Graduate Student Awards

The Economics Department, with the support of Laney Graduate School, awards graduate students annually:

1. Economics Graduate Student Research Award of Excellence 

   This award was established to honor a graduate student who exemplifies superb research abilities and an eagerness to engage in scholarly activities.

2. Economics Graduate Student Teaching Award of Excellence 

   This award was established to honor a graduate student who exemplifies superb teaching abilities and demonstrates extraordinary dedication to teaching economics.

2025 Award Recipient is Rachel Clohan

Rachel Clohan, a fourth-year doctoral student, is making her mark in the field of Health Economics. Rachel's third-year paper was accepted for presentation in a regular session at the American Society of Health Economists annual conference in June 2025. Her dedication and hard work have resulted in a co-authored paper published in JAMA Network Open. The work is co-authored with the grant team but Rachel played a pivotal role and is listed as the second author reflecting the magnitude of her contribution.

This award showcases our graduate program's commitment to proven academic excellence and rigor.

2025 Award Recipient is Shabnam Shahrezaei

Shabnam Shahrezaei, a fourth-year doctoral student, is this year’s recipient of the Graduate Student Teaching Award. Shabnam served two semesters as the TA for Dr. Dezhbakhsh's large introductory microeconomics class with an enrollment of about 180 students. Shabnam has been exceptional in her role as a teaching assistant, demonstrating a high level of diligence and attentiveness to students’ needs and questions, in addition to mentoring five undergraduate teaching assistants. In her nomination, Dr. Dezhbakhsh wrote: “Her knowledge, ability to communicate, interpersonal skills, and dedication to her work are impressive. In achieving the course objectives, Shabnam went beyond the call of duty. Many of my students communicated to me both years their immense gratitude to Shabnam for her mentoring, encouragement, and support. Her dedication to students is really admirable.”

This award showcases our department’s commitment to those who not only have the skills to become excellent researchers, but also care about students and their learning experience.