2023 CSLA Awards Honors Star Achievers, Welcomes Nobel Laureate M. Stanley Whittingham

NJIT’s College of Science and Liberal Arts (CSLA) celebrated at its annual springtime award ceremony this month, which brought an afternoon of recognition for the college’s star students, faculty, staff and alumni, as well as a special appearance from Nobel Laureate M. Stanley Whittingham.

At the Central King Building’s Agile Strategy Lab, CSLA Dean Kevin Belfield kicked off the proceedings with his welcoming remarks, recapping a year of highlights across the college’s eight departments, while also reflecting on CSLA’s dramatic growth from its humble origins as NJIT’s “third” school in 1982. The college reported new enrollment records this year, while bringing in nearly a third of NJIT’s research awards.

“Welcome to the 2023 College of Science & Liberal Arts Award Ceremony. … It is a privilege to be here with you to celebrate our many accomplishments across the College and NJIT communities,” said Belfield. “As you’ll see, we have a lot to celebrate today.”

Headlining the guestlist this year was the ceremony’s keynote speaker, Whittingham, who was awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of intercalation electrodes with Exxon Research & Engineering Company in the 1970s, which led to the development of the first rechargeable lithium-ion battery.

Whittingham, who is often referred to as the “founding father of lithium-ion batteries”, discussed how collaborative efforts and new energy storage technologies may enable renewable energy solutions for combating climate change, similarly to the way the development of Li batteries enabled the electronics revolution.

 

“The most exciting parts of science are the boundaries of disciplines, not the center of them,” said Whittingham, distinguished professor of chemistry and materials science and engineering at Binghamton University, SUNY. “There were three of us, all from different continents and backgrounds, who shared the 2019 Nobel Prize. … We have to train our students to understand the languages of other disciplines outside their own, be it chemistry, engineering or physics, and collaborate internationally.”

Following Whittingham’s appearance, more than 30 of CSLA’s standout achievers were honored, including several notable alumni, who expressed gratitude upon returning to their alma mater to receive the ceremony’s Rising Star Alumni Award.

“I’ve been looking forward to being back in Newark and meeting up with colleagues I have not seen for quite some time,” said Jason Chernesky, a historian of medicine who completed his M.A. in History in 2012 and is now Council on Library and Information Resources Opioid Industry Research Postdoctoral Fellow at Johns Hopkins University.

 

Chernesky is working on a book project about how the AIDS pandemic impacted American children and their families. “I’m indebted to the faculty at NJIT’s federated department of history. … I wouldn’t be the scholar I am today if weren’t for their mentorship, professional guidance and support.”

“I always saw my journey at NJIT as two parts. … One was as an athlete and the other as a student,” said Jheryl Wilson, NJIT men’s basketball’s eighth all-time leading scorer who’s spent nearly 10 years working in digital media production for the NBA after graduating with a Media and Communications bachelor’s degree in 2011. He’s since transitioned to a role in sports marketing and partnerships at Verizon.

 

“My time here allowed me to discover my interest in the mass media world and how I could fit into it. It’s an honor to receive this award and it only furthers my motivation to do more in the industry.”

The full list of at the 2023 College of Science and Liberal Arts Awards Ceremony includes:

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARDS

Daniel Cargill
PhD Mathematical Sciences '12

Swathi Manchikanti
BS Biology '10

Sherestha Saini
PhD Environmental Science '12

RISING STAR ALUMNI AWARDS

Jason Chernesky
MA History '12

Tao Lin
BS Biology & BS Mathematical Sciences '09
PhD Mathematical Sciences '14

Diana Martinez
BS Biology '07
PhD Biology '15

Tessy Ritchie
BS Chemistry '12

Jheryl Wilson
BA Communication & Media '11

DEAN'S DISTINGUISHED LEADERSHIP AWARD

Michèle Rittenhouse
Theatre Arts & Technology Program

DISTINGUISHED RESEARCH AWARD

Simon Garnier
Department of Biological Sciences

RISING STAR RESEARCH AWARD

Rosanna Dent
Federated Department of History

EXCELLENCE IN SERVICE AWARD

Charles Brooks
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION AWARD

Ji Meng Loh
Department of Mathematical Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN GRADUATE EDUCATION AWARD

Anand Oza
Department of Mathematical Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD: UNIVERSITY LECTURER

Caroline DeVan
Department of Biological Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD: UNIVERSITY LECTURER

Narendra Neel Khichi
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD: ADJUNCT FACULTY

Nicole Casciola
Federated Department of History

EXCELLENCE IN SCHOLARSHIP AWARD

Johanna Maya Deane
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

OUTSTANDING STAFF AWARD

Carla Guerriero
Federated Department of History

LOUIS J. LANZEROTTI AND DR. M. YVONNE DE WOLF LANZEROTTI PRIZE IN APPLIED PHYSICS

Samuel Granovsky
BS Applied Physics
Department of Physics

SPIRIT OF “DOC” AWARD

Sagnik Chowdhury
BS Cyberpsychology
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

OUTSTANDING UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

Sean Larmore
BS Chemistry
Department of Chemistry & Environmental Science

Varun Pai
BA Biology
Department of Biological Sciences

Julian Perez
BA Communication and Media
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

Francisco Ruivo
BS Mathematical Sciences
Department of Mathematical Sciences

Volney Stefflre
BA Law, Technology and Culture
Federated Department of History

Kevin Watson
BS Chemistry
Department of Aerospace Studies/ROTC

OUTSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENTS

Adrienne Bagnato
MA History
Federated Department of History

Mitun Chandra Bhoumick
PhD Environmental Science
Department of Chemistry & Environmental Science

Matthew Cooper
PhD Applied Physics
Department of Physics

Connor Robertson
PhD Mathematical Sciences
Department of Mathematical Sciences

Amani Webber-Schultz
PhD Biology
Department of Biological Sciences