Each month, Campus Kudos will spotlight recent awards and distinctions earned by University of Houston faculty and students. These include memberships into professional societies, international honors, competitive fellowships and other accolades. To submit recent accomplishments, send a note to Academic Update.
Mehdi Mortazavi, a recent industrial design master's graduate from the Gerald D. Hines
College of Architecture and Design, earned first place in the Consortium of Multiple
Sclerosis Centers Design for Rehabilitation Competition. Mortazavi developed ProxiStep,
a soft lower-body exosuit designed to assist individuals living with multiple sclerosis
by improving gait balance and reducing physical walking effort.
Graphic design students from the Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts brought
their classroom learning to the community through a partnership with Katy Mills. The
student-designed visual initiatives transformed local public spaces and gave young
designers real-world experience in large-scale experiential art.
College of Education Professor Earns Statewide Mathematics Achievement Award
Carrie S. Cutler, clinical professor in the UH College of Education, was presented
with the 2026 E. Glenadine Gibb Achievement Award by the Texas Council of Teachers
of Mathematics. The award recognizes Cutler's nearly three decades of work advancing
math education, mentoring future teachers, and creating math-positive learning environments
for children and educators across Texas.
An interdisciplinary team led by Abdul Latif Khan of the Cullen College of Engineering
received a $500,000, three-year grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Partnering with faculty from the Department of Electrical Engineering and the Department
of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, the team will research nature-based phytoremediation
and microbial strategies to restore degraded wetland ecosystems in Galveston Bay.
Kelechi Wright Receives Child Welfare Research Sub-Award
Kelechi Wright, assistant professor in the Department of African American Studies,
was awarded a sub-award from the Texas Institute for Child & Family Wellbeing. The
grant supports Wright's ongoing research into child welfare system reforms aimed at
shaping state-level policies and improving support networks for families.
A multidisciplinary research coalition co-led by UH chemistry professors Jakoah Brgoch
and Joshua Bocarsly secured a $2.88 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's
ARPA-E. The project leverages artificial intelligence to design, synthesize, and test
next-generation permanent magnets to secure the domestic supply chain for clean energy
and industrial technologies.
The 91视频 College of Optometry commemorated the induction of the late
Ruth Manny into its Hall of Visionaries with a formal plaque unveiling. Manny, who
served on the UH faculty for over five decades and made groundbreaking contributions
to pediatric vision care, becomes the first female inductee in the college's history
and was also designated Professor Emeritus.
College of Pharmacy SNPhA Chapter Earns Top Honors at National Convention
The UH College of Pharmacy Student National Pharmaceutical Association chapter captured
major national accolades at the 2026 SNPhA/NPhA National Convention in Bethesda, Maryland.
Building on regional success, chapter members earned eight out of nine national initiative
awards, top placements in clinical skills and community service competitions, and
several individual student scholarships.