2026 Award Winners
We are proud to announce our 2026 Awards of Excellence winners.
View Awards Criteria and Past Winners
Excellence in Research
<strong>Dr. Shristi Rawal<br />2026 Excellence in Research Award Recipient</strong> <br />Department Clinical Laboratory and Medical Imaging Sciences <br />
In the past 2 years, Dr. Rawal has demonstrated exceptional research productivity and leadership in maternal and child health, digital health, and cardiometabolic disease prevention, with a research portfolio that has achieved national and international impact.
In 2025, Dr. Rawal secured three competitive research grants, marking a major expansion of her externally funded research program focused on improving pregnancy and long-term cardiometabolic outcomes through technology-enabled, scalable interventions. She currently serves as Principal Investigator or multi-PI on three NIH-funded projects exceeding $5 million in cumulative funding, reflecting both the scientific rigor and strong translational relevance of her work. These awards include large, multi-year NIH studies evaluating: (1) MOM-HD, a remote monitoring platform for managing hypertensive disorders and diabetes in pregnancy; (2) a digital, gamified intervention targeting gestational weight gain and postpartum weight retention; and (3) a mobile health intervention for adolescents with Down syndrome, addressing health promotion and behavior change in an underserved population.
Dr. Rawal’s scholarly productivity during the award period has been exceptional. In the past two years alone, she has published 12 peer-reviewed manuscripts, including 9 as senior corresponding author, underscoring her leadership in shaping the scientific direction of her research program and her commitment to mentoring students, trainees, and collaborators. These works have appeared in high-impact, highly selective journals, including the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (IF 6.9), Nutrients (IF 5.7), and the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (IF 4.9). Most recently, she served as senior corresponding author on a paper (attached) published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (acceptance rate ~15%), first authored by a doctoral student in Clinical Nutrition for whom she served as primary advisor. This study evaluated the acceptability of a digital “food-as-medicine” platform designed to support nutrition education, medical nutrition therapy, and access to medically tailored meals during pregnancy. Notably, this work represents one of the early-stage evaluations in the rapidly expanding food-as-medicine field, offering a model for how digital nutrition platforms can be rigorously assessed prior to large-scale implementation. Findings demonstrated high acceptability, with pregnant participants valuing the platform’s ease of use, dietitian support, and integrated nutrition resources, highlighting the growing potential of digital tools to strengthen prenatal nutrition care.
In addition, Dr. Rawal served as senior corresponding author on an innovative study (attached) published in Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics that presents a first-of-its-kind application of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) to detect and quantify postprandial glucose responses in pregnancy using machine learning approaches. Conducted in collaboration with data scientists at New York University, this work integrates wearable sensor data with advanced analytic methods to characterize postprandial glycemic patterns, which are hard to capture accurately and reliably by traditional monitoring approaches. This study lays a critical foundation for future efforts to combine AI-enabled analytics and real-time sensor data to deliver more personalized metabolic care in pregnancy, advancing the field of precision maternal health and digital medicine.
In addition to her peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Rawal has been highly active in disseminating her research to scientific and clinical audiences. During the past two years, she has published or submitted 17 scientific abstracts and has been invited to deliver several talks at national and international venues. These invitations reflect the growing recognition of her expertise and the relevance of her work to clinicians, students, researchers, and policymakers alike.
Collectively, Dr. Rawal’s research spans epidemiologic, clinical, and translational science, advancing understanding of cardiometabolic risk during critical life stages, including pregnancy and adolescence, while driving innovation in digital health interventions and real-world implementation across U.S. and global settings. Her work intentionally bridges discovery and implementation, ensuring that evidence-based interventions are not only scientifically rigorous but also feasible, culturally responsive, and scalable across diverse healthcare contexts. Central to her approach is a strong emphasis on user-centered and community-engaged research, involving pregnant individuals, adolescents with Down syndrome, their families and caregivers, healthcare providers, and community partners in the design, testing, and implementation of digital and behavioral interventions that are accessible, motivating, sustainable, and grounded in lived experience.
