14 graduate students and postdoctoral scholars from the University of California, Davis, have been named the 2019-2020 fellows in the Professors for the Future (PFTF) program.

Established in 1992, Professors for the Future is a year-long competitive fellowship program designed to develop the leadership skills of graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who have demonstrated their commitment to professionalism, integrity, and academic service.

The program focuses the future challenges of graduate education, postdoctoral training, and the academy. Professors for the Future is designed to prepare UC Davis doctoral students and postdoctoral scholars for a rapidly changing university environment through monthly seminars, an annual retreat, and courses on teaching pedagogy and ethics and professionalism in higher education.  In addition, fellows receive a $3,000 stipend in recognition of their selection to this highly competitive program.

“We had a very strong applicant pool and we were impressed with the leadership and service demonstrated by these scholars,” said Teresa Dillinger, academic administrator for professional development programs and co-director of the Professors for the Future program. “They have proposed a number of innovative and exciting projects including: communicating research to the public; designing visually engaging research images; developing peer-to-peer mentoring activities; and creating a humanities portal of resources for graduate students and postdocs; among others.”  

The 2019-2020 Professors for the Future fellows are:

• Mayowa Adegboyega  (Ph.D. student, Anthropology)
• Samantha Blair  (Postdoctoral Scholar, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences)
• Gwen Chodur  (Ph.D. student, Nutritional Biology)
• Leonardo de Oliveira Silva  (Ph.D. student, Spanish)
• Kyle Fletcher  (Postdoctoral Scholar, Genome Center)
• Gillian Irwin  (Ph.D. student, Music)
• Meghan Klasic  (Ph.D. student, Geography)
• Sarah Klopatek  (Ph.D. student, Civil and Environmental Engineering)
• Jessica Kzerminski  (Ph.D. student, English)
• Deserea Langley  (Ph.D. student, Native American Studies)
• Nichole Lewis  (Ph.D. student, Biochemistry, Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology)
• Carlos Ruvalcaba  (Ph.D. student, Electrical and Computer Engineering)
• Rebecca Schomer  (Postdoctoral Scholar, Microbiology and Molecular Genetics)
• Charlotte Vorwald  (Biomedical Engineering)

Both the 2018-2019 cohort and the new 2019-2020 fellows will be recognized at the 2019 Graduate Studies Honors and Awards Ceremony on May 22. For more information about PFTF, visit the Professors for the Future page on the UC Davis Graduate Studies website.

About Graduate Studies

Graduate Studies at UC Davis includes over 100 dynamic degree programs and a diverse and interactive student body from around the world. Known for our state-of-the-art research facilities, productive laboratories and progressive spirit – UC Davis offers collaborative and interdisciplinary curricula through graduate groups and designated emphasis options, bringing students and faculty of different academic disciplines together to address real-world challenges.

UC Davis graduate students and postdoctoral scholars become leaders in their fields: researchers, teachers, politicians, mentors and entrepreneurs. They go on to guide, define and impact change within our global community.

For information on Graduate Studies’ current strategic initiatives, visit the Graduate Studies strategic plan page.