Outstanding BioSci 2024 Graduates: Northern Kentucky University, Greater Cincinnati Region

Brandon Brooks-Patton was one of two student speakers at the May 2025 Commencement ceremony. He was asked to share his experiences at NKU by President Cady Short-Thompson following comments he delivered at the All-University Awards ceremony for 2025 graduates.

2025 Outstanding Graduate in Neuroscience. Brandon Brooks-Patton also received the NKU Excelsior Award recognizing a student who overcome obstacles to achieve their degree. Brandon served as the President of the Nu Rho Psi honor society in his senior year, after previously serving as Treasurer. He earned a Best Poster in Bioinformatics at the KY-INBRE Annual Research Conference. Brandon is currently pursuing a PhD in neuroscience at Yale University.

Allison and Bianca Turner and Yingying Xie

Allison and Bianca Turner with their research mentor Dr. Yingying Xie.

Outstanding Graduates in Biology: It was doubling exciting in 2025 to award the department's highest honor to twins Allison and Bianca Turner. Together, these two undergraduate researchers annotated over 50,000 plant records for four plant species and over 26,000 amphibian images. Under the mentorship of Dr. Yingying Xie, the goal was to understand ecological changes over time. "I was amazed by their excellent ability to process very large amounts of data, conduct complex statistical analyses and write high-qualtiy manuscripts," said Dr. Xie. Keeping with the doubly great science, they will be authors on two different scientific journal articles.

Zoe Robles demonstrates her science communications skills during an interview with NPR.

Outstanding Graduate in Environmental Science: Zoe Robles was a SOAR scholar who worked with Groundwork Ohio River Valley to create a climate dashboard for Northern Kentucky. She was also part of the effort to create a climate advisory team for Covington, KY. Zoe conducted research on environmental restoration with Dr. Kristy Hopfensperger and presented her findings at the Associate of Southeastern Biologists.

Nirmal Pandit was one of three students in Environmental Toxicology who helped test soils for heavy metal contamination in Newport, KY.

John W. Thieret Research Award: Nirmal Pandit did double duty in undergraduate research with Dr. Sydney Oluoch and Dr. Chris Curran. His research with Dr. Oluoch focused on energy transitions in Kentucky and the eastern United States and resulted in poster presentations and a scientific publication. Nirmal was also on a co-author on a poster presented at the 2025 Society of Toxicology annual meeting focused on community-engaged research in Newport. Nirmal was able to use two different analytical chemistry techniques to measure heavy metal levels in soil and water samples.

Miriam Steinitz Kannan Service Award: Lucy Burns received the department's award for outstanding service based on her contributions as a teaching assistant in biology courses and SI instructor. Lucy also served as President of the NKU Student Government Association, as the Student Regent on the Board of Regents. For her university service, she was honored with the NKU Regents award.

Clara Richards Award. Abilene Morgan received the Clara Richards award which recognizes a student who has made significant achievements in biological sciences. Abilene conducted research with Dr. Allisoin Parker on mosquito control methods and also did community-engaged research testing soils for heavy metal contamination for concerned residents in Newport.

Outstanding Graduate in Biology Education: Eli Redman served as President of the Tri-Beta honor society and fell in love with teaching after shadowing a fourth grade science class. He continued tutoring students every week until graduation. Eli also coached students in middle school and high school color guards.

LeaAnn King conducts research on gene-environment interactions that can affect the developing brain. The primary focus is on the adverse effects of air pollutants from vehicle exhaust and power plants that burn fossil fuels. She received a Best Poster Award at the 2025 Louisville Neuroscience Day conference and also presented at two other scientific meetings.

Adult Student of the Year: LeaAnn King is a transfer student and mother of three who was honored as NKU's top adult learner for 2025. She is an officer for the TriBeta biological sciences honor society and volunteers with the department's cadaver experience program for local high school students. She also tutors with the SHEP program that supports students with special needs.

Biology's Best in 2025