Original Work Award and Travel Award Recipients
The Original Work Award (OWA) supports research and creative work. It is intended to fund direct, project-related expenses such as travel, lodging, materials, and equipment related to research.
The Travel Award (TA) supports travel to present original work, including research and creative works. The Travel Award is intended to enhance graduate education through participation in seminars, workshops, and conferences.
Within the tables for the Original Work Award recipients, the top three students also had the top three scores of that review cycle, as determined by that cycle's review committee.
2026 Spring Original Work Award (OWA) Recipients
| Name | Degree Program | Title of Proposal |
|---|---|---|
| Parwana Hamdam | Ph.D. in Health Communication | Experiences of Pregnant and Parenting Undergraduate Students at Ohio University |
| Xenab Malik | MFA in Graphic Design | Her'd |
| Kelsey Kayton | Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology | Growing Apart or Growing Together: The Bittersweet Nature of Romantic Nostalgia |
| MJ Golzari | MFA in Film | Reverie |
| Naomi Hill | Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology | Testing the Accuracy of Eating Disorder Screening Tools in the University Primary Care Setting to Improve Eating Disorder Detection |
| Sonali Jha | Ph.D. in Mass Communication | Prevalence and Determinants of Intentions to Report Sextortion Among U.S. University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study Guided by the Health Belief Model |
| Pavithra Ariyaratne | Ph.D. in Chemistry | Enhancing the Stability of Perovskite Quantum Dots Using Metal-Organic Frameworks |
| Chamali Harshanie Samarathunga Appuhamillage | Ph.D. in Plant Biology | Phylogenomic approach to resolve the long standing polyphyly of Paronychia (Caryophyllaceae). |
| Helena Littler | Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biology-Biological Sciences | In Vitro Reconstitution of APOBEC3G Molecular Mutational Mechanisms: Focusing on HIV-1 Interaction |
| Fatiha Bazouche | Ph.D. in Instructional Technology | Developing Critical Thinking Through Student-Built Language Models: An Explainable AI Approach in Teacher Education |
2025 Fall Original Work Award (OWA) Recipients
| Name | Degree Program | Title of Proposal |
|---|---|---|
| Priyanwada Atapattu | Ph.D. in Plant Biology | Assessing the impact of leaf Nitrogen on survival of urban street trees in Athens, Ohio |
| MD Sabbir Hossain | M.S. in Geography | From Pattern to Processes of Adaptation to Climate Induced Hazards: Livelihood Adaptations to Saltwater Intrusion in the Rice Zone of Coastal Bangladesh |
| Najmeh "Sara" Pirahmadian | M.F.A in Graphic Design | Mis/Understanding – Navigating Language Barriers Through Interactive Art |
| Athar Memon | Ph.D. in Health Communication | A Multi-Theoretical Approach to Medication Adherence: Insights from Communication Accommodation Theory, the Hierarchical Model, and the Teach-Back Method |
| Oluwaseun Blessing Adegbite | Ph.D. in Chemistry | Synthesis and Antibacterial Activity of Novel Derivatives of Natural Products |
| Opeyemi Ojo Fatunbi | Ph.D. in Chemistry and Biochemistry | Nucleobase Protonation in the T-box Riboswitch Antiterminator (AM) RNA |
| Ryan Cross | M.S. in Biological Sciences | The impacts of lab-rearing and social isolation on the behavioral responses and stress of the swordtail fish Xiphophorus multilineatus |
| Prathana D. | Ph.D. in Communication Studies (Rhetoric) | Unregulated Practices - Exploring Mothers’ Experiences of Cross-Nursing through Feminist and Relational Communication Perspectives |
| Tori Duncan | Ph.D. in Environmental and Plant Biology | Assessing Microplastic Uptake and Recovery in Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum) |
| Hammad Ur Rehman | PhD. in Mechanical Engineering | Microstructure control in the Additive manufacturing process using ultrasonic vibrations |
