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Department of Political Science and International Relations
Department Honors students
Departmental Honors: Prof. Megan Becker with Valerie Aronhalt, Reid Hartman-Teske, Shiza Khan, Olivia Lei, Isaac Millians, Kira O’Gorman, Diya Raghavan, and Ethan Situ

2026 Academic Recognition Dinner

May 18, 2026

By POIR Department
May 18, 2026

On Thursday, May 7, 2026, the Department of Political Science and International Relations held its annