07. 09. 2025

The Graduate School is pleased to announce the 2025 Best Dissertation Award Winners

Congratulations to the winners of the 2025 Best Dissertation Award! A recipient from each of four groups – arts and humanities, biological and life sciences, physical sciences and engineering, and social sciences and education – is chosen by faculty from the broad disciplinary area. Selections are based on the originality and importance of the research, as well as the potential for the student to make an unusually significant contribution to their field.

BIOLOGICAL & MEDICAL SCIENCES

Dr. Seokwon Jo, Integrative Biology and Physiology

  • Advisor(s): Dr. Emilyn Alejandro
  • Dissertation Title: Unraveling Metabolic Health and Diabetes: Insights into Placental Mitochondrial Programming, O-GlcNAc/mTORC1 Dynamics, and Pancreatic Beta-Cell Function
  • Current Position: Postdoctoral Associate at the University of Minnesota

HUMANITIES & FINE ARTS  

Jessica Farrell, History

  • Advisor(s): Dr. Helena Pohlandt-McCormick
  • Dissertation Title: Abolition through Recapture: Unfreedom, Necromancy, and RE(-formation) in Nineteenth-Century Liberia

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Dr. Mohammad Charara, Civil Engineering

  • Advisor(s): Dr. Stefano Gonella
  • Dissertation Title: Topological Metamaterials: Beyond the Kagome Lattice
  • Current Position: Postdoctoral Associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Social & Behavioral Sciences & Education

Sarah Gillespie, Developmental Psychology

  • Advisor(s): Drs. Gail Ferguson and Ann Mastern
  • Dissertation Title: Exploring the Effects of Ethnic Studies Education through a Natural Experiment
  • Current Position: Psychology Intern at Hennepin Health Services


Seokwon Jo from the Biological & Medical Sciences, 2025 recipient, and Jessica Farrell from the Humanities & Fine Arts category, 2025 recipient, are nominated by the University of Minnesota to the national 2025 CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award competition.

Honorary Mentions:

BIOLOGICAL & MEDICAL SCIENCES

Dr. Sophie Givens

  • Advisor(s): Dr. Brenda Ogle
  • Dissertation Title: Advancing cardiac tissue engineering via multicellular complexity
  • Current Position: Postdoctoral Research Associate at Anseth Lab at the University of Colorado Boulder

HUMANITIES & FINE ARTS  

Dr. Daniel Vasquez Vega

  • Advisor(s): Carol Chomsky & Dr. Barbara Y. Welke
  • Dissertation Title: Judicial Transformations of Colombian Law, 1880s-1940s
  • Current Position: Assistant Professor at Universidad EAFIT

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Dr. Husrev Cilasun

  • Advisor(s): Dr. Ulya Karpuzcu
  • Dissertation Title: Computing with Spins: The Good, the Bad, and the Odd
  • Current Position: Senior ASIC Digital Design Engineer at Micron Technology

Social & Behavioral Sciences & Education

Dr. Linh Nguyen

  • Advisor(s): Dr. Moin Syed
  • Dissertation Title: Intraindividual Variability in Personality Research: Considering Time,
    Measurement, and the Interpersonal Context
  • Current Position: Data Scientist at Allianz Life