In summary, Dr. Rawal’s accomplishments over the past two years, marked by exceptional funding success, high-impact publications, sustained scholarly productivity, and national and international recognition, make her an outstanding candidate for the Excellence in Research Award.
Excellence in Teaching
<strong>Dr. Lisa Palladino Kim <br />2026 Excellence in Teaching Award Recipient</strong><br />Department of Health Informatics
Lisa is a hard-working and very enthusiastic teacher who is proactive and brings into her teaching a wealth of education and knowledge from her prior graduate and undergraduate degrees, as well as from her strong and very impressive professional experiences.
Lisa is guided by a strong work ethic and adherence to learning outcomes, and competencies expected for her Clinical Research Management (CRM) program graduates. Indeed one of the things that I have noted about Lisa is that each year she conducts a thorough review of the course content and assessments in each of her assigned courses to identify opportunities for improvement and ensuring their better alignment with the newer development in the industry and in the program’s tracks. She also connects with students in the internship/capstone project aspects of the MS CRM and enabled several to publish at professional society forum as also generated manuscript for peer-reviewed publications. This has definitely endeared her to the students and her fellow faculty alike serving as a fitting role model for a junior faculty making such great inroads into not only her own success and growth but that of the students and the program. It has enabled many a student towards meeting their educational and/or career goals.
Lisa approaches her teaching with enthusiasm, rigor, and an open mind. She shares her enthusiasm with her students by bringing up the impact of the subject in discussion to their future job and overall healthcare. She applies high standards in delivering the course content and continuously refers to the industry standards and pharmaceutical research trends. She uses a variety of teaching approaches, including live lectures, short and long recordings, online discussions, group projects, PlayPosit, hands-on activities, student presentations, and guest speakers. She plays an integral and essential role as a faculty in not only the MS in CRM degree program but is targeted to play an equally critical role (with her recent doctoral degree) in the Doctor of Health Informatics (DHI) degree program as well. This is all due to her strong work experience, knowledge and accomplishments in the fields of pharmaceuticals and informatics. In the time she has been in the Department she has proven herself as a very productive and highly motivated faculty with strong teaching and mentoring skills, a distinguished service record and a productive scholarship agenda already publishing (and submitted for publication) several peer-reviewed articles. Also she has been nominated and selected to participate in the OASIS Leadership Program which is additional recognition of the academic leadership potential in her.
Her teaching abilities and her course planning and deployment skills have resulted in excellent evaluations from the students and peers. She is very enthusiastic and productive in her service to the Department and the School and has already not only participated but also took leadership roles in various committees such as the Committee of Academic Integrity which demands a lot of attention to detail, policies and reviewing abilities. It is very evident from all her accomplishments thus far that she is one of those rare individuals who excel (and equally well) in all aspects of their faculty responsibilities. Clearly she is an excellent asset who will contribute significantly to the success and growth of the Department and School in their missions. Lisa is a great team player, a productive collaborator and has worked closely with the instructional designers, as well as other CRM faculty to improve the course design for many CRM courses.
Her love for her students, her guidance, insight and dedication has been duly acknowledged by her students in nominating her for the Excellence in Teaching Award. This is an exceptional achievement and speaks highly of her teaching prowess and the promise of a strong future for her program and its students.
Distinguished Alumnus
<strong>Dr. Jojy Cheriyan <br />2026 Distinguished Alumnus Award Recipient</strong><br />Department of Health Informatics
Dr. Jojy Cheriyan is being nominated for his extraordinary, lifelong impact as a Rutgers-trained physician, scientist, and health system leader whose career exemplifies the full arc of Rutgers School of Health Professions’ mission — education, research, service, and leadership. Trained at Rutgers across multiple stages of his professional development and now serving as faculty at Rutgers SHP, Dr. Cheriyan represents the ideal SHP alumnus: one who translates academic excellence into large-scale, real-world health impact while remaining deeply committed to teaching and mentorship.
