Faculty, Staff, and Students to be Recognized with 2025 SPH Awards.
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Faculty, Staff, and Students to be Recognized with 2025 SPH Awards
Urmi Phanse, Chris Louis, Nicole Huberfeld, Mary Murphy-Phillips, David Jernigan, and Anita DeStefano are among those who will receive awards at convocation.
Congratulations to the members of the School of Public Health community who will be honored with awards at the 2025 SPH Convocation!
2025 Podium Awardees
Urmi Phanse, an MPH graduate, is the winner of the 2025 Leonard H. Glantz Award for Academic Excellence.
The Glantz Award is the highest award granted to a graduating MPH student at SPH. The honor is named for Leonard H. Glantz, emeritus professor of health law, bioethics & human rights, who served for 30 years as academic dean and demanded rigorous standards in curriculum and teaching throughout the academic program.
Glantz Award winners are nominated by faculty, and demonstrate exceptional academic performance, seriousness, and professionalism in public health.
Phanse’s nomination letters paint a picture of a bright and generous leader with a talent for teaching and mentorship. Described in one letter as having a “humanitarian spirit,” Phanse fully devoted herself to service during her time at SPH: service to her peers, service to the community, and service to vulnerable populations abroad. Phanse networked with peers as a member of the International Students Organization and Consulting Club, and ultimately formed her own informal mentorship network to connect other students with campus employment opportunities. As team lead for the Peer Writing Coach Program, she also proved an invaluable resource to students seeking assistance with written assignments. Phanse served as a teaching assistant (TA) for three courses—Quantitative Methods for Public Health (PH717), Introduction to Statistical Computing (PH723), and From Data to Dashboards: Building Excel Skills to Support Health Program Decisions (GH854). As TA, she helped her peers to navigate challenging material with notable patience and clarity.
According to faculty nominators, Phanse demonstrated an excellent aptitude for data analysis and represented SPH in the international 2025 SAS Curiosity Cup, where students apply statistical programming to analyze public data. A faculty member with whom Phanse worked as a TA noted, “Ms. Phanse transformed our most challenging course into an intellectual journey that students embraced. […] Under her guidance, classes showed a remarkable 15% improvement in retention of complex statistical concepts.”
In collaboration with David Hamer, professor of global health, and Godfrey Biemba, adjunct research assistant professor of global health, Phanse conducted health equity research into how Kangaroo mother care can be used to improve neonatal outcomes in Zambia. She also completed a practicum at Boston Medical Center, where she contributed to mental health initiatives for court-involved individuals and children who have experienced trauma. On top of her academics, extracurriculars, and research activities, Phanse also served as a student ambassador for BU’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, conducting community outreach to raise awareness of cognitive impairments.
“I have encountered many exceptional individuals in my career, but Ms. Phanse stands alone in her ability to elevate everyone around her,” reads one nomination letter. “[…] She is a beacon of excellence whose impact will resonate far beyond Boston University.”
Christopher Louis, interim chair and clinical professor in the Department of Health Law, Policy & Management, is the winner of the 2025 Norman A. Scotch Award for Excellence in Teaching.
Named after SPH’s founding dean who worked to make education a hallmark of the School, the Scotch Award is presented annually to an individual who has made outstanding and sustained contributions to the education program at SPH.
While continuing to teach several popular healthcare management courses himself, Louis has developed SPH’s healthcare management certificate into the #1 ranked HCM program in New England and among the most successful in the country. As program director, Louis carefully curated a comprehensive and practical curriculum that floated the certificate through accreditation. He has also established new processes for garnering feedback from current students and formed a steering committee of program alumni to help guide future decision-making. A colleague described Louis as the “engine” behind the program’s growth and success.
Louis is admired for both his program leadership and his teaching prowess. He is widely known for making investments in student success that extend beyond coursework, offering students unparalleled access to his time and empowering them to thrive under his mentorship and encouragement. His nomination letter reads, “Every student I have spoken with—without exception—has praised [Louis’] teaching methods […] His teaching is so engaging and well-regarded that students from other certificates inquire about and hope to take his class, a testament to the high demand for his instruction.”
