis plans to attend Long Island University’s College of Veterinary Medicine this fall.

Distinguished Student of the Year

Casey Leary  has been named the  Distinguished Student of the Year.  This spring, Casey is set to receive her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry, with a focus on Biochemistry, and graduate with honors. Casey, an NSF-LEARN graduate and current NSF-LEARN peer mentor at FAU, joined the lab of Lawrence Toll, Ph.D., to study chronic pain, addiction, and neurology. She was later intrigued with drug design and discovery and began collaborating with Predrag Cudic, Ph.D.

The Distinguished Student Award recognizes one student who makes an outstanding contribution, or who inspires others, at an elevated level in the face of exceptional circumstances. Casey, a first-generation student, plans to attend medical school shortly.

Scholar of the Year

In recognition of his outstanding performance,  John Renne, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, has been selected as  Scholar of the Year  at the professor level for scholarly and creative activities. John is also the Director of FAU's Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions in the Schmidt College of Science. His work focuses on creating sustainability and resilience through land use and transportation systems.

Distinguished Mentor of the Year Award

Mare Cudic, Ph.D., associate professor and director of the Honors in Chemistry program, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, has been selected to receive the  Distinguished Mentor of the Year Award. Mare’s lab researches the design and synthesis of novel tools to study the role of glycosylation in human diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. This is the University’s highest honor for mentorship in undergraduate research.

For more details about the annual Honors Convocation,  click here.