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Awards and Accolades

Announcing Pitt’s 2025 Alumni Awards Honorees

The University of Pittsburgh’s 2025 Alumni Award winners are changing what’s possible here in Pittsburgh, around the globe and everywhere in between.

From literacy education, financial leadership and meaningful cultural change improving lives worldwide, to creating a culinary institution beloved by generations while also giving back to their community and showing their profound Pitt pride, these six leaders are making a difference through professional, philanthropic and volunteer accomplishments.

Championing student mental health earned this Pitt junior a Newman Civic Fellowship

Mohammad Shedeed, a junior in the University of Pittsburgh Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and David C. Frederick Honors College, received a 2025-26 Newman Civic Fellowship. This national honor from Campus Compact recognizes student leaders who are making a difference in their communities.

Alumnus Timothy Nerozzi earned a Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship

Timothy Nerozzi (A&S ’17) was honored with a 2025-26 Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship award.

The annual The Fund for American Studies award empowers promising young journalists to partake in research and long-form content creation. Its name honors the late Robert D. Novak, who worked as a columnist, broadcaster and reporter for The Wall Street Journal, CNN and the Associated Press.

Dave Newman won the Pushcart Prize for his short story

A member of the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg faculty, and Dietrich School Alumnus, was recognized with two of the most prestigious prizes in American literature.

Dave Newman (UPG ’93, A&S ’96G, SOC WK ’13G), assistant professor of creative and professional writing, was awarded a Pushcart Prize for his story, “The Last Thing That Happened Before I Became A Med Tech.”

Professor Alexander Deiters wins 2026 ACS Cope Scholar Award

The American Chemical Society announced this week that Professor Alexander Deiters will receive a 2026 Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award.  The award is given to recognize and encourage excellence in organic chemistry.  It consists of $5,000, a certificate, and a $40,000 unrestricted research grant.  Deiters is being recognized for his work at the interface of synthetic organic chemistry and biology.  He is a pioneer in the field of optochemical biology, which uses light to activate or deactivate cellular processes with exquisite selectivity.

Meet Pitt’s 2025-26 Fulbright US Student finalists

Six University of Pittsburgh graduates, including five from the Dietrich School, have been selected as 2025-26 Fulbright U.S. Student Program finalists, continuing the University’s tradition of global scholarship and cultural exchange.

This year’s recipients will travel to five countries to teach English, pursue advanced degrees and conduct research through one of the United States’ most prestigious international academic exchange programs.