Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine\u2019s 2026 Honors Convocation was held last week to recognize and celebrate outstanding achievement at the medical school.<\/p>\n
About 300 people attended the event held in Oakland University\u2019s Oakland Center. Per tradition, Honors Convocation is held the day before commencement for the year\u2019s graduating class.<\/p>\n
Achievements celebrated during the event included induction into medical honor societies, outstanding performances in clerkships, research accomplishments, scholarships, and more. (See complete list below.)<\/p>\n
After welcoming everyone, Christopher Carpenter, M.D., Stephan Sharf Dean, OUWB, acknowledged donors Dick Amacher<\/a> and Tom Dearlove, both in attendance. Their respective gifts have led to scholarships being awarded to OUWB students.<\/p>\n Next, recent inductees into several medical honor societies were recognized. They were Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society<\/a> (AOA), Pathology Honor Society, and Gold Humanism Honor Society<\/a> (GHHS).\u00a0 Students also were recognized for completing more than 150 hours of service with Compass Service Honors.<\/p>\n Following a brief military promotion ceremony for Bryan Noirot, M.D., to captain, it was time for individual awards and accomplishments.<\/p>\n Christian Santiago, M.D., received Outstanding Performance in Neurology Clerkship, the Drs. Neelam and Narayan Verma Endowed Scholarship for Neurosciences, Compass Service Honors, and was recognized as a GHHS inductee.<\/p>\n In March, Santiago matched<\/a> in neurology at University of Central Florida\/HCA Healthcare GME.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s amazing,\u201d he said. \u201cIt solidifies my own career goals given that several of my awards were related to neurosciences and neurology. It tells me that this is what I\u2019m supposed to do.\u201d<\/p>\n Deepali Tailor, M.D., was among those to receive a Class of 2026 M1 Award for Outstanding Academic Performance, the Ann Nicholson Community Service Scholarship (2023-2024), and Compass Service Honors.<\/p>\n Tailor matched in internal medicine at University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels amazing,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m grateful for the opportunities I\u2019ve received at OUWB, and grateful for the opportunity to be recognized for my achievements.\u201d<\/p>\n Joel Karsten, M.D., was recognized as an AOA inductee, for Compass Service Honors, the 2025 Kenneth J. Matzick Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year Honorable Mention, the Marvin and Betty Danto Scholarship, and the Schostak Family Scholarship.<\/p>\n Karsten matched in internal medicine at University of Michigan Hospitals, Ann Arbor.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels great\u2026and it good to be around so many other amazing people, too,\u201d he said. \u201cI love my classmates and it\u2019s good to see everyone celebrated.\u201d<\/p>\n Here is a list of honorees from the 2026 OUWB Honors Convocation:<\/p>\n Awards for Outstanding Student Achievements<\/p>\n Class of 2026 M1 Award for Outstanding Academic Performance Class of 2026 M2 Award for Outstanding Academic Performance<\/a> Class of 2026 M3 Clerkship Awards<\/p>\n Outstanding Performance in the Family Medicine Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Internal Medicine Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Neurology Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Pediatrics Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Psychiatry Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Surgery Clerkship Class of 2025 M4 Clerkship Awards<\/p>\n Outstanding Performance in the Anesthesia and Pain Medicine Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Diagnostic Medicine Clerkship Outstanding Performance in the Emergency Medicine Clerkship Glasgow-Rubin Certificate of Commendation for Academic Achievement Embark<\/a> Competitive Scholarship Awards<\/p>\n 2025 Kenneth J. Matzick Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year 2025 Kenneth J. Matzick Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year Honorable Mention Recipient:\u00a0Amy Lin Recipient:\u00a0Joel