The UC Riverside Academic Senate honored seven faculty members for their research, teaching, and public service accomplishments in its annual awards with its top prize going to paleontologist Mary Droser.

Droser, a distinguished professor of geology, is the recipient of the 2024-25 Faculty Research Lecturer Award, the highest honor bestowed to faculty based on a distinguished record in research. She will deliver a lecture next year.

“UCR has been a wonderful, supportive, and special place for my whole career – from the fabulous students, my department, college and the campus as a whole,” Droser said. “I am proud to be at UCR and very honored to be the next Faculty Research lecturer.”

In selecting Droser, the Academic Senate noted that national and international colleagues hold her in high esteem, with many noting in nomination letters how her research into early complex life has transformed scientific understanding of evolutionary history.

For decades, Droser has been uncovering fossils in the Australian Outback, discovering ancient animals previously unknown to science. Droser was instrumental in helping to establish the area as a national park.

“Over the past decade, Professor Droser has transformed – and I don’t use the word lightly – our understanding of the fossil record of a crucial interval of the history of life on Earth,” one colleague wrote.

Droser was among several faculty members honored by the Academic Senate, which ratified the awards at its May 20 meeting. 

Patricia Cardoso, a distinguished professor in the Department of Theatre, Film and Digital Production, and Richard Seto, a professor of physics and astronomy, both received the Distinguished Teaching Award.

In honoring Cardoso, the Academic Senate praised her for creating an inclusive learning environment that extends beyond the classroom. An influential film director, Cardoso has mentored students towards careers in film making and developed and taught new courses in directing.

“It is one thing to teach effectively, and quite another to change students’ lives,” the nomination letter stated. “It was clear to us that Prof. Cardoso has powerfully impacted her students in ways that will be felt by them for years to come.”

Seto was praised for balancing mentorship of graduate students with a passion for teaching first-year undergraduate students using a lively teaching style that breaks down abstract concepts into digestible parts. Seto helped develop an introductory physics class that nominees described as “legendary.”

“Nominators credit this course as the single reason the department solved a retention problem with freshman physics majors, particularly from underrepresented groups,” the nomination letter stated. “The course is a gateway course for engineering, chemistry and computer science students.”

The Distinguished Campus Service Award, which recognizes exceptional efforts and dedication to service, was presented to two faculty members: Peter Graham and Bahram Mobasher.

Graham, a professor of philosophy, has served his department, the campus, the UC system, and his profession in many ways. He is vice chair of his department, a former member of its DEI committee, and was the associate dean for arts and humanities in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences from 2016 to 2018. He’s served on several committees in his department, CHASS, and the Academic Senate since beginning his tenure at UCR in 2002.

“In sum, Professor Graham has been a valued leader and member of the philosophical UCR and UC communities,” the nomination letter states.

Mobasher, a professor of physics and astronomy, is credited with developing STEM programs for high school students, helping international students facing financial hardship, creating a Visualization Lab on campus, and helping develop the astrobiology program at UCR. He was instrumental in UCR obtaining a $400,000 NASA grant for a summer program for high school students.

“Professor Mobasher combines stellar research and excellent teaching with extraordinary service to his department, campus, and community,” the nomination letter stated.

Miguel Arratia and Marek Chrobak received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement, which recognizes faculty members with a distinguished record of fostering undergraduate research or creative activity.

An assistant professor of physics, Arratia has mentored undergraduate students in his lab and trained them in experimental nuclear physics research. Five students were co-authors in two peer-reviewed publications as a result of his mentorship.

A professor of computer science, Chrobak has mentored students through weekly group meetings and daily interactions focused on topics critical to their scientific development. Undergraduate participants were supported by research grants and fellowships. His mentorship has led to three competitive, peer-reviewed conference publications and two technical reports, with his students as first-authors.

The Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement also honors two graduating seniors who have conducted outstanding research or creative work. The 2024-25 honorees are Shane Levin and Sarah Howick, both in the physics and astronomy department.

Levin completed two projects under the mentorship of Jonathan Richardson, a professor of physics and astronomy. She assembled a cleanroom built to minimize contamination for sensitive equipment and experiments. Levin also developed a cybernetic multi-input/multi-output adaptive controller. She is also co-author on an article accepted in the journal “Physical Review Letters.”

Howick was awarded a mini grant to design and build a dual-phase time projection chamber for detecting low-energy signals from low-mass dark matter candidates. She worked under the mentorship of Shawn Westerdale, a professor of physics and astronomy. Her work is part of a larger international collaboration, where she has presented her designs at multiple meetings and earned a highly competitive Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship.