We are thrilled to congratulate Naveena Ujagar, the Nicholas Lab’s very first graduate student, on defending her dissertation in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at UC Irvine. During her PhD, Naveena has made outstanding contributions to immunometabolism and reproductive immunology, including work on Th17 cell metabolism in type 2 diabetes, inflammatory pathways in PCOS, and innovative spectral flow cytometry approaches to study bacteriophages. Her graduate career has been marked by numerous honors, including the Johnson & Johnson Scholars of Immunology Diversity and Engagement Program Award, FLARE Fellowship, AAI Poster Award, CSURM Fellowship, NIH R00 Diversity Supplement support, and the Eugene-Cota Robles Fellowship.

Beyond her research, Naveena has been an exceptional leader, mentor, and colleague, serving as Chair of the Molecular Biology and Biosciences Graduate Student Council, CFO of Scientist of Color and Ally Leadership, and mentor to multiple undergraduate researchers. We are so proud of all she has accomplished and cannot wait to see the impact she will continue to make as a scientist and leader. Congratulations, Dr. Ujagar!