Program recognizes students for academic, extracurricular and personal accomplishments

Garmani Thein will resume studying two new bacteria species he helped discover last summer.

Diener was a luminary in the field of virology and molecular biology as the discoverer of the first circular RNAs, the plant pathogens known as viroids.

The award winners will be celebrated on April 21, 2023, at the college's Academic Awards Festival.

The college’s 18 awardees include seven current graduate students, three current undergraduates and eight recent alums.

Markowitz is a BISI BEES graduate student with a joint appointment in the labs of Jay Evans and David Hawthorne. South Philadelphia and the New Jersey Pine Barrens fostered her love for science.

Swarna taught at Carnegie Mellon University and UC San Diego before joining UMD in 2019.

El-Sayed studied in war-torn Lebanon before coming to the United States to pursue a scientific career.

Ling joined the department in 2018, following his journey from China to Ohio and Texas.

Alums’ gift to Maryland Promise Program honors their UMD mentor, CBMG Distinguished University Professor Emerita Elisabeth Gantt.