CPH 2024-2025 Student Recognition Ceremony
Distinguished Students, scholarship recipients and Delta Omega-Epsilon Gamma inductees were recognized at the annual College of Public Health Distinguished Students Awards Ceremony on May 8, 2025.
We are pleased to announce the 2024-2025 Distinguished Student Award recipients:
BSPH: Harley Hill
MPH: Alex DiDonato and Michelle Kittel
Ph.D.: Jared Durieux
Many congratulations to the 2024-2025 Scholarship recipients! The following scholarships were awarded:
College of Public Health Scholarship
Katie Glover
Victoria Rodocker
Monica Scanu
GOJO Jerome Lippman Scholarship
Scherika Brinson
Taylor Krebs
Dr. Fred Tavill Book Scholarship
Baylie Blevins
Destini Pauls-Lucius
Kayla Thornton
College of Public Health Study Abroad Scholarship
Danielle Marable
Leah Marsh
Environmental Health Pathways Scholarship
Madelyn Lands
Future Public Health Leaders Scholarship
Mason Jones
Josephine F. Main Founders Medallion Scholarship
Karissa Wahl
Timothy Mikes Memorial College of Public Health Scholarship
Alice Stevenson
The College of Public Health is also pleased to share the 2025 Delta Omega-Epsilon Gamma Inductees:
Undergraduate Students
Harley Hill
Nathalie Nicol
Michele Varso
Graduate Students
Olatuboson Akinrin
Scherika Brison
Precious A. Brown
Kim Cook
Michelle Kittel
Priya Midha
Jonathan Wilson
CPH is also thrilled to recognize students Ivory Kendrick, who has been elected president of the Undergraduate Student Government Board 2025-2026, and Brooke Schwerha, who was awarded the Kent State Inspirational Leadership Student Employee Award.
CPH Shines at OPHA, NEOvations Benchside Competition and Kent State Undergraduate Student Symposium
College of Public Health students, faculty, staff and alumni presented and received awards at the 2025 Ohio Public Health Association Conference in Columbus, OH, on April 29, 2025.
Students involved in the annual conference include Prince Acheampong, Baylie Blevins, Kim Cook, Ella Ergazos, Michelle Kittel, Rehmat Khosa, Geethika Kodukula, Anvesh Kuchipudi, Tam Nguyen, and Nassirinat Said.
Special mention to BSPH students Rachel Dorsey, Ramah Kassis, Falasha Mahadevia who were awarded first place in the judging competition and the people’s choice award in the poster competition with their research “A Scoping Review of Pedestrian Safety at Roundabouts."
College of Public Health Ramah Kassis and Falasha Mahadevia were awarded first place and the people’s choice award at the NEOvations Benchside Competition at NEOMED, on April 9, 2025, for their project “Wrap Star.”
Several College of Public Health students participated in the Kent State Undergraduate Symposium on April 30, 2025, including: Jonathan Evanick, Harley Hill, Ramah Kassis, and Falasha Mahadevia. Rachel Dorsey, together with psychology major student Emily Bishop, was awarded first place for their research “Qualitative Interviews: The Power of Effectively Examining Emerging Drug Trends.”
Congratulations to you all! You represent Kent State University College of Public Health excellence and we're so proud of you!
CPH Alumni Headed to Medical School
Congratulations to College of Public Health alumni Kerwin Cayton, MS ’25, and Jordan Smith, BSPH ’23, for being accepted to medical school.
Cayton graduated with his Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology last May and is headed to the California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine. “I am excited to integrate my understanding and passion for public health and clinical epidemiology into my medical studies and future profession as a physician,” Cayton states.
Smith, a first-generation and non-traditional student who graduated with a pre-med concentration, has been accepted to the Ohio State College of Medicine and will begin in August 2025.
“I appreciate the influence that the College of Public Health had on my journey, and I truly believe there was not a better course of study I could have majored in,” says Smith. “Public health has reinforced and expanded my skillset in interacting with others and has solidified my understanding of health particularly through a perspective considering social, economic, and environmental factors in addition to biological factors of health.”