The 2024 CNS Alumni Awards
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Gale Sinatra BS ’81 MS ’87 PhD ’89, Christina Arieta BS ’09 PhD ’14, and Kyle Landry MS ’12 PhD ’16 have been named the recipients of the 2024 College of Natural Sciences (CNS) Alumni Awards. These awards, a collaboration between the college and the CNS Dean’s Advisory Board, aim to recognize the wonderful accomplishments of the college’s former trainees.
The CNS Distinguished Alumni Award: Gale Sinatra
The recipient of the 2024 CNS Distinguished Alumni Award is Gale Sinatra BS ’81 MS ’87 PhD ’89. The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes an alum who has grown into a visionary leader in their field and has reached exceptional levels of leadership, service, teaching, innovation, and/or accomplishments that positively impact society.
Sinatra currently serves as Distinguished Professor of Education and Psychology, Stephen H. Crocker Chair, and Associate Dean for Research in the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California. She earned her BS in Psychology (’81), MS in Psychology (’87), and Doctorate in Psychology (’89), all from UMass Amherst. An elected member of the National Academy of Education, her expertise spans from the science of learning to the learning of science. She is also actively involved and committed to enhancing public understanding of science, and in 2021 co-authored the book Science Denial: Why It Happens and What to Do About It.
The CNS Outstanding Young Alumni Award: Christina Arieta and Kyle Landry
The recipients of the 2024 CNS Outstanding Young Alumni Award are Christina Arieta BS ’09 PhD ’14 and Kyle Landry MS ’12 PhD ’16. The CNS Outstanding Young Alumni Award recognizes emerging leaders in the early stages of their careers, whose outstanding professional and personal achievements highlight the recipients’ ambitions and potential to positively impact society.
Arieta earned her Bachelor’s of Microbiology (’09) and her Doctorate of Animal Biotechnology & Biomedical Sciences (’14) from UMass Amherst. She is currently the Senior Director of Molecular Immunology at BioNTech US Inc. and provides scientific leadership for their next-generation COVID-19 vaccine program, among other aspects of the company's vaccine program.
Landry earned his Master’s and Doctorate of Food Science (’12, ’16) from UMass Amherst. He also earned a Certificate in Business Foundations from the Isenberg School of Management. Landry is co-founder and President of Delavie Sciences LLC, and he has been instrumental in driving the company’s success through his leadership in product development, patent submissions, and strategic marketing initiatives.
Award Ceremony
CNS congratulates these three awardees and all faculty and staff in Psychological and Brain Sciences, Microbiology, Veterinary and Animal Sciences, and Food Science who contributed to their training! The college will hold a reception to celebrate these alumni.