| Jacob George | Ph.D. in Biological Sciences | Morphology of the Hyoid Apparatus in Squamates with Special Emphasis on Species with Dewlaps, Beards, and Frills |
| Brogan Reutzel | Ph.D. in History | Building an Army: The U.S Ordnance Department at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century |
| Aneek Mustafa Anwar | MFA in Photography & Integrated Media | Living with Uncle Sam |
| Cindy Torres | M.A in Latin American Studies | Navigating Borders, Building Networks: Leadership Journeys of Ecuadorian Women in New York |
| Belal Salem | Ph.D. in Biological Sciences | Reframing Bahariya’s Sauropods: Specimen?Centered Systematics with CT?Calibrated Comparisons |
| Hyunjoo Moon | Ph.D. in Innovative Learning Design and Technology | AI-empowered social emotional learning in K-12 schools |
| David Sweeney | Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology | Knowledge-Identity Model of Misinformation and Conspiracy Belief |
2026 Summer Travel Award Recipients
| Name | Conference Title |
|---|---|
| Fereshteh Salimi Nanadegani | 2026 AIChE Annual Meeting |
| Danushika Herath | American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall 2026 Conference |
| Helena Littler | Advanced Sequencing Technologies & Bioinformatics Analysis |
| Prabhleen Singh Bedi | American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall 2026 Conference |
| Prakash Acharya | Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) Annual Conference, 2026 |
| Dhanushka Hingurala Arachchilage | American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall 2026 Conference |
| Simeon Sunday | American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall Conference |
| Vanessa Boadu | Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) |
| Bernard Asante | American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall Conference |
| Mohsin Ali Nasir | American Society of Plant Biologist (ASPB) Conference 2026 |
| Fitrat Ullah | American Society of Plant Biologist (ASPB) Conference 2026 |
| Md. Soyib Hasan | ASPB 2026 |
2026 Spring Travel Award Recipients
| Name | Conference Title |
|---|---|
| Christian McCall | Society of Military History |
| Abby Aultz | On Aging - American Society on Aging |
| Jessie Gongolo | International Communication Association Conference |
| Dominic Asitanga | 76th Annual International Communication Association |
| Edib Keskiner | International Society for Theoretical Psychology 2026 Conference |
| Saa Michel Tolno | Network for Education and Research on Peace and Sustainability (NERPS) |
| Enoch Amoah | AMPP Annual Conference + Expo 2026 |
| Rayna Batool | Eastern Communication Association Convention 2026 |
| Kamila Turganova | AMPP Annual Conference + Expo 2026 |
| Atefeh Ahmadbeigi | AMPP Annual Conference + Expo 2026 |
| Sai Deepa Kadaru | 2026 NICE Workshop (Neuro-Inspired Computational Elements) |
| Francis Ankomah | 2026 AERA Annual Meeting |
| George Ofori Atta | American Society for Environmental History |
| Naomi Hill | Midwestern Psychological Association |
| Mallory Boring | International Conference on Virginia Woolf |
| Enoch Tsey | American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting |
| Kyle Jacobs | APS Global Physics Summit |
| Sirine Ben Hassen | Kentucky Foreign Language Conference |
| Madeline Devantier | Frogman's Print Workshop |
| Ethan Buehrer | Britain and the World 2026 Conference |
| Oussema Dhieb | SimOps 2026: IGNITE |
| Pavithra Ariyaratne | ACS (American Chemical Society) Fall 2026 |
| Andrea Plis | OCTELA (Ohio Conference for Teachers of English Language Arts) |
| Shatakshi Semwal | Eastern Communication Association (ECA) |
| Ryan Cross | 12th International Conference of Poeciliid and Goodeid Biologists |
| Jamie Theis | American Association of Suicidology |
| Harnefer Oliveira Cruz | American Trombone Workshop |
| Jasmine Kelley | 2026 Critical Care Congress |
| Kourosh Nejad | New College Conference on Medieval & Renaissance Studies |
| Adnan Khan | AMPP Annual Conference + Expo 2026 |
| Ihsan Thaheem | Comparative International Education Society |