Mehrana Mohtasebi, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, received a 2022 Sarah Bennett Holmes Award from the UK Women's Forum.
Mohtasebi received her master's degree in Iran and moved to the U.S. in 2018. Competitive awards she has received include the American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship, Biomedical Engineering Society Career Development Award and UK Biomedical Engineering Outstanding Graduate Student Award. Leadership positions she has held include president of the UK student chapter of the Biomedical Engineering Society, representative to the UK Graduate Student Congress and member of the professional development and networking committee for the Graduate Student Congress.
The Sarah Bennett Holmes Award recognizes individuals and teams who promote the growth and well-being of women at the university and across Kentucky. Faculty, staff and graduate student recipients receive a monetary award and a plaque. The team and its members receive a framed certificate for their achievement. All winners are named on plaques in the Main Building.
For a list of past winners, visit www.uky.edu/womensforum/sarah-bennett-holmes-award.
Sarah Bennett Holmes, a distinguished former dean of women at UK, tirelessly championed the rights of women throughout her career. Widowed at a young age, Holmes raised four children while completing her own education. She then began a successful career at the university where she inspired young women to persevere in the face of hardship and pursue their career goals. Among her accomplishments, Holmes developed work programs for women during the Depression.
In her honor, the UK Women's Forum created the Sarah Bennett Holmes Award and since 1994 has been honoring women at UK who demonstrate the same principles as Holmes through their work and service.
The UK Women's Forum is an organization for all employees of the university faculty and staff. Its mission is to exert a leadership role in empowering, validating, informing, including and celebrating all women employed at UK by addressing challenges, communicating issues and recognizing successes within the context of the workplace.
For more information about the UK Women's Forum, visit www.uky.edu/womensforum or contact UKWF@uky.edu.