Karsten 2025 Ravitz Foundation Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year 1st Runner-Up 2025 Ravitz Foundation Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year Honorable Mention Recipient: Riya Chhabra Recipient: Marwa Saad 2025 Ann V. Nicholson Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year 2nd Runner-Up 2025 Newman Family Foundation Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year Honorable Mention 2025 Nicholson Embark Program Competitive Scholarship, Manuscript of the Year Honorable Mention OUWB Scholarship Awards<\/p>\n The Ann Nicholson Community Service Scholarship The Marvin and Betty Danto Scholarship The W.J. and Lillian Kemler Scholarship The Christine and Thomas Dearlove Scholarship The Richard and Barbara Amacher Scholarship Drs. Neelam and Narayan Verma Endowed Scholarship for Neurosciences The OUWB Scholarship The OUWB Community Student Scholarship Corewell Health Foundation Scholarship Awards<\/p>\n The Dean\u2019s Scholarship Corewell Health Foundation Scholarship The Schostak Family Scholarship The Pinnamaneni Family and Friends Scholarship Awards of Distinction<\/p>\n Excellence in Culture, Leadership & Community Engagement Awards<\/p>\n Excellence in Culture, Leadership & Community Engagement Faculty Award Excellence in Culture, Leadership & Community Engagement Student Award OUWB Staff Community Engagement Award Awards for Outstanding Faculty Achievements<\/p>\n Awards for Educational Excellence<\/p>\n Foundational Medical Studies Educator of the Year Clinical Educator of the Year Foundational Medical Studies Excellence in Research Award Clinical Excellence in Research Award Foundational Medical Studies Excellence in Service Award Golden Apple Awards<\/p>\n Class of 2028 Foundational Medical Studies Faculty Award Class of 2028 Clinical Faculty Award Class of 2027 Foundational Medical Studies Faculty Award Class of 2027 Clinical Faculty Award Class of 2026 Teaching Resident\/Fellow Award Class of 2026 Clinical Faculty Award Award of Honor<\/p>\n Michelle D. Raible Award \u00a0<\/p>\n To request an interview, visit the OUWB Communications & Marketing\u00a0webpage<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Recipients:\u00a0Forrest Bohler, Jessica Cummings, Ethan Dimock, Deepali Tailor<\/p>\n
Recipients:\u00a0Forrest Bohler, Kaitlyn Butzin, Jessica Cummings, Mark Whitton<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Nicholas Petrykowski<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Jessica Cummings<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Christian Santiago<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Matthew Cederman<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Brenda Bortis<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Paoula Choobchian, Felipe Guerrero<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Morgan Porter<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Madison McClune<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Nicholas Petrykowski<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Frosilda Pushani<\/p>\n
Recipients:\u00a0Kaitlyn Butzin, Jessica Cummings, Kaithlyn Duong, Lindsay Gallagher, Elena Ghezzi, Kaitlyn Quach, Jaclyn Talbot<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Colin Van Wagoner
Submission title: Associate Urogenital Injuries Following Pelvic Trauma in Pediatrics, a 15-Year Single-Center Retrospective Study. Mentor: Ehah Saleh, M.D.<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Ava Harvey
Submission title: Oral Feeding Patterns of Prematurely Born Infants and Their Relationship to Expressive Language Outcome. Mentor: Rawad Obeid, M.D.<\/p>\n
Submission title: Association between Celiac Disease and Uncontrolled Hemoglobin A1c Levels in Type 1 Diabetes Pediatric Patients: A Retrospective Chart Review<\/a>. Mentors: Virginia Uhley, Ph.D., R.D. and Ramin Homayouni, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Submission title: Association between Neighborhood Socioeconomics and Mortality in Community-Acquired Sepsis. Mentors: Paul Bozyk, M.D.; and Ramin Homayouni, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Min Young Kim
