Outstanding SPHHP scholars receive SUNY Chancellor’s award

Created in 1997, the award is given annually to recognize high-achieving SUNY students who also excel in such areas as leadership, community service, campus involvement or the arts. Each year, selection committees from each SUNY campus consider nominees, who are then recommended to the chancellor’s office.

This year’s winners were invited to attend an awards ceremony April 11 in Albany.

SPHHP’s recipients of the 2024 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence are:

Hannah Crittenden of Kenmore graduates with a BS/MS in occupational therapy. A University Honors College scholar, Crittenden has served as an orientation leader, student engagement ambassador, Alternative Break team leader, first-generation student peer mentor and teaching assistant for a graduate occupational therapy class. She is president of the Tau chapter of Pi Theta Epsilon, the national honor society for OT students, and a member of Alpha Eta, the national scholastic honor society for allied health professions. Crittenden has facilitated research with breast cancer survivors, focusing on the relationship between occupational engagement, quality of life, self-efficacy and psychological distress.

Samiha Islam of Rochester graduates with a BA in statistics and health and human services. She is UB’s second Harry S. Truman Scholar and a public policy and international affairs fellow. Samiha has conducted workshops on interfaith and multiracial coalition-building for thousands across Western New York, published research on non-carceral approaches to preventing hate crimes as a Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress fellow, and helped secure $150,000 in grants for prison reentry services. Samiha has also served as a diversity advocate, leading campus dialogues on privilege, politics and social justice.

Jeremy Nguyen of Pittsford graduates with a MPH with a concentration in epidemiology. President of the Epidemiology and Environmental Health Graduate Student Association, Nguyen is a teaching assistant for two undergraduate classes. He conducts research with the UB Maternal and Child Health Laboratory, contributing to the study of bean consumption on maternal and child health outcomes. He regularly volunteers for Buffalo General Medical Center, the Lighthouse Free Medical Clinic, and the Seneca Babcock Food Pantry.