Faculty and Staff Awards

The 2025 recipient of the Atwood Research and Teaching Award is Dr. Songfeng Zheng from the Mathematics Department.

Dr. Zheng was recognized early on as a rising star at MSU. He has developed an extensive research program in statistics, applied statistics, and related areas. His publications are in highly recognized journals, with relatively very low acceptance rates. His areas of research also include image analysis and machine learning. Dr. Zheng also serves as mentor advisor for graduate students pursuing a thesis or working on research papers; he has also mentored several undergraduate students. He received the CNAS Faculty Excellence Award in Research not once, but twice, in 2021 and 2024.

Brian Grindstaff - Brian is the Experimental Machinist for CNAS. In his work associated with machinery and custom research and teaching projects for the college, the number of his projects is awe-inspiring and the breadth is staggering: ranging from the smallest of scales requiring dexterity and finesse to large machines. His expertise is recognized by the Department of Engineering in which he serves as a Lab Instructor. The long list includes works for 24 faculty, OEWRI, and the Baker’s Observatory.                

Angie Piercy - Angie is excellent with planning all programs and activities. She takes the time to ask each faculty how they are doing and what way she can provide support to them. Even though our program, that spans three Engineering departments (Electrical, Civil, and Mechanical), is temporarily down to one administrative assistant, Angie hasn’t complained. She has done the work with a smile on her face and seeks ways to accomplish the varied tasks more efficiently. Angie is a very fast learner, especially considering the complex nature of the engineering program of dealing with two campuses (MSU and Missouri S&T). Angie arranges outreach events, and does a phenomenal job with EGR social media platforms. She also received her MSU Master Advisor certificate, and has been in the staff senate for 3 years.

Gary Meints - Dr. Meints is the public face of the Chemistry Department within and outside the University. Dr. Meints devotes countless hours to creating intellectually meaningful experiences, by meticulously and thoughtfully creating demonstrations and other activities, locally, regionally, and nationally. To mention a few: Treasurer for the Ozarks American Chemical Society Section, mentor for the Central High School Science Olympiad Team, member of MSU degrees committee, CNAS recruitment committee, CHM and CNAS scholarship committees, NMR Administrator, Coordinator of Science demonstrations, CHM representative at all major recruitment events, etc.

Tayo Obafemi-Ajayi - Dr. Obafemi-Ajayi has served with excellence on multiple committees and positions at the departments of EGR and CSC, CNAS, and MSU. In addition, she has been very active in service to her professional community internationally. She currently chairs the CNAS personnel committee. She serves on the CSC graduate curriculum committee. She has organized multiple workshops, tutorials, special sessions, and data competitions in the region. She organized the Bioinformatics, Bioengineering, and Biomedicine symposium at MSU Spring 2024. She serves on the organizing committee for multiple international conferences in her field as well as a reviewer for several journals and conference proceedings.

La Toya Kissoon-Charles - Dr. Kissoon-Charles served as BIO-BMS Gen Ed Group member to minimize redundancy between BIO and BMS departments. She invited Jordan Heiman to speak at a departmental seminar. She also committed to serving as the BIO 101 Gen Ed Coordinator for CGEIP, for which she will submit biannual reports. She presented at the online Packback workshop in July. She also served as the peer-teaching rubric for the department. She is now a member of the Animal Ecology Search Committee. She also submitted a new course proposal for Ecotoxicology. She is a participant for MDC Floating Wetlands Project where she contributed to a group meeting and provided insight into how MSU could contribute to the MDC project. 

Babur Mirza -  Since his promotion to associate professor in 2023, Dr. Mirza has been asked to teach courses that he had never taught before due to the permanent departure of a faculty member. Nevertheless, Dr. Mirza has made notable research accomplishments, even with an extremely high teaching load. He published 4 research papers and 5 manuscripts are in preparation for submission. Along with these, his lab presented several posters and oral presentations at local and national level conferences. Another aspect of his research productivity can be highlighted with grants received in 2024 from several internal and external funding agencies

Natasha DeVore – Dr. DeVore, Chemistry and Biochemistry department, has shown continued excellence in structural biology and significant contributions to acquiring major equipment used across the University. Dr. DeVore is able to maintain a high level of productivity while mentoring one of the largest research groups in the department. The incredible success of her mentoring is evidenced by the inclusion of graduate, undergraduate, and even high school student co-authors in published manuscripts and by a number of students receiving awards for their presentations.  

Razib Iqbal – Since 2023, Dr. Iqbal, from the Computer Science department, has published three peer-reviewed journal articles and twelve conference papers, including one in the prestigious IEEE Transactions on Artificial Intelligence. His research consistently involves students, as reflected in his numerous co-authored publications with MSU students. Dr. Iqbal actively pursues external funding, submitting three NSF and NASA proposals in 2024. As PI, he secured the $600,000 for the highly competitive NSF-funded RET Site: Computer Science Research Opportunity for Smart Environments (ROSE) grant in 2023. He also serves as Co-PI and Computer Science lead on MSU’s ongoing $4M Department of Education CODERS grant since 2021. Dr. Iqbal is currently overseeing five graduate research projects and mentoring two undergraduate students.