Submission title: Effects of Resolvin-D2 in lipopolysaccharide-induced retinal inflammation. Mentor: Mohamed Al-Shabrawey, M.D., M.Sc., Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Recipient: Forrest Bohler
Submission title: Medical Student Attitudes Towards Advanced Practice Provider Independence Legislation. Mentor: Varna Taranikanti, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Submission title: Component-Level Analysis of the SEP-1 3-Hour Bundle and its Association With 30-day Mortality after Sepsis. Mentors: Paul Bozyk, M.D.; and Ramin Homayouni, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Submission title: Analysis of ChatGPT-3.5\u2019s Potential in Generating NBME-Standard Pharmacology Questions: What Can Be Improved? Mentors: Changiz Mohiyeddini, Ph.D.; and Tanvirul Hye, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Jessica Cummings
Submission title: Prevalence of Eating Disorder Risk Among Medical Students in a United States Medical School. Mentors: Virginia Uhley, Ph.D.; and Abram Brummett, Ph.D., HEC-C<\/p>\n
Recipient: Nidhi Navaratna
Submission title: Rare but Aggressive: Clinical and Prognostic Features of Metaplastic Breast Cancer. Mentors: Mohammad Chisti, M.D.; and Mariam Aoun, M.D.<\/p>\n
Recipient: Dhun Chauhan
Submission title: Gender-Based Disparities in Academic Orthopaedic Surgery Physician Compensation in 2023. Mentors: Charles Day, M.D., MBA; and Dwayne Baxa, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Kaithlyn Duong (2023-2024), Felicia Fong (2023-2024), Katilyn Quach (2023-2024), Deepali Tailor (2023-2024), Cindy Tran (2023-2024)<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Joel Karsten (2025-2026)<\/p>\n
Recipient: Ava Harvey (2025-2026)<\/p>\n
Recipient: Talon Shumway<\/p>\n
Recipient: Maya Kardouh<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Christian Santiago\u00a0(2025-2026)<\/p>\n
Recipients:\u00a0Forrest Bohler (2023-2024, 2024-2025), Ava Harvey (2024-2025), Amy Lin (2025-2026), Evan Sangster (2023-2024)<\/p>\n
Recipients:\u00a0Forrest Bohler (2025-2026), Jessica Ngo (2022-2023), Ryan Victor-Joseph (2024-2025)<\/p>\n
Recipients: Riya Chhabra (2024-2025), Kaitlyn Paez (2024-2025), Deena Sukhon (2023-2024)<\/p>\n
Recipients: Reba Aldaire (2024-2025), Imran Bitar (2022-2023), Forrest Bohler (2022-2023), Riya Chhabra (2022-2023), Nathan Huang (2022-2023), Maya Jaradi (2022-2023), Derrik Nghiem (2023-2024), Kaitlyn Paez (2022-2023), Frosilda Pushani (2022-2023), Sahana Shankar (2022-2023), Deena Sukhon (2022-2023), Jaclyn Talbot (2023-2024), Claire Wang (2023-2024)<\/p>\n
Recipients:\u00a0Lindsay Gallagher (2023-2024), Joel Karsten (2023-2024), Claire Kopachik (2023-2024), Joseph Solomon (2023-2024)<\/p>\n
Recipients: Felicia Fong (2024-2025), Colin Van Wagoner (2024-2025)<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Payal Shah, M.D., Associate Residency Director, Emergency Medicine, and Assistant Dean, Diversity & Inclusion<\/p>\n
Recipient: Deena Sukhon, Class of 2026<\/p>\n
Recipient: Stephanie Marcincavage, Director, Clinical Skills Training and Simulation Center<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Serena Kuang, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Wendy Wiesend, M.D., assistant professor, Department of Pathology<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Vardan Karamyan, Pharm.D.,Ph.D., professor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Andrew Zillgitt, D.O., associate professor, Department of Neurology<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Rose Wedemeyer, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies; director, Education Training<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Anna Kochanowska Karamyan, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Leon Pedell, M.D., FACP, adjunct instructor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Changiz Mohiyeddini, Ph.D., professor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Leon Pedell, M.D., FACP, adjunct instructor, Department of Foundational Medical Studies<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Peter Awad, M.D., Department of Surgery<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Florian Bukovec, M.D., assistant professor, Department of Internal Medicine<\/p>\n
Recipient:\u00a0Zerick Dill, Class of 2029<\/p>\n