UB celebrates student excellence

While health and safety concerns due to the pandemic continue to keep most events at UB in the virtual realm, that has not deterred the university’s plan to recognize students for their outstanding achievements this academic year at the 17th annual Celebration of Student Academic Excellence.

The Celebration of Academic Excellence website, which launches today, offers a central location where members of the UB community can explore the extraordinary achievements of the university’s undergraduate and graduate students.

“Every year, we look forward to celebrating the outstanding achievements of UB’s undergraduate and graduate students,” says Graham Hammill, vice provost for academic affairs and dean of the Graduate School. “Even though we will be celebrating remotely this year, we hope that all members of the UB community take the time to log on and see our students’ exceptional accomplishments.”

The site includes video messages of congratulations from President Satish K. Tripathi and Provost A. Scott Weber, as well as a listing of graduate and undergraduate students who received or were honorees for national, SUNY and UB awards. These include the nominees, finalists and recipients of select national fellowships and scholarships, as well as the recipients of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence; Awards for Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creativity; Sigma Xi “Companions in Zealous Research” Awards; Clifford C. Furnas Scholar-Athlete Award; Outstanding PhD Dissertation Award; and Three Minute Thesis Awards.

A popular component of previous year’s celebrations — the undergraduate and graduate research poster presentations — also has moved online, with 123 presentations taking place in half-hour sessions from 1:30-3 p.m. showcasing the work of 190 students who took part in mentored research, scholarship and community projects during this academic year. Visit the schedule of poster presentations and connect to this online event via Zoom.