Medals Recognize Academic Achievement, Service to Others
Image by Tory Wesnofske
Annie Soup Koagne, a public health major from Worcester who delivered an address to her classmates at Commencement, was among the Class of 2022 members honored at the Chancellor's Medal Celebration on Friday, May 13.
05/19/2022
Media contacts: Emily Gowdey-Backus, 978-934-3369, Emily_GowdeyBackus@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu
Outstanding members of UMass Lowell’s Class of 2022 were honored during an awards celebration as part of Commencement festivities last week.
Student recipients of this year’s Chancellor’s Medals were honored for their scholastic and athletic achievements, campus and community service, and their efforts to foster greater diversity, equity and inclusion. The award winners, along with student government leaders and student Commencement speakers, were recognized at the Chancellor’s Medal Celebration on Friday, May 13 at UMass Lowell’s University Crossing student center.
“For our 2022 medal recipients, earning their degree was just the beginning,” said UMass Lowell Chancellor Jacquie Moloney. “Their excellence in scholarship and research, and their contributions to our university and the greater community, have been extraordinary.”
This year’s awards celebration featured the achievements of 39 graduating seniors. The academic award winners are Class of 2022 graduates with the highest grade-point averages.
Eleven students received the Trustees Key for completing all four years of their undergraduate careers at UMass Lowell with a perfect 4.0 GPA. Their hometowns and majors are included here:
- Chelmsford: Karen Ghobrial, biology, and William Christian Zouzas, biomedical engineering
- Danvers: Phoebe Iris Watkins, mathematics
- Dunstable: Madison Karen Tammaro, English
- Foxborough: Rachel Marie Nunes, nursing
- Lowell: Thomas Joseph Hogan, electrical engineering; Kelly Ly, computer science; Hoang Pham, mechanical engineering; Saomenea Phorn, business administration
- Methuen: Runzhi Chen, business administration
- North Andover: Yuvraj Aurora, business administration
Each of these students also received a Chancellor’s Medal for Distinguished Academic Achievement, which honors bachelor’s degree recipients in each of UMass Lowell’s colleges who have attained the highest GPA. Other graduates who received this award are:
- Framingham: Daphne Diqing Rong, applied biomedical sciences
- Georgetown: Paige Elizabeth Fournier, psychology
- Ipswich: Kristina Grundmann Brendel, English
- Lawrence: Sean Thomas Runge, biology, and Anna Sergienko, computer science
- Lowell: Jen Yuan Shih, computer science
- Methuen: Ryan Escobedo, civil engineering
- Newton: Charles Mirabile, computer science
- Westford: Sophie Wieselquist, biology
- Burbank, California: Ani Mkrtchyan, English
- Miami Lakes, Florida: Jessica Hernandez-Eng, business administration
- West Bountiful, Utah: Sarah Jane Lege, English
Chancellor’s Medal for Student Service award winners are bachelor’s degree recipients who were recommended for the honor because of their exemplary contributions to campus life. The honorees are:
- Lowell: Ijebusonma Agundu, biology
- Methuen: Elsa Diffo Tiayo, biology
- Revere: Valeria Saldana, public health, and Malcolm Schrafft, composition for new media
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Lindsey Kilpatrick, mathematics
- Sneads Ferry, North Carolina: Natalia Gonzalez, criminal justice
Six students received the Chancellor’s Medal for Community Service in recognition of their significant contributions to the public good. The honorees include:
- Lawrence: Kiara Vasaquez, business administration
- Lowell: Anna Maria Routsi, chemistry
- Walpole: Nadine Chamoun, business administration
- Wellesley: Zachary Moskow, business administration
- Woburn: Matthew Juko, public health
- Worcester: Lawreta Kankam, public health
The university recognized three students for their significant achievements in the areas of diversity, inclusion and social justice through their service, advocacy, community outreach and research efforts. The recipients of Chancellor’s Medals for Diversity and Inclusion are:
- Berkley: Kenzy Scott, political science
- Revere: Tina Thuy Nguyen Hoang, biomedical engineering
- Worcester: Benedicta Agyemang-Brantuo, chemistry
The University Scholar-Athlete Award was presented to Samuel Knoblauch, a business administration major from Rochester, Michigan, who was honored as the athlete who attained the highest grade-point average among students who have participated in varsity athletics for four years. Knoblauch was a member of the UMass Lowell men’s ice hockey team.
More information about Commencement events, guest speakers and honorees is available at www.uml.edu/commencement.
UMass Lowell is a national research university offering its students bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. UMass Lowell delivers high-quality educational programs and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe. www.uml.edu