He is nominated also for his exceptional and uncommon career trajectory as a Rutgers-trained physician-scientist whose professional journey spans emergency medicine, infectious diseases, neurology, public health, and clinical informatics. Beginning his career as an Emergency Room physician, Dr. Cheriyan earned advanced fellowship training in Infectious Diseases (HIV Medicine) and later in Neurology and Neurosciences, culminating in a distinguished academic and health system leadership career rooted in Rutgers education and values.
As a US board certified international physician from India, he was trained extensively at Rutgers University Hospital and New Jersey Medical School and later earning both an MPH and PhD from Rutgers University, Dr. Cheriyan now serves as Adjunct Assistant Professor at Rutgers School of Health Professions while also holding appointment as Assistant Professor of Neurology at Hackensack Meridian Health School of Medicine. His career reflects the highest ideals of Rutgers SHP — lifelong learning, interdisciplinary excellence, and service-driven leadership.
Dr. Cheriyan’s impact is distinguished by his ability to bridge clinical medicine, academic medicine, clinical informatics, healthcare finance and enterprise healthcare leadership. After completing his clinical training and Neurology fellowship at Rutgers, followed by a Master of Public Health and a PhD in Biomedical Informatics from Rutgers University, he has applied this interdisciplinary expertise to improve care delivery at both the bedside and system level. This depth of training enabled him to emerge as a leader in healthcare, working also in the Department of Physician Enterprise Corporate Integration at Hackensack Meridian Health. In this role, he supports corporate administrative leadership, physician performance strategy, and value-based care operations across New Jersey’s largest health system.
Dr. Cheriyan’s story reflects the full breadth of Rutgers SHP’s impact across five decades. He began as a frontline ER physician, advanced through Infectious Diseases and Neurology fellowship training, earned advanced degrees (MPH and PhD) at Rutgers, and now serves as adjunct faculty at Rutgers School of Health Professions while also teaching as Assistant Professor of Neurology at Hackensack Meridian Health School of Medicine.
His career illustrates how Rutgers SHP prepares clinicians not only for practice, but for leadership at the intersection of medicine, data, education, and health system transformation — a legacy that powerfully aligns with SHP’s 50th Anniversary celebration as well.
Stanley S. Bergen, Jr.
Medal of Excellence
Dr. Saren Nonoyma<br />2026 Stanley S. Bergen, Jr.<br /> Medal of Excellence Award Recipient
Saren excelled in our program being recognized for Academics, Clinical Excellence, Scholarship and Service. We are fortunate in the DPT program to have outstanding students, but even in this group of talented young people Saren stood out. He distinguished himself as a quiet, competent and well-balanced leader. I had the pleasure of getting to know him in the classes I taught, as an advisor for the Multi-Idea Club as well as in a small seminar. In addition, I worked closely with him as he was a lead board member for the Synergy program in our Community Participatory Clinic. I will use the criteria of the award to support his nomination.
Demonstrated leadership and advocacy: Saren was an advocate for trans rights and quiet leader in his class. He educated the students and faculty on the challenges of the trans gender-community. Awareness of mis-gendering was a topic that he brought forward and created both awareness and behavior change. He was also a leader in the Synergy program and in the Multi-IDEA and Prideful Clubs. Please see service to the University for more details.
Scholarly Activity: Saren excelled academically. He earned a 4.0 grade point average while at the same time engaging in service to the school, scholarship and teaching. He was invited to work with Dr. Gerard Fluet analyzing the transcripts from 80 interviews to support the work of PhD student Meredith Cimmino. He learned qualitative research skills that were not part of the core curriculum. During his time at School of Health Professions he was a co-author of a paper published in PLOS Digital Health, Systemic transphobia and ongoing barriers to healthcare for transgender and nonbinary people: A historical analysis of #TransHealthFail based on work he performed as an undergraduate at Northeastern University. Saren was a student in my small clinical inquiry class. He was one of the hardest working and responsible students. He took the initiative to present the findings at the Rutgers School of Health Professions Student Research Day. Saren was recognized with DPT Program awards for both Excellence in Research and Academics.
