ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Indian doctoral scholar gets Cornell teaching award
The Cornell doctoral candidate was recognized for outstanding contributions to graduate teaching and student learning.
-
Malvika Choudhary - Wed, 08, Jul 2026
- 15:21 EDT
- 60
Cornelia Ye Award recipient Naman Agrawal / Cornell University
Indian doctoral candidate Naman Agrawal received Cornell University's 2025-26 Cornelia Ye Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award.
The award, presented by Cornell's Center for Teaching Innovation (CTI), honors one international and one domestic graduate teaching assistant each year for exceptional commitment to teaching.
Also Read: Indian-origin professor wins NIH grant for autoimmune disease research
Agrawal, a doctoral candidate in neurobiology and behavior, was recognized alongside Margaret E. Foster, recipient of the Christine Ye Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award.
Agrawal conducts research in the Computational Physiology Lab of Christiane Linster, professor of neurobiology and behavior in Cornell's College of Arts & Sciences. His work focuses on interareal neural communication through computational analysis, with a particular emphasis on olfactory and memory-related brain regions.
"The Cornelia Ye Award means a lot to me, especially as a first-gen international graduate student," Agrawal said. "There are very few bodies that recognize the efforts of non-citizens towards teaching and pedagogy, and thus this award gave me a lot of validation for the work I have been doing in my classes."
"The world out there is intricately beautiful, from simple atoms to complex human behavior," he told the university press. "I believe that educators should instill in the students a sense of awe and wonder about this beautiful world we co-inhabit. If my students go about their daily lives with a twinkle in their eyes and curiosity in their minds, finding joy and beauty in the natural world, I would consider my job well done."
Agrawal said the recognition is particularly meaningful because student recommendations form part of the award selection process.
"At the end of the day, educators and students are inseparable," he said. "Thus I think of this award as appreciation from my students, and I dedicate this award to my students."
Originally from India, Agrawal earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Kolkata, before completing a Master of Science degree at the Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior in Bonn, Germany. He joined Cornell University as a doctoral student in 2021.
The Ye Awards were established through gifts from Cornell alumni and faculty members Dr. Xi Yang and Dr. Mao Ye and are named in honor of their daughters. The 2025-26 awards were presented during the University-Wide GET SET Teaching Conference on April 18.
In addition to the Cornelia Ye Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award, Agrawal was also named a 2025-26 CTI Graduate Teaching Fellow.
Discover more at New India Abroad.
Leave A Comment
Related
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
E Paper
Video
Comments
Start the conversation
Become a member of New India Abroad to start commenting.
Sign Up Now
Already have an account? Login