2025 Student Academic Honors & Awards
UCLA Fielding recognized the accomplishments of its exceptional students in a ceremony attended by family, friends, students, faculty and staff.
The 2025 UCLA Fielding School of Public Health Student Academic Honors & Awards ceremony — a celebration of students' outstanding achievements — was held on Wednesday, June 11, and awards were conferred by Dr. Ron Brookmeyer, dean of UCLA Fielding, as well as faculty from across the school.
"I’m so happy to be here with all of you as we celebrate our exceptional students," Brookmeyer said. "At the Fielding School, we have 858 graduate and 115 undergraduate students from 28 countries who are united by their shared mission: To research and build solutions that will improve health and opportunities for everyone."
THE JAY S. DROTMAN UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT AWARD
Matthew Minh-Quan Vu
The Jay S. Drotman Undergraduate Student Award was established to recognize the career of a promising young public health professional and student. The award is given to one undergraduate student each year based on superior academic achievement and potential of becoming an impactful contributor to the field of public health.
THE KIM-FARLEY FAMILY AWARDS FOR UNDERGRADUATE EXCELLENCE
Grace Chang
Supriya Anjali Macha
The Kim-Farley Family Awards for Undergraduate Excellence recognize outstanding achievements of undergraduates in public health. The awardees have earned the highest GPA for a graduating B.S. Public Health major and a graduating B.A. Public Health major. The award was established in 2025 to coincide with the first graduating class of the new undergraduate public health major.
THE ABDELMONEM A. AFIFI FELLOWSHIP
Naomi M. Hammonds, Department of Community Health Sciences
Bowen Zhang, Department of Biostatistics
The Abdelmonem A. Afifi Student Fellowship was established upon Professor Afifi's completion of 15 years of service as Dean of the school. Recipients are selected for academic excellence and demonstrating a well-balanced and humanitarian understanding of the field of public health.
THE LESTER BRESLOW STUDENT FELLOWSHIP
Jamie Millicent Ramos Lee, Department of Epidemiology
Xumeng Yan, Department of Community Health Sciences
The Lester Breslow Student Fellowship was established in honor of the former Fielding School of Public Health dean and public health icon Lester Breslow and his deep commitment to public health students. Recipients are selected for academic excellence and a dedication to scholarly or practice-based research upon Professor Afifi's completion of 15 years of service as Dean of the school.
THE E. RICHARD (RICK) BROWN SOCIAL JUSTICE AWARD
Kelvin Nguyen, Department of Health Policy Management
The E. Richard (Rick) Brown Social Justice Fellowship was established in honor of the late faculty member Rick Brown, founder of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, and provides support to a student who conducts research and/or advocates policy to expand health care coverage for all.
THE JUNEAL MARIE SMITH FELLOWSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL NUTRITION
Xuyuehe Ren, Department of Community Health Sciences
Juneal Smith’s parents established the Juneal Marie Smith Fellowship in their daughter’s memory to support graduate students pursuing careers in international nutrition. Juneal Marie Smith, who received her MPH and PhD from the Fielding School, combined her scholarship with a commitment to helping underserved communities worldwide through her work in the area of nutrition.
THE SAMUEL J. TIBBITTS FELLOWSHIP
Monika Teresa Shankar, Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Family members and friends established the Samuel J. Tibbitts Fellowship in honor of Samuel Tibbitts to recognize students for their academic excellence and commitment to public health. Samuel Tibbitts received a bachelor’s degree in public health from UCLA in 1949. A pioneer in the field of managed care, he founded PacifiCare, one of the nation’s first major HMOs, and was vice chair until his passing in 1994.
THE DEAN’S OUTSTANDING STUDENT AWARDS 2025
Easy year, all five departments nominate one student who has demonstrated exemplary scholastic achievement, community service, and leadership in their class to demonstrate the Dean's Outstanding Student Award.
- Qi Qian, Department of Biostatistics,
- Jessie Chien, Department of Community Health Sciences,
- Qiao Yu, Department of Environmental Health Sciences,
- Yuyuan Lin, Department of Epidemiology,
- Jane C. Fazio, Department of Health Policy and Management.
THE CAROLBETH KORN SCHOLAR AWARD
Ryo Ikesu, Department of Epidemiology
The late Carolbeth Korn received her bachelor's degree in public health from UCLA and was a long-time supporter and former member of the Dean's Advisory Board. In 2005, Ms. Korn established an endowed prize to financially and publicly acknowledge, for generations to come, the Fielding School's most outstanding graduating student. Each year's recipient is selected by the dean and academic leadership from across the school.
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