The Stony Awards

WINNER
Rewa Thompson
Thompson joined Stony Brook University in 2014. As a nurse practitioner and educator, she advocates for women’s healthcare and reproductive rights, and leads nursing students to strive for clinical excellence. Her scholarship is deeply rooted in promoting health equity and mitigating bias and racism in nursing instruction. She is the co-chair of the Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Social Justice (IDEAS) committee.

Laurel Scheinfeld
Scheinfeld is a health sciences librarian who prioritizes work that promotes equity, diversity and inclusion. She forged a successful partnership between University Libraries and the veteran student office, and has collaborated on award-winning research that uplifts underrepresented communities: The “Hispanic/Latinx Inclusive Terminologies Project” and “A Systematic Review on Sexual Health and Drug Use Prevention Interventions for Black Girls.”

Lauren Donovan
Donovan is business manager for the academic centers and institutes in the College of Arts and Sciences. Previously, she worked at The Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments in the Department of Anthropology before being appointed as assistant director of STEM Smart programs in the Department of Technology and Society. There she managed research proposals to increase traditionally underrepresented students in STEM majors.

Mitchell Trinka
After coming to Stony Brook University in 2018, Trinka toyed with the idea of creating a campus beautification committee — a dream he fulfilled in 2022. The broad-based initiative helps students — such as Xiaohui (Katie) Wang, who painted the “Spread Your Wings” mural on the wall adjoining the LGBTQ* Center and West Side Dining — realize their creative ambitions. Trinka has plans to add placemaking pieces across Stony Brook, including an octopus mural at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences.

WINNER
Poonamdeep Gill, MD
Gill is committed to providing comprehensive psychiatric care and holds expertise in emergency psychiatry, psychotic disorders, and addiction and substance abuse. Gill graduated from Ross University School of Medicine in 2011, completed her residency in psychiatry at the University of Buffalo School of Medicine in 2014, and pursued a fellowship in Psychiatric Child and Adolescent care at Ann & Robert Lurie Children's Hospital in 2016. 

Colleen Healy
Healy is a licensed master social worker in Stony Brook Medicine’s Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program (CPEP). While completing her degree at Stony Brook University, Healy interned at CPEP and accepted a position as a psychiatric social worker in 2022. She takes great pride in being a part of the Stony Brook team and supporting patients.

Kacie Rocco
Rocco is a licensed mental health counselor who began her work at Stony Brook University at Counseling and Psychological Services, where she provided individual and group therapy to students. In her current role as CARE team assistant director, she is committed to promoting student well-being, and maintaining a safe and secure working and learning environment for Stony Brook students and the campus community.

Paula Tracy-Ashe
Tracy-Ashe is a certified critical care registered nurse who has worked in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit for the past 10 years. She became a peri-operative nurse navigator two years ago. In this role, she facilitates communication between patient families and surgeons. The goal: to reduce anxiety for families and to keep them informed on patients’ care and progress through the surgical experience. 

WINNER
Rick Gatteau
Gatteau is the vice president for student affairs. His 30-year career spans working in residential life, academic advising, undergraduate education and student affairs. Gatteau joined SBU in 2002 in academic advising; in 2018, he became part of the Division of Student Affairs. Gatteau leads efforts to support student success, including focusing on health and wellness, engagement in campus life and career development.

WINNER
Marianna Savoca, PhD
Savoca, associate vice president for career readiness and experiential education, leads initiatives to scale career readiness and improve access to high-impact, learning-integrated internships and work experiences for all SBU students. Her work crosses divisional lines, connecting career with academic departments, international programs, enrollment management, advancement, economic development and student affairs. She is past president of the Society for Experiential Education, a global professional association.

Deborah Lowen-Klein
Lowen-Klein, senior associate vice president in Advancement, is responsible for developing and leading complex gift strategies for the university’s most generous donors in collaboration with institutional leaders. She helped found the Women’s Leadership Council, a mentoring group that connects Stony Brook’s most influential female alumni and friends with accomplished undergraduate women who have exhibited resilience in the face of great challenges.

Melissa Hogarty
Hogarty is assistant vice president for business for SBU’s divisions of Finance & Administration, Executive Office, Government and Community Relations, and Marketing and Communications, overseeing strategic human resources and finance and budget processes and initiatives. She also co-leads a diversity committee that is committed to developing and championing a work environment that celebrates the ideals of diversity, equity and inclusion.

Lindsi Walker
Walker, senior associate provost for the Office of Global Affairs, serves as the university’s senior international officer. Together with her team, Walker promotes university internationalization, both on campus and globally. She finds great joy in witnessing how global experiences positively influence our students and scholars, empowering them to flourish as citizens and leaders.

WINNER
Tracey Walters, PhD
Walters is a professor of literature in the Department of Africana Studies. She holds an affiliate appointment with the Department of English and Women’s and Gender Studies. Walters writes about the experiences of African diasporic women through the lens of feminist studies and cultural studies. She is a leading scholar of Black British literature and Classica Africana, a subfield of classical studies.

Christine Marsh
Since 2008, Marsh has played a pivotal role in the School of Dental Medicine and its mobile dental clinic, serving as a dental hygienist and coordinator of community outreach. Her commitment to improving oral health, particularly among underserved children, has made a significant impact on numerous communities across Long Island. Within the school, she is widely recognized as a dedicated leader in outreach initiatives.

Christopher Paparo
Paparo is the manager of the Marine Sciences Center, a state-of the-art seawater research laboratory at Stony Brook Southampton. He assists graduate students and research faculty set up and troubleshoot research projects on harmful algal blooms, ocean acidification, seagrasses ecology, shellfish restoration, ocean acoustics and shark research. Paparo is also the center’s naturalist, responsible for educating the public about Long Island wildlife.

Robert B. Harrison
Harrison is a New York State certified senior business advisor specializing in manufacturing. He has 35 years of executive operating experience at five Long Island manufacturing companies, including a profitable startup enterprise. In his role at the Small Business Development Center, he provides comprehensive support services to Long Island client manufacturers, helping them to improve their products, processes and profits.

WINNER
Surita Bhatia, PhD
Bhatia is associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences, a professor of chemistry and director of the NSF NRT PhD training grant on quantitative analysis of materials. She is an accomplished scholar, serving as PI or co-PI on grants totaling more than $16 million from the NSF, NIH, Department of Energy, philanthropic foundations and private industry. She has co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications.

Lauren Candela
As director of communications for Finance & Administration, Candela serves the division’s 1,200-plus teammates and the entire Seawolf community, while striving for transparent and consistent communications efforts. She provides support and coordination for six vice presidential divisions and their individual areas. Candela holds a master’s degree in business administration from Stony Brook University and plays a key leadership role in the university’s Campus Beautification Committee.

Lori Kie
Kie is the communications director for the School of Communication and Journalism and the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science. She is deeply committed to telling stories across platforms and media that help students, faculty and communities discover the world around them and have a meaningful impact on it.

Lisa Benz Scott
Benz Scott is executive director of the Program in Public Health and directs the Master of Health Administration Program. She is a prior recipient of the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Faculty Service, a Healthcare Hero award recipient and serves on boards for organizations such as the American Heart Association of Long Island and the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health.