Community Service: Saren provided rehabilitation services to individuals with neurologic health conditions through our Synergy program, which is part of the Community Participatory Physical Therapy pro-bono Clinic. As his faculty supervisor I can attest that he was respectful and creative in the development of his treatment plans and interactions with the clients. He also set a high standard for the quality of his documentation. Dennise Krencicki, his clinical education faculty mentor, shared that Saren completed four clinical rotations. One of the rotations was in the School for the Blind. This is an extremely challenging rotation requiring skills that are not considered entry level for DPT students. Saren excelled. His feedback to the program for each of his rotations was thorough and thoughtful, which has been of service to our clinical education program and planning for future placements. Saren was recognized by the DPT Program with both Excellence in Clinical Practice and Service awards.
Service to the University: Saren was a leader in two of the School of Health Professions (SHP) clubs. For the Multi- IDEA Club, he was the secretary, which meant he was responsible for making sure people knew about the activities. Along with the other board members and in collaboration with Bianca Owens-Thompson who is the administrative advisor for the team, they created many experiences for the SHP community to connect with different cultures. Especially memorable were the events they held in honor of Black History Month as well as recognizing Indian, Arab and Asian and Latino cultures. For the Prideful Club he served as co-President. They had several events that allowed the SHP community to experience a Vogue lesson and a Drag performance. As an attendee at these events I found they expanded my cultural understanding, but I also observed how the LGBTQ+ community felt safe and had fun. Saren’s contributions to the SHP community have enlightened many and made others feel safe. As mentioned before Saren was recognized with an Excellence in Service Award from the DPT program.
Saren is that special kind of student who not only exceled in all areas but also changed the culture of well-being at the School of Health Professions. He is an extraordinary example of a student who, we respectfully submit, is highly deserving of the Stanley S Bergen Award.
Distinguished
Service Award
Elissa Passiment <br />2026 Distinguished Service Award Recipient
Professor Passiment was appointed Adjunct Assistant Professor in 2003 and has dedicated 23 years of continuous service to the CLS graduate programs. She developed and teaches two graduate-level courses: Health Care Regulations and Laboratory Management and Clinical Laboratory Utilization in Quality Healthcare Delivery, both of which are integral to preparing students for leadership in laboratory medicine. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, she generously volunteers her time as a member of both the DCLS Program Advisory Committee and the DCLS Admissions Committee.
Professor Passiment holds a Master of Science in Education and a Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Her advanced training in science education, combined with her extensive experience as a Medical Laboratory Science program director and her distinguished professional career, brings a unique and invaluable perspective to her teaching. As a nationally recognized expert in laboratory medicine, she skillfully integrates real-world expertise with academic instruction.
She served for 21 years as Executive Vice President of the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS), a national professional organization representing non-physician clinical laboratory practitioners. In this role, she provided leadership in education, legislative advocacy, and regulatory affairs. Her expertise encompasses managed care design, mergers, reengineering initiatives, and change management for healthcare organizations. She has conducted workshops for more than 8,000 participants across the United States and Canada and has worked closely with federal and state agencies on regulations related to accreditation, compliance, and reimbursement.
Her national service has been widely recognized. She was appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services to serve on the Balanced Budget Act (BBA) Negotiated Rulemaking Committee for Part B Medicare reimbursement of clinical laboratory services. She chaired the CDC’s 2007 Quality Institute Steering Committee workgroup on integration of laboratory medicine, coordinated the Thesaurus Project, and served as both Chair and member of the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Advisory Committee (CLIAC), a federal advisory committee to the CDC. She has also been called upon to provide testimony before Congress.
