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Departmental Graduate Award Recipients

Every year at Honors Day the department recognizes students and faculty for exemplary academic, research, teaching, and service accomplishments. Below are the awards for our graduate honors.

Paul Stelson Fellowships: The Stelson Fellowships are the legacy of Dr. Paul Stelson, who had a long and distinguished career in the ORNL Physics Division. He was also an adjunct professor of physics at UT for 25 years and served as a mentor for many students. His family established these awards to encourage young scientists and to continue the interaction between UT and ORNL. In 2005 the department began awarding two fellowships at Honors Day each year: one for Outstanding Beginning Research and the second for Professional Promise.

The Fowler Marion Award acknowledges the graduate student who has excelled in scholarship, research, and departmental citizenship.

The Wayne Kincaid Award honors a student who shares Wayne Kincaid’s love for astronomy and astrophysics education and who has made exceptional contributions to educational technology, astronomy education, or scientific writing. While preference is given to a graduate student, undergraduates may also be considered.

The Colloquium Award recognizes students with exemplary participation in the department’s colloquium series, as evidenced by attendance, interaction with speakers and faculty, and submitted reports.

Stelson Fellowships

  • 2023: Beginning Research: Tanner Mengel; Professional Promise: Ian Cox
  • 2022: Professional Promise (both): Maninder Singh and Junyi Yang
  • 2021: Beginning Research: Jinu Thomas; Professional Promise: Hao Zhang
  • 2020: Beginning Research: Xin Wen; Professional Promise: Joshua Barrow
  • 2019: Beginning Research: Himal Acharya; Professional Promise: Umesh Kumar
  • 2018: Beginning Research: Michael Sandoval; Professional Promise: Matthew Frost
  • 2017: Beginning Research: Tyler Smith; Professional Promise: Shaozhi Li
  • 2016: Beginning Research: Blaine Heffron; Professional Promise: Adam Holt
  • 2015: Beginning Research: Nirav Patel; Professional Promise: Thomas Papatheodore
  • 2014: Beginning Research: Zhiling Dun; Professional Promise: Phil Griffin
  • 2013: Beginning Research: Nick Sirica; Professional Promise: James Austin Harris
  • 2012: Beginning Research: Robert Van Wesep; Professional Promise: Leland Harriger
  • 2011: Professional Promise: Roy Dar and George Papadimitriou
  • 2010: Beginning Research: Hua Chen; Professional Promise: Stanley Paulauskas
  • 2009: Beginning Research: Kyle Schmitt; Professional Promise: Xiaotian Zhang
  • 2008: Beginning Research: James Alsup; Professional Promise: Jordan McDonnell
  • 2007: Beginning Research: Usama Al-Binni; Professional Promise: Juan Urrego-Blanco
  • 2006: First Year: Jun Zhao; Beginning Research: Murat Özer and Mikhail Batygov
  • 2005: First Year: Xiaoguang Li; Beginning Research: Stephen Wilson
  • 2004: Valentina Kuznetsova
  • 2003: Hye-Jung Kang
  • 2002: Korey Sorge
  • 2001: Omar Zeidan
  • 2000: Bronson Messer
  • 1999: Noel Black
  • 1998: Saskia Mioduszewski
  • 1997: Bradley Smith

Wayne Kincaid Award (Introduced 2007)

  • 2023: None Awarded
  • 2022: J.T. Ternullo
  • 2021: None Awarded
  • 2020: None Awarded
  • 2019: None Awarded
  • 2018: Jay Carroll
  • 2017: None Awarded
  • 2016: David McCallister
  • 2015: None Awarded
  • 2014: Bo Daugherty
  • 2013: None Awarded
  • 2012: Sarah Wood
  • 2011: None Awarded
  • 2010: Meagan White
  • 2009: Chris Smith
  • 2008: Jay Billings
  • 2007: Suzanne Parete-Koon

Fowler Marion Award

  • 2023: Chengkun Xing
  • 2022: Brennan Hackett
  • 2021: Chenyi Gu
  • 2020: Bryant Walker
  • 2019: Joseph Heideman
  • 2018: Aina Bansal
  • 2017: Daniel Odell
  • 2016: Zhiling Dun
  • 2015: Matthew Bailey
  • 2014: Kubra Yeter
  • 2013: Miaoyin Wang
  • 2012: Jordan McDonnell
  • 2011: Olga Ovchinnikova
  • 2010: Jun Zhao
  • 2009: Shaun Ard
  • 2008: Nasrin Mirsaleh-Kohan
  • 2007: Stephen Wilson
  • 2006: Robert Moore
  • 2005: Martin Djongolov
  • 2004: Anota Ijaduola
  • 2003: Jason Newby
  • 2002: Izabela Szlufarska
  • 2001: John Pierce
  • 2000: Anatoli Melechko
  • 1999: Lilia Woods
  • 1998: Wei Ku
  • 1997: Wilhelm Mueller; Larry Senesac

Colloquium Award (Introduced 2004)

  • 2023: None Awarded
  • 2022: None Awarded
  • 2021: None Awarded
  • 2020: None Awarded
  • 2019: Jesse Buffaloe
  • 2018: Shashi Pandey
  • 2017: Xin Wen
  • 2016: Krishna Koirala
  • 2015: Ganesh Pokharel
  • 2014: Robert Van Wesep
  • 2013: Mark Foerster
  • 2012: Nick Sirica
  • 2011: Matthew Bailey
  • 2010: Matthew Bailey
  • 2009: Irakli Martashvili
  • 2008: Saban Hus
  • 2007: Hua Chen; Rachel Wooten
  • 2006: Jason Smith; Madhu Ojha
  • 2005: Nasrin Mirsaleh Kohan
  • 2004: Suzanne Parete-Koon; Valentina Kuznetsova

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