16 faculty honored with 2026 Chancellor’s Distinguished Awards
Sixteen Pitt faculty members have earned the 2026 Chancellor’s Distinguished Awards for exemplifying excellence in public service, research and teaching.
Academic Accolades
Deakings made the New Pittsburgh Courier 40 Under 40 list
Jason Deakings, assistant professor in the School of Public Health, was named to the New Pittsburgh Courier’s Fab 40 Under 40 list for 2026.
School of Medicine student made the Pittsburgh Business Times 30 Under 30 list
Benjamin Leslie, current student in the School of Medicine, was named to the Pittsburgh Business Times’ 30 Under 30 list.
Klots won two prizes for her first book
Alissa Klots, associate professor in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, earned two awards for her book, “Domestic Service in the Soviet Union: Women’s Emancipation and the Gendered Hierarchy of Labor,” published by Cambridge University Press in 2024.
Manuck honored by the American Psychological Association
For the first time, the American Psychological Association has awarded one of the most prestigious awards in psychological science to a faculty member in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Psychology.
9 Pitt affiliates were named New Pittsburgh Courier Women of Excellence
Sarah Ashmeg, clinical assistant professor in the School of Medicine, Kyaien Conner, director of the Center on Race and Social Problems, and Tiffany Gary-Webb, associate director of the Center for Health Equity, were named to the 2025 class.
Kellum elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors
John Kellum, Distinguished Professor of Critical Care Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has been elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).
8 Pitt undergraduates earned Gilman Scholarships
Eight University of Pittsburgh undergraduates have been awarded Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships for the October 2025 application cycle.
Kenney won a New Investigator Grant
Grace Kenney, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry, has received a New Investigator Grant from the Charles E. Kaufman Foundation. These grants are awarded to researchers at the beginning of their independent careers who are pursuing basic scientific research.
Kitzes won a Bezos Earth Fund AI Grand Challenge grant
Justin Kitzes, an associate professor in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Biological Sciences, was part of a team selected as one of 15 global awardees in the Bezos Earth Fund’s AI for Climate and Nature Grand Challenge.