Dr. Simmons has served as president of Smith College, Brown University, and Prairie View A&M University. When she was appointed president of Brown, she became the African American woman to lead an Ivy League school.
Dr. Park, dean of the Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles, is known for her research on sustainable energy and materials conversion pathways with an emphasis on integrated carbon capture, utilization, and storage technologies.
Emilie Connolly, of Brandeis University in Massachusetts, and Beth Lew-Williams, of Princeton University in New Jersey, are this year's recipients of the 2026 Bancroft Prize from Columbia University. The annual award honors authors of distinguished works in American history and diplomacy.
Dr. Aiken is the founding director of the the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. She has conducted extensive research on nurse's education and work environments, providing the foundation for modern staffing policies around the world.
Professors Marlene Daut and Kaiama Glover of Yale University have been honored by the American Comparative Literature Association for their co-edited collection of essays on Haitian literature.
At Florida State University, Dr. Cook conducts research with the department of psychology and the Learning Systems Institute on topics relating to children's development of skills that underlie their long-term academic success. In addition to her own research, she has been advocate for advancing access to healthcare, childcare, and parental leave for other FSU postdocs.
Oregon State University has honored Natasha Trethewey of Northwestern University for her literary achievements. A Pulitzer Prize-winner and former Poet Laureate of the United States, Professor Trethewey is the author of five poetry collections, one monograph, and a memoir.
A longtime professor at Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Zoghbi has made extensive contributions to the understanding of the genetic and molecular basis of neurological disease, including autism spectrum disorder. Her outstanding research has earned her the inaugural Nancy Lurie Marks Prize for Autism Research from the Lurie Autism Institute.
Tupur Chatterjee of Tulane University, Kelley Conway of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Jennifer Holt and Patrice Petro of the University of California, Santa Barbara have all been honored for their scholarly contributions to the field of cinema and media studies.
Mary K. Grant, president of the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and Julie White, chancellor of Pierce College District in Washington, have both been honored by Campus Compact for their demonstrated leadership and outstanding careers in higher education.
In her research, Dr. Murry investigates how social stressors shape the everyday life experiences, development, and well-being of African American youth and their families, especially in rural and under-resourced communities.
A former New York City public school teacher, Dr. Litke has taught mathematics education at the University of Delaware for the past decade. Her research aims to improve learning opportunities for students and make mathematics classrooms more equitable and affirming spaces.