Professor Passiment’s pedagogical approach emphasizes experiential learning through simulation activities in laboratory management and quality utilization of laboratory services. These real-world applications equip students with the knowledge, leadership skills, and strategic insight necessary to design and implement quality improvement initiatives and effectively direct clinical laboratories.
Her professional career exemplifies leadership, innovation, and sustained commitment to advancing the profession. The depth and breadth of her expertise significantly enrich the educational experience of our students and strengthen the academic mission of our programs. We wholeheartedly support her nomination for this well-deserved recognition.
2026
Gonfalonier
<strong>Dr. Sandra Kaplan <br />2026 Gonfalonier</strong><br />Department of Rehabilitation and Movement Sciences
As Rutgers School of Health Professions prepares for Convocation and Rutgers University Commencement, we are proud to announce Sandra L. Kaplan, PT, DPT, PhD, FAPTA, as the 2026 Gonfalonier.
Each year, the Gonfalonier leads the faculty procession at Convocation and University Commencement. The honor recognizes a faculty member whose contributions reflect the highest standards of scholarship, leadership, and service to the school and their profession.
Dr. Kaplan, Professor and Vice Chair of Curriculum and Accreditation in the Department of Rehabilitation and Movement Science, has dedicated more than three decades to advancing SHP, shaping physical therapy education, and strengthening the connection between research and clinical practice.
In her leadership role, Dr. Kaplan has helped build and refine the foundation of SHP’s doctoral programs in physical therapy and contributed to the development of occupational therapy and speech programs. Her work in curriculum development and accreditation has been instrumental in maintaining rigor, innovation, and alignment with national standards. Her contributions to accreditation self-studies, including the comprehensive 2019 effort, resulted in commendations and helped position SHP graduates to lead in clinical, academic, and research settings.
Dr. Kaplan is widely recognized for her leadership in evidence-based practice and clinical guideline development. She has served as Chair of the APTA Section on Pediatrics Work Group to Develop Clinical Practice Guidelines since 2010 and has contributed to widely adopted guidelines, including those for congenital muscular torticollis. Her work continues to shape standards of care and improve outcomes for children and families across the United States and internationally.
Her scholarship includes numerous peer-reviewed publications, contributions to leading textbooks such as Campbell’s Physical Therapy for Children, and authorship of Outcome Measurement & Management: First Steps for the Practicing Clinician. Through invited lectures across the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia, she has served as a global ambassador for both Rutgers and the profession. Her work has been recognized with many honors, including designation as a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association, one of the highest distinctions in the field.
Dr. Kaplan’s impact extends deeply into mentorship and service. She has guided generations of clinician-scholars, served on dissertation committees, and contributed to institutional leadership through faculty governance, admissions, promotion and tenure review, and strategic planning. As Co-Administrator of Newark Therapy Services for nearly two decades, she has demonstrated how academic excellence and community-based care can work hand in hand.
A Personal Note from the Nominator
Nancy Kirsch, chair of the Department of Rehabilitation and Movement Sciences, who nominated Dr. Kaplan, shared:
“Dr. Kaplan’s career reflects a seamless integration of educator, clinician, researcher, and servant leader. Her office always has an open door. You can walk in with a complex question and be guaranteed to walk out with a clear answer, but she will always challenge you before you leave with yet another question to ponder. She truly represents the very best of SHP.”
Dr. Kaplan is retiring on June 30, 2026. She is an avid skier and is looking forward to a little more time to ski, to help skiers with mobility challenges, and to do a lot more gardening now that the snow has thawed.
As SHP marks its 50th anniversary, it is especially fitting to recognize a faculty member whose dedication has helped define the school’s legacy and future. Dr. Kaplan embodies the ideals represented by the Gonfalon and will proudly lead the faculty at this year’s Convocation and University Commencement.
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