A past student commended Louis’ ability to simplify complex concepts and connect theories to real-world applications, noting, “Dr. Louis embodies the essence of an extraordinary educator who is passionate about teaching and deeply devoted to his student’s development, both inside and outside the classroom. Another student, whose dissertation committee included Louis, wrote, “Chris has a rare ability to see potential in others, often before they recognize it themselves, and he challenges them to grow in ways that feel both unexpected and perfectly suited to their strengths. He’s always there to offer support—not just when it’s easy, but in a way that makes you feel truly valued rather than ever being an imposition.”
Nicole Huberfeld, Edward R. Utley Professor of Health Law, is the winner of the 2025 Faculty Award for Excellence in Research and Scholarship.
This honor is given annually to recognize a faculty member for a distinguished body of scholarly or scientific work on a specific topic or within a general area of expertise.
A respected expert on reproductive justice, Huberfeld is internationally renowned for her research at the intersection of health law and constitutional law. She has authored more than 100 publications, contributed to two leading health law case books, and written many book chapters, law journal articles, peer-reviewed articles, and commentaries. In addition to chairing the BU Health Law Program and co-directing the BU Program on Reproductive Justice, Huberfeld also serves as research director for the Uniform Law Commission’s Joint Editorial Board on Health Law.
Her expertise has frequently landed her interviews with major media outlets, and judicial opinions from state courts all the way up through the U.S. Supreme Court have cited her work. In a nomination letter for the award, Huberfeld’s colleague writes of her, “She exemplifies everything that we strive to achieve and is one of BUSPH’s leading researchers. She is most deserving.”
Mary Murphy-Phillips (MET’03), assistant dean for students, is the winner of the 2025 Dzidra J. Knecht Staff Award for Distinguished Service.
The highest award for school service that can be given to a staff member at SPH, the Knecht Award recognizes staff who have made outstanding and sustained contributions to the administrative functioning of their departments and therefore the School. It is named in honor of Dzidra J. Knecht, the School’s first associate dean for administration, who spent 30 years working for the University, 20 of them at SPH.
The highest award for school service that can be given to a staff member at SPH, the Knecht Award recognizes staff who have made outstanding and sustained contributions to the administrative functioning of their departments and therefore the School. It is named in honor of Dzidra J. Knecht, the School’s first associate dean for administration, who spent 30 years working for the University, 20 of them at SPH.
Murphy-Phillips’ service to SPH goes back far longer than most of the School’s other staff—even Knecht, the namesake of the award Murphy-Phillips is to receive. Murphy-Phillips has held one position or another at SPH for more than 30 years, beginning in 1996 when she was hired as department and financial manager in the Department of Epidemiology. Her talent for mentoring students led her to quickly ascend the ranks to her current position, where she is not only responsible for welcoming hundreds of students to the school each year but also shepherding each, to the best of her ability, through to convocation. Murphy-Phillips and her team also annually put on some of SPH’s largest public-facing events, including new student orientation, admitted students’ day, and the convocation ceremonies.
Although the past five years have proven particularly challenging, Murphy-Phillips has consistently risen to the occasion. Whether it be the stress of the pandemic, increasing rates of mental health issues among young people, or persistent food insecurity, nominators noted her “unwavering dedication to connecting students with the resources they need to succeed”. What is more, according to her nomination letters, she always extends the same compassion and empathy brought to her interactions with students to her interactions with colleagues. “Ask Mary,” is a frequent refrain across the Talbot Building, since it is a widely assumed that she will know what to do, either because she has dealt with situation before or because she will draw on her deep relationships across the university to find a solution. More than one of Murphy-Phillips’ nominators noted they would be amiss to not express appreciation for her warmth and endearing sense of humor.
‘“When you are lucky enough to make her laugh,” wrote one colleague, “her laugh is loud enough to reach from (Talbot) East to (Talbot) West. We all benefit from that levity more than she’ll ever know.”
David Jernigan, professor of health law, policy & management, is the winner of the 2025 Award for Excellence in Public Health Practice.
This honor is presented annually to a faculty or staff member who has made outstanding and sustained contributions to the health of populations through advocacy work, community engagement, and/or public policy endeavors.
As assistant dean of SPH’s Activist Lab, Jernigan is a fixture of the School’s advocacy scene. He is well-known for regularly testifying at the city, state, and national levels on alcohol policy, as well as for training young people in the skills to participate in advocacy themselves. His research on alcohol advertising, taxation, and availability and its effects on young people is frequently cited in the media, further evidence of the effort he extends to translate his research findings for real-world policy and practice. For example, Jernigan has long served as senior policy advisor to the nonprofit CityHealth, an initiative of the de Beaumont Foundation and Kaiser Permanente that rates U.S. cities on their progress in adopting evidence-based policies to support health and wellbeing.
