Tammy Merrett, faculty advisor for Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s student newspaper, has been awarded the Louis E. Ingelhart First Amendment Award from the College Media Association. The award recognizes professionals that have made an extraordinary, long-term contribution in support of the First Amendment.
Merrett holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Pittsburg State University in Kansas and a master’s degree in communication management from Webster University in Missouri.
Talitha Washington has received the 2018 Leitzel Prize at the summer Mathematical Association of America MathFest Conference. She is a mathematician and professor at Howard University and a program director at the National Science Foundation.
Dr. Washington is a manga cum laude graduate of Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, where she majored in mathematics and minored in Spanish. She also holds a master’s degree and Ph.D. in mathematics both from the University of Connecticut.
Joan Argetsinger Steitz, a professor of molecular biology and biochemistry at Yale University has won one of three annual prizes from The Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation. She is recognized for her discoveries in RNA biology and her mentorship of women in science.
Dr. Steitz earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology from Harvard University.
Teresa Amabile, a Baker Foundation Professor at Harvard Business School and the Edsel Bryant Ford Professor of Business Administration Emerita, is the recipient of the 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Organizational Behavior Division of the Academy of Management. The award is given annually to senior scholars who have made significant contributions to the field of organizational behavior over the course of their career.
Dr. Amabile is a summa cum laude graduate of Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, where she majored in chemistry. She holds a master’s degree and Ph.D. in psychology from Stanford University.
La’Kitha Hughes, associate director of facilities and construction management at Jackson State University in Mississippi, has been awarded the Women in Leadership scholarship from the Association of Physical Plant Administrators. The scholarship is given to women facilities professionals based on financial need, professional aspirations, and leadership qualities.
Hughes holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in educational/instructional technology from Mississippi State University.

Dr. Bassler holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from the University of California, Davis and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Johns Hopkins University.


Dr. Holman is a magna cum laude graduate of Loyola University in New Orleans where she double majored in political science and history. She holds a master’s degree in public policy and a Ph.D. in American politics and public policy from Claremont Graduate University in California.

Dr. Gulia-Nuss holds a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and Ph.D. in biosciences from Maharshi Dayanand University in Rohtak, India.

Dr. Ashley holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut, an MBA in telecommunications management from the University of Miami, and a Ph.D. in marketing from the University of Rhode Island.

Dr. Farra holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Wright State University and a Ph.D. in nursing from the University of Cincinnati.


