CS 1st Student Recognition & Engagement Event

On Sunday, March 23, 2025, members of the UA Computer Science faculty, staff, and student body—both graduate and undergraduate—gathered at the beautiful Tucson Botanical Gardens for the department’s inaugural Student Recognition & Engagement Event. The sunny, low-80s weather provided a perfect backdrop for a day of celebration and camaraderie.

Building and maintaining a strong student community in a large research department takes dedication, and this event recognized individuals who have contributed to fostering a welcoming and supportive environment for all CS students.

Student Awards

• Excellence in Undergraduate Research: 

  Graduating Senior, Abhyday Singh was recognized for his outstanding engagement in research at the intersection of computer science, linguistics, and healthcare applications. For his honors thesis, he has worked on exploring the potential of state space models as alternatives to traditional transformer architectures, and he has contributed to two publications focusing on natural language processing, specifically in hallucination detection and machine-generated text identification. He also has also worked on projects within the area of AI and healthcare.

• Departmental Outstanding Senior Award & Mentor Impact Award:

  Graduating Senior, Mercedes Ortiz received both awards in recognition of her significant engagement and inspiring accomplishments ranging from an excellent academic record and working as a research assistant with O’Haire Lab, where she helped analyze and interpret data from a clinical trial, evaluating the effects of service dogs on veterans with PTSD to serving as a data science intern for the Biodiversity Project helping develop and facilitate engaging data science curricula for Title I high school students, enhancing their interest and understanding in STEM and mentoring 1st year CS students in her role as a CS Buddy mentor. 

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• Mentor Impact Awards: 
  Nathan Osborne, a lead mentor in the BS Buddy Mentor Program, received this award alongside fellow lead mentor, Mercedes. Other mentor awardees included Ebaraa Abdalla, Hamad Ayaz, Aaron Lam, Tatiana Rastoskueva, Mohammad Hossein Rezaei, and Rey Sanayei.
• Excellence in Service Award & CS Ambassador Program Completion: 
  Javier Trejo
• CS Ambassador Program Completion: 
  Lex Castaneda and Rhythm Sanghv were also recognized for their work as department ambassadors. 
• Champion of Commitment Award:
  Atul Triplicane
• First Year Phenomenon Award: 
  Huy Nguyen

These student awardees exemplify dedication, leadership, and community spirit within the CS department.

Faculty & Staff Awards

While the event focused on student achievements, faculty and staff were also recognized with lighthearted awards:

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• Lifesaver Award: Eric Collins (Principal IT Support Analyst)
• I Know a Person Award: Martin Marquez (Director of Academic and Support Services)
• Coffee Buddy Award: Tina Mendoza (Graduate Program Coordinator) and Professor Mihai Surdeanu
• Early Riser Award: Debra Armand-Cade (Assistant Director of Academic and Support Services) and Professor Dave Lowenthal
• Detailer Award: Sam Morrow (Academic Advisor) 
• Foodie Award: V Alonso (Career Development Coordinator) and Assistant Professor Jason Pacheco
• Awesome Story Award: Professor Christian Collberg
• Thoughtful Award: Naomi Drew (Administrative Assistant)
• Last Minute Award: Professor Alon Efrat
• Big Laugh Award: Matt Emory  (Academic Advisor)
• Editor Award: Professor of Practice Lester McCann
• A Few Minutes Award: Professor Ellen Riloff (department Head)
• World Traveler Award: Mike Scionti  (Academic Advisor)
• Historian Award: Laureate Professor Ravi Sethi

This event successfully brought together students, faculty, and staff in a relaxed and celebratory atmosphere. Attendees enjoyed the chance to connect outside of the classroom and campus while recognizing those who make the CS community thrive. Congratulations to all the awardees!