Day Ligon – Dr. Ligon, Biology Department, has published 10 peer-reviewed papers, four manuscripts that are currently under review, 2 technical reports, and 26 presentations. And he has had an exceptional record of funding, including from the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Delta Foundation and Turtle Survival Alliance, and the Belize Maya Forest Trust. In 2024, he received a total of $544,561 in external grant money. Many of his research accomplishments have been featured in the media, including a detailed account of his turtle research in the National Geographic. It is worth mentioning that two of his graduate students won first place for their presentations at the Turtle Survival Alliance Annual Symposium in Arizona.

Kevin Mickus - Dr. Mickus, SEES, created and taught a new course in "Geology of Gem Deposits". He continues to teach some of our introductory courses in various modalities including online, in person, and either block or full semester. During 2024, he mentored graduate and undergraduate research projects. All these students have presented their research results at various local, regional, and national venues. He helped one of his graduate students to receive a research assistantship from NASA. One of his students has been accepted for a PhD in seismology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.  He has students focusing on natural resources in countries such as Ghana and Uzbekistan, and he is on the PhD committee of a student from the University of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.

Debra Finn - In 2024, Dr. Finn, BIO, supervised 5 graduate students. With her advising, two newly arrived students received fellowships from the Society for Freshwater Science “Emerge” program. She served on 6 thesis committees, mentored eight undergraduate students to present their research at local and national conferences. Dr. Finn is also recognized for her outstanding effort in advising two non-MSU PhD students, of which one completed a PhD and the other completed comprehensive exams at the University of Arkansas.

Sean Maher - Dr. Maher, BIO, advised 30 students in 2024. He had 4 master's students under his advisement, some pursuing thesis and some non-thesis. We appreciate his decision to take on two graduate students from two faculty members who recently left the department. He served on 20 thesis committees in 2024. As for undergraduate research mentoring, he advised two undergraduate students in 2024, and he has been nominated for the 2025 MSU Curtis P. Lawrence Award for Academic Advising. 

Rahul Dubey - Since joining MSU, Dr. Dubey, Computer Science, has made an immediate and significant impact in the department. In Fall 2024, he developed and launched a new graduate-level course, CSC 790: Explainable AI. The impact of this course is already evident - two student projects are under review in IEEE journals, with two additional conference papers in preparation. Dr. Dubey has revised three key courses, CSC 640 (Introduction to AI), CSC 703 (Research Methods), and CSC 736 (Machine Learning), to align with current industry practices and learning outcomes. Beyond the classroom, Dr. Dubey has served as the primary advisor for three graduate theses, and supervised two independent graduate research projects along with one undergraduate research student. In Fall 2024 alone, he advised 34 students, providing academic guidance and support for professional development.

Michelle Bowe - It is very unique in that as an instructor, Dr. Bowe, Biology, is an active member of the Graduate Faculty and has served on two thesis committees. She was also the internship advisor for one of our BIO399 students. It's also worth mentioning that looking after our herbarium is part of her teaching and service duties. She's always looking to update her courses by using cutting-edge teaching technologies and incorporating recent discoveries into her lectures and labs. Among many, one thing she's particularly proud of is the two weekend field trips she's introduced to get students to learn about subject materials in real-world situations.

Bryan Breyfogle – The nominating students said, “Dr. Breyfogle is one of the best professors I have ever had. He is very knowledgeable about chemistry and is always willing to help anyone. He is very considerate of his students and always makes sure that the labs are running smoothly. Overall, he is the model for what a professor should be.”

Andrzej Baran – The nominating student said, "Since joining MSU in 2023, Dr. Baran has brought new energy and direction to astronomy teaching and research, and he has been an excellent research mentor. Dr. Baran spearheaded efforts to realign the 20-inch optical telescope for observational research at Baker Observatory and is currently working on fixing the BORAT automatic telescope for research as well. Overall, Dr. Baran's contribution to the university in only a few years has been substantial. His impact has grown student interest in astronomy and has brought Baker Observatory back to a more active role in research. ”

Natasha DeVore – The nominating student said, “I have never met a more incredible faculty member. One thing I quickly realized in college is that there’s a big difference in someone who’s just an expert in their field and someone who is truly a great teacher, and Dr. DeVore is both! I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this award than Dr. DeVore.”

Toby Dogwiler – The nominating student said, “Dr. Dogwiler provided me with exceptional support and mentorship throughout my academic journey. What stands out most is Dr. Dogwiler’s unwavering encouragement and availability. He patiently offered strategic suggestions to overcome technical challenges and continuously motivated me to push the limits of what we could achieve with AI-driven mapping. His mentorship exemplified a perfect blend of academic rigor and personal investment in student development.”

Avery Russell is the 2025 winner of the CNAS Inclusive Engagement Award. Dr. Russell’s has actively mentored 27 undergraduate students and 7 graduate students or research staff, many of whom come from historically underrepresented groups. His inclusive research environment provides meaningful roles for students in high-impact projects. He has co-organized several conferences that prioritize diverse speaker lineups and inclusive participation. Dr. Russell has taken on a level of engagement far exceeding expectations, modeling how academic leadership can drive institutional and disciplinary change. His commitment to inclusion is not performative but embedded in the structure and culture of his lab and professional service.

Santimukul Santra is the 2025 winner of the CNAS Interdisciplinary Research Award. Dr. Santra has established an externally-funded research program that epitomizes interdisciplinarity. With funding from USDA (2025-2028) and NIH (2022-2026), Dr. Santra’s research integrates expertise from materials science, biochemistry, biology, computer science and agriculture, in addition to chemistry. Along with MSU, his collaborators – with most of whom he has co-authored papers – are from seven institutions.