2025 Bok Awards for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates
Graduate students recognized for commitment to teaching and mentorship
Harvard Griffin GSAS is a place where students learn to be scholars, scientists, and researchers—those who create knowledge. Just as important, however, is the School’s role as a training ground for those who inspire others to learn and discover. The five recipients of the 2025 Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates exemplify these extraordinary young teachers and mentors.
Amar Sarkar
From the very start of his time as a teaching fellow (TF), it was clear that Amar Sarkar valued diversity of expression and opinion, leveraging his gifts for kindness and compassion to help students feel at ease in the classroom. Described as an “inspirational teacher and mentor,” Amar is known to engage his students through a combination of infectious curiosity, compassion, humor, deep knowledge across a range of content areas, and an exceptional ability to connect ideas across disciplines.
Amar has served as a teaching fellow for courses across a myriad of the department’s offerings and has consistently received stellar student evaluations: “Gold standard.” “Greatest of all time.” “Best section leader I have ever had.” Beyond the accolades, students have acknowledged his ability to communicate science across a range of topics, while maintaining a growth mindset to help them learn and succeed, including providing specific, timely feedback that endeared students in his sections.
“He recognizes that not all students are equally comfortable with expressing themselves in a public setting, perhaps due to matters of socialization, differences, in past privilege, or holding a controversial view. Amar has always gone out of his way to create an environment where students are comfortable [being themselves],” said Rachel N. Carmody, Thomas D. Cabot Associate Professor in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, in her nomination. “As Amar’s faculty advisor, I have witnessed him teach and mentor students since 2022 and, in my view, he is one of the most gifted graduate student teachers our department has produced.”
His students overwhelmingly agree. In 2023 the Harvard Undergraduate Association honored Amar with a certificate of special recognition for his efforts. One student shared that his “approachable demeanor and interactive teaching style created . . . an inclusive atmosphere that significantly enhanced the collaborative learning experience and encouraged a lively exchange of ideas.” Going above and beyond his position as a teaching fellow, Amar also served as a primary research mentor for two undergraduates, with one mentee sharing, “Over the last year and a half, he has provided me with some of the most invaluable lessons and greatest mentorship I have ever received. Amar is brilliant . . . and my experience at Harvard has been profoundly shaped by Amar Sarkar; I can say without exaggeration that I would be half of the graduate I will be in a few months had I not met him.”
Amar Sarkar, the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is pleased to present you with the Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates. Congratulations!
José Del Rio Pantoja
The commitment, skills, dedication, and diligence that José Del Rio Pantoja brings to his many responsibilities as a teaching fellow and head teaching fellow in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology and the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology has endeared him to colleagues and students alike. A hallmark of his teaching style with undergraduates is that he can effectively relate to any student he interacts with, no matter their level of understanding or background. More than one student has requested to be transferred to José’s section permanently after attending as a make-up only once.
During the spring of 2022, just as students were returning to in-person learning after the COVID shutdown, José volunteered for additional work including proctoring exams via Zoom due to student illness. From the beginning, his dedication to helping all students succeed was evident. According to his nominators, Sien Verschave and Rebecca LaCroix, both lecturers in life sciences as well as curriculum and pedagogy managers, José is “clearly capable of fostering a collaborative and supportive learning environment that nurtures the growth and success of all students he encounters.” By developing new materials and experimenting with innovative teaching techniques, including a trivia-style session to engage students during exams, José has helped improve how the department teaches science.
An effective and collaborative leader, José has an enthusiasm for students that inspires peers and staff alike. According to his nominators, even the most seasoned instructors and tenured faculty often picked up new tips and tricks from the hands-on advice José would share during staff meetings and mock teaching demonstrations. Many teaching fellows have reached out to José directly about content-related questions or guidance on classroom management.
José’s strong abilities, approachable nature, generous personality, and clear dedication to teaching have made him an invaluable asset to the Harvard community. And given the graduate student’s long-term goal of pursuing an academic career in the study of protein biosynthesis, his mentors can easily imagine him helping to shape the broader conversation on science education and empowering other educators wherever he lands, combining his gifts as a superb scientist and an enthusiastic teacher.
José Del Rio Pantoja, the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is pleased to present you with the Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates. Congratulations!
Melissa Mai
With an exceptional track record of excellence in teaching and advising at the undergraduate level, Melissa Mai is known for her versatility as an educator, her ability to teach outside her disciplinary expertise, her creativity in adapting to new formats and subject matter, and her deep commitment to supporting and engaging students across a wide range of academic interests. Indeed, Melissa has served as a TF well beyond the one term required by the biophysics program, with a diverse number of assignments, showing tremendous dedication and creativity in each appointment.
