Throughout the Spring 2025 semester, departments across the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s College of Arts and Sciences submitted nominations for the Dean’s Awards for Outstanding Undergraduate Students and Outstanding Graduate Students. The awards are given to exceptional undergraduate and graduate students in CAS who have made significant contributions to the UAB community.
The dean’s selection committee recently reviewed the nominations and have selected five undergraduate students and four graduate students to receive the awards. Congratulations to the award winners:
2025 Undergraduate Dean’s Awards
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Ummu Bah – Psychology
“Ms. Bah is easy to work with in terms of her high level of intellectual curiosity, enthusiasm, and upbeat attitude. She also clearly shows the ability to simultaneously manage a number of different responsibilities successfully, evidenced by maintaining excellent grades while involved in a diverse array of on-campus activities.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Caitlin Harrell – World Languages and Literatures (Applied Spanish) and Biomedical Sciences (UAB School of Health Professions)
“Caitlin’s performance as a Spanish major has been remarkable. Through her hard work she has accomplished an advanced level of linguistic proficiency and a deep understanding of cultural nuances and professional applications of the language. She consistently produces high quality work, actively engages in class discussions, and applies her skills beyond the classroom through service initiatives.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Karim Mikhail – Philosophy and Neuroscience (nominated by both)
“In integrating his two majors so well, he showcases the tremendous value in a double major that bridges science and the humanities. By studying both philosophy and neuroscience in a rigorous way, he has cultivated a well-rounded intellect that will serve him well in anything he chooses to do in the future.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Rizwan Khan – Computer Science, Neuroscience, and Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s in Public Health (UAB School of Public Health)
“[H]e always approaches his work with a positive attitude and strong sense of responsibility … His academic excellence, leadership in ACM [Association for Computing Machinery], dedication as a TA [teaching assistant], and contributions to the student community make him an exceptional candidate. I have no doubt that he will continue to achieve great things and positively impact those around him.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Sierra Single – Immunology
“Sierra has been very engaging and has taken ownership of each of her projects. Her research efforts have been outstanding in my laboratory and I rank her in the top 1 percent of the undergraduates I have trained so far in my laboratory. Honestly, she performs at the level of a Ph.D. student. In summary, I believe that Sierra Single has built a strong foundation to become an outstanding physician scientist in the near future.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
2025 Graduate Dean’s Awards
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Ashleigh Allgood – Medical Sociology (Doctoral)
“In addition to her academic and professional accomplishments, Ashleigh possesses the qualities of an exceptional scholar: intellectual rigor, methodological precision, and a passion for addressing critical social issues. Her work is a fantastic example of research in medical sociology, and she is poised to make significant contributions to the field.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Jason Forbus – Physics
“Jason is an outstanding graduate student who has consistently demonstrated academic excellence, research prowess, and a strong commitment to advancing physics. His intellectual curiosity, perseverance, and collaborative spirit make him a standout candidate for this prestigious recognition.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Kaylie Rastegar – English
“Kaylie is a touchstone for her peers in the English graduate program. They look to her as the student who understands every assignment, who rises to every task, and who does things to perfection.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation
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Fei Zhao – Computer Science (Doctoral)
“From what I have observed, Fei is a real thinker, doer, and builder – he is never satisfied with the sheer paper publication, instead, he always continues to build real and impactful software systems on top of academic prototypes and solve the efficiency and scalability issues along the way … His desire to go above and beyond will make him succeed wherever he goes, both academic and industry.” — Excerpt from letter of recommendation