In his nomination letter, Jernigan’s colleague cites Jernigan’s sign-off to a recent email exchange as further evidence of his ongoing commitment to community engagement. Jernigan had written that he was “in Brazil right now, coaching a team from civil society on how to get stronger regulation of alcohol marketing.” He then asked the colleague to wish them luck as the team would be meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Health the following day. “This is another great example of why he should be considered for this award,” wrote the colleague. “His efforts across several decades should be celebrated!”
Anita DeStefano, professor of biostatistics, received the 2025 Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Award.
This award honors a faculty or staff member who has done extraordinary work promoting diversity, equity, and justice and cultivating a culture of inclusion throughout the School.
DeStefano has served as a champion for diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) over the years in numerous ways through a variety of roles in her department, at SPH, at BU, and on behalf her field. As the graduate affairs faculty fellow for diversity and inclusion, DeStefano co-facilitated two university-wide workshops during spring and fall 2024 that attracted more than 150 faculty, staff, and graduate students to learn about equitable admissions. She also co-led a course on inclusive STEM teaching to increase the self-efficacy of STEM instructors to provide an inclusive learning environment.
DeStefano’s leadership has also proven invaluable to the BUSPH DEI Committee, the Biostatistics DEI Committee, and the BU Summer Institute for Research Education in Biostatistics (SIBS). During her more than a decade at the helm of SIBS as co-principal investigator, DeStefano has made it her mission to increase the program’s enrollment of minority, first generation, and economically disadvantaged students. She plans to use her upcoming sabbatical to further expand her knowledge and skills around inclusive teaching and mentorship as well as to further her expertise in the study of diverse populations in genomics research.
Additional 2025 Awardees
Congratulations also to the following faculty, staff, and students who will be honored at a school-wide Awards Ceremony on Friday, May 16.
Faculty
Excellence in Teaching Award for Teaching in the Core
Bruce Larson
Excellence in Teaching Award for Student Engagement
Bill MacLeod
Excellence in Teaching Award for Dedication to Student Learning
Kevin Lane
Excellence in Teaching Award for Outstanding New Instructor
Fatema Shafie Khorassani
Excellence in Research Early Career Award
Amelia Wesselink
Excellence in Research Innovation Award
Patricia Fabian
Excellence in Research Mentoring Award
Greg Wellenius
Educational Innovation
Marcia Pescador Jimenez
Staff
Staff Excellence Award in Collaboration
Erica Augustine
Staff Excellence Award in Mentorship or Training
Heatherly Mitch
Staff Excellence Award in Leadership
Nikki Longe
The Karen Smith Award
Denise Sanchez
Students
Excellence in Student Services & Leadership Award
Summya Khatoon
Excellence in Student Success & Leadership Award
Wendelyn Hansbury
Student Award for Excellence in Public Health Practice
Lyv Norris
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Student Award
Mai Hussein
Eugene Declercq Award for Excellence in a Public Health Practice Dissertation
Charl Bezuidenhout
Community Health Sciences “Rising Star” Award
Tiana Mason
Restuccia Award for Achievement in Social Justice in Community Health
Isabelle Joseph
James F. Burgess Award for the Best Student Paper in Health Services Research
Allison Dorneo
Allan R. Meyers Memorial Award for Excellence in Health Policy & Management
Allison Fischman
David K. Jones Award for Commitment to Health Policy and Social Justice
Eric Ngo
William B. Patterson Memorial Prize for Excellence in Environmental and Occupational Health
Georgia Quesnelle
Theodore Colton Prize for Excellence in Epidemiology
Ojasvi Vachharajani
Epidemiology Academic Excellence Award
Michelle Flesaker
Center for Health Law, Ethics and Human Rights Award
Rebecca Rohac
The John Snow, Inc. Award in Global Health
Sanjiv Gupta
Herb Kayne Prize for Excellence in Biostatistics
Dan Nguyen
Biostatistics Academic Excellence Award
Anushka Aghi
Biostatistics Excellence in Research Award
Shae Gantt
The Sherri Oliver Stuver Award
Chad Coleman
Innovative Practicum Award
Sanjiv Gupta
Dan Nguyen
Olivia Wilson
John Lambert
