Six Postdoctoral Researchers Earn Awards At Texas A&M Research Symposium

Six postdoctoral researchers received awards for flash talks or poster presentations during Texas A&M University’s eighth annual Postdoctoral Research Symposium.

Forty-six postdocs presented their research to 178 peers, faculty and staff from 12 colleges and schools.

Held at the Memorial Student Center to observe National Postdoc Appreciation Week, the symposium awarded honors in two categories:

Outstanding Flash Talks

• First Place (tie):
  • Mohammed Syed (mentored by Maria Koliou, associate professor, Department of Civil Engineering), College of Engineering
  • Cassidy Doucet (mentored by Mahua Choudhury, associate professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences), College of Pharmacy
• Second Place: Regan Weber-Fares (mentored by Cason Schmit, assistant professor, Department of Health Policy and Management), School of Public Health

Outstanding Poster Presentations

• First Place: Vanessa Montoya-Uribe (mentored by Robert Chapkin, professor, Department of Nutrition and Food Science), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
• Second Place: Sunil Venkategowda (mentored by Mahua Choudhury, associate professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences), College of Pharmacy
• Third Place: Priscilla Glen (mentored by John Mullet, professor, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

“We are very pleased with the increased broad participation and high number of attendees from across Texas A&M campuses,” said Dr. Andreea Trache, faculty fellow for the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, Division of Research and associate professor in the Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine with affiliation to the College of Engineering. “This annual event showcases the postdoctoral scholars’ contribution to the research enterprise at Texas A&M. The quality of the presentations reflected their professionalism.”

Speakers for the symposium included Dr. Brendan Roark, associate vice president for research, Division of Research; Dr. Clarenda Phillips, special assistant to the president, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; RISE UPP Leadership Team, Texas A&M University System; Dr. Michael Criscitiello, associate dean for research and graduate studies, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; and Dr. Konstantinos Pappas, associate director, Texas A&M Energy Institute.

The keynote address was delivered by Dr. Arthur Markman, professor of psychology, human dimensions of organizations and marketing and senior vice provost for academic affairs, The University of Texas at Austin.

Executive committee members of the Texas A&M University Postdoctoral Association (PDA), Texas A&M Health PDA and College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences PDA organized and coordinated the symposium in collaboration with the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, Division of Research, Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, College of Medicine, Office of Research and Graduate Studies and the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.