Binghamton pharmacy faculty, staff and students honored at annual fall award ceremony
The night recognizes those who have received honors related to their hard work and dedication to the school
On Monday night, the Binghamton University School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences held its annual P2/P3 award ceremony to recognize students, faculty and staff who have received honors related to their hard work and dedication to the school.
Dean and Distinguished SUNY Professor Kanneboyina Nagaraju started off the night by thanking everyone in attendance for being the reason why the School of Pharmacy has continued to see success and growth in recent years.
“Tonight, we will honor the students who excelled during the past school year to bring attention to their accomplishments and to thank them for being such a wonderful reflection of the Pharmacy School,” Nagaraju said. “We’ve seen so much growth within our school over the past few years, and it’s all thanks to the dedication of our faculty, staff and, of course, our students.”
Director of Student Affairs James “JJ” Brice then announced the Dean’s Honor Roll. The students who received this award earned a GPA of 3.5 or higher for the 2024-25 school year. Their names are listed on the School of Pharmacy website, and they also received a certificate of achievement after the ceremony.
Brice also presented the Top 10% of Class Merit Award. “As the name suggests, these students are academically in the top 10% of their cohort,” Brice said. “We all know how rigorous our curriculum is, so this is a very impressive achievement.”
Class of 2027
- Ryan Baudille
- Ellinore Hazan
- Madison Kisak
- Kyle Weekes
Class of 2028
- Andrew Chang
- Mia Hollstein
- Samantha Marotto
- Andrea Settembrini
- Gianna Siciliano
- Benjamin Sobolewski
- Sage Wolfe
Brice then presented the Award for Academic Excellence. “This award recognizes the students with the highest GPA in their cohort,” she said. “Achieving this award shows the dedication and commitment on the part of these students.”
Class of 2027
- Ellinore Hazan
Class of 2028
- Mia Hollstein
- Samantha Marotto
- Andrea Settembrini
- Gianna Siciliano
- Benjamin Sobolewski
- Sage Wolfe
Brice then presented the SOPPS Merit Awards. To earn these awards, the students had to be nominated by a peer, themselves, a faculty or staff member. Then the nominations went to the Committee on Awards and Progression to vote for the recipients.
“I can confidently say that all of these students are more than deserving of the awards,” Brice said. “As a change this year, all students will receive the de-identified nomination narratives that were considered in the selection of these awards.”
Class of 2027 SOPPS Bearcat Award
- Felix Aung
- Sajni Patel
- Sofia Ruggiero
Class of 2028 SOPPS Bearcat Award
- Mia Hollstein
- Andrea Settembrini
- Francis Depalo
The next award was the SOPPS Professionalism Award, which is given to students who have already displayed an impressive level of professionalism. Brice added they are extremely proud to send these students out into the community as they represent the pharmacy school.
Class of 2027 SOPPS Professionalism Award
- Nadeen Morsy
- Tiffany Milosav
Class of 2028 SOPPS Professionalism Award
- Haley Thayer
- Paige Hoover
The SOPPS Leaders in Pharmacy Award was given out next. “This award is prestigious because recipients are students that we know will be leading the future of pharmacy,” Brice said. “They embody the responsibility, determination, compassion and intelligence that will take the industry to the next level.”
Class of 2027 SOPPS Leaders in Pharmacy Award
- Mohamed Deumah
- Ryan Baudille
Class of 2028 SOPPS Leaders in Pharmacy Award
- Isabella Issa
The last merit award of the evening was the SOPPS Top Tutors Award. Only the top students in each cohort are invited to become SOPPS tutors and, even among that impressive group, these students stand out as leaders.
“They have all been tutoring since their P2 year, acting as large group and individual tutors,” Brice said. “Dozens of students show up every week to attend their sessions, and they are the most requested and praised for their efforts.”
Class of 2027 Top Tutors Award
- Felix Aung
- Ellinore Hazan
Nagaraju took a moment to acknowledge student ambassadors, SOPPS tutors and everyone who has acted as a Big Sib in the Big Sib/Lil Sib program, which pairs mentors with incoming students. He then presented awards honoring the school’s faculty and staff.
“One of the things that makes our school so special is the excellent work of our faculty and staff in service of the students,” he said. “Our SOPPS student dean asked for students to vote on the best faculty and staff according to students last May for the 2024-25 school year.”
- Class of 2027 selection for best teacher from the Pharmacy Practice Department: Kelly Bach
- Class of 2027 selection for best teacher from the Pharmaceutical Sciences Department: Tracy Brooks
- Class of 2027 selection for best staff member of the Year: James “JJ” Brice
- Class of 2028 selection for best teacher from the Pharmacy Practice Department: Kenneth “Mac” McCall
- Class of 2028 selection for best teacher from the Pharmaceutical Sciences Department: KC Mei
- Class of 2028 selection for best staff member of the Year: Andrea Snyder
Nagaraju concluded by offering a big thank you to everyone who came to the ceremony to show support for the students and their accomplishments.
“We all know how our students’ success would be impossible without a strong community of family, friends and peers,” he said.