As the 2025–2026 academic year comes to a close, REACH celebrates the work of our affiliated faculty who have been honored for their work not only in teaching and research, but also in community engagement. 

Groundbreaking research, influential scholarship, and bold creative work took center stage as Rutgers University–Camden celebrated the 2026 Chancellor’s Awards for Research and Creative Activity. Drawn from both tenured and non-tenured faculty ranks and designed to recognize work that spans disciplines, methodologies, and forms of expression, this year’s recipients reflect the breadth and vitality of the university’s academic community.

Faculty, students, staff, alumni, and community partners gathered at Rutgers University–Camden this spring to celebrate the 14th Annual Chancellor’s Awards for Impact and Community Engagement, an event recognizing individuals and initiatives that strengthen connections between campus and community while advancing opportunity, belonging, and civic impact. 

Khamani Wade RSBC’26 has steadily transformed a lifelong passion for sports into a budding career in the industry, taking advantage of professional opportunities and building early experience in both basketball and the sports business. That trajectory led him last fall to the FIFA Rising Stars Academy, where he gained firsthand exposure to the global sports industry ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Philadelphia.

Against the backdrop of its Centennial year, Rutgers University–Camden celebrated the achievements, resilience, and ambitions of the Class of 2026 during a week of commencement ceremonies honoring more than 1700 undergraduate and graduate students. 

Nyree Oliver overcame incredible odds to become a graduating senior who belongs to four honor societies. She shared her story with donors who helped to make her Rutgers education possible, telling them, “Thank you for being the reason lives like mine are forever changed.”

The psychology and childhood studies major travels to Paraguay next year to serve as an English Teaching Assistant through a Fulbright Scholarship after an undergraduate career packed with academic honors, public service, and campus involvement.

Raised by two social workers who earned master's degrees and instilled in her the value of education, Zion Harris followed in her parents' footsteps but forged a new path in STEM. The northeast Philadelphia native earned a graduate degree in computational and integrative biology at Rutgers University–Camden, where she will continue her academic journey as she pursues a Ph.D. 

Fourteen years after first arriving at Rutgers University–Camden as a first-generation college student, Camden native and Army veteran Luis Colon is preparing to cross the commencement stage this May with a degree in management and a story defined by resilience, service, and determination.