As a TF for OEB 52: Biology of Plants, Melissa had minimal exposure to the coursework and still shined. Charles Bullard Professor of Forestry Noel Michele Holbrook, who is also Melissa’s PhD advisor, shared, “Prior to each lab session, Melissa worked closely with students to ensure that she had a complete understanding of the material . . . she brought new ideas of how to explain aspects of plant biophysics to students that have now become incorporated in our teaching materials.” Her contributions to the class and outstanding ability to connect with students of diverse backgrounds dovetail with her career goals to work in science policy and science communication. Many students shared heartfelt comments in Melissa’s nomination, including one student who shared the following:
“Throughout the entire semester, it was clear that had not only a passion for the material, but also a passion for sharing her love for the subject with all of us. She treated every small observation from the microscope I found or question about the plant’s structure I had with patience and respect. She went above and beyond the expectation; at the end of the semester, she set aside flowers we studied in the lab for me to pick up because I had asked if I could try growing them after we finished using them in lab. That small gesture was a representation of how she approached teaching, with a deep appreciation for the material and an eye for connecting the science with her students’ interests.”
In their nomination, Martha L. Bulyk, professor of medicine and pathology , and Rachelle Gaudet, professor of molecular and cellular biology—both co-chairs of the Harvard Biophysics Graduate Program—lauded Melissa’s “extraordinary dedication to undergraduate education, her ability to lead and innovate in unfamiliar subject areas, and her consistent impact as both a teacher and a mentor.”
“Melissa exemplifies the very best of Harvard’s teaching mission. Her teaching is not only effective but transformative—she inspires students to learn deeply, think critically, and pursue their own intellectual curiosities with confidence.”
Melissa Mai, the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is pleased to present you with the Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates. Congratulations!
Christina Nikitin
Christina Nikitin has the enthusiastic and warm support of the entire faculty of the music department, who voted unanimously to nominate her to be formally recognized for stellar teaching in music, as well as the course, Black Feminist Theory in Media and Performance. “Students clearly universally value Christina’s engaging presence in the classroom, no matter the subject matter,” wrote Kate Van Orden, Dwight P. Robinson Jr. Professor of Music and director of graduate studies.
In her evaluations, students praised Christina for her ability to explain concepts in ways that allowed non-specialists to grasp technical issues even if they had little or no background training in music. Christina's efforts made her sections very informative, fun, and helpful—even in large sections that numbered close to 80 students. One student noted, “As a non-musician, I cannot express how much I learned in the class, and how much I appreciate how approachable the lectures and sections were for somebody with little experience in the field,” with other students using words such as “amazing,” “encouraging,” “passionate,” and “organized.”
Christina is a valued member of the teaching teams on which she serves, which are also varied, from courses like the “hard bop” Foundations of Modern Jazz with Senior Lecturer on Music/Director of Jazz Bands Yosvany Terry to Black Feminist Theory with Lecturer of Somatic Practices and Global Performance Shamell Bell for students in theater, dance & media. As one professor shared, “Christina advocated eloquently for students experiencing difficulties and worked above and beyond to make sure they succeeded . . . I appreciate her professionalism and dedication.”
Christina Nikitin, the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is pleased to present you with the Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates. Congratulations!
Ben TerMaat
Ben TerMaat is the kind of teaching fellow that makes Harvard at its best a great educational institution. To the task of teaching, he brings a extraordinary thoughtfulness and level of dedication. Peter A. Hall, Krupp Foundation Professor of European Studies, writes in his nomination that Ben is the rare TF that can change the trajectory of an undergraduate’s writing journey, sharing “he takes the time and care that few others can manage to work actively with students to teach them how to organize an argument and how to set it out in fine prose.”
“In the 43 years that I have been on Harvard faculty, I have had many good teaching fellows . . . Ben TerMaat is a spectacular teacher,” wrote Professor Hall. As a TF for two sections of Gov 1171: The Making of Modern Politics: The Political Development of Europe from the Middle Ages to the European Union, Ben supported students in a demanding course which integrates theories about social and political change across 800 years of European history. Most of the students who take it have little background and find the subject daunting. Weekly discussion sections are critical to student success because they focus on theoretical issues about social change, and Ben spent considerable time and effort walking students through the material and modeling how to show up in class and improve their writing skills.
One student shared, “I have never had a TF who would give such detailed and constructive feedback as Ben. He read every single word of my paper carefully (even more than once!) and wrote feedback ranging from grammar to the structure of, validity of arguments, and quality of evidence.” Another student wrote what so many others echoed: “Ben is the best TF I have had at Harvard, and I have never had a TF who went so far out of his way to make himself accessible and work with me to help me succeed in class. I felt constantly supported and knew that any requests for help would be met with understanding and compassion. Ben is one of those TFs who should really become a professor.” The level of effort Ben devoted to his students has been remarkable, and the level of intelligence and the care he took to teach well is to be applauded.
Ben TerMaat, the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is pleased to present you with the Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching of Undergraduates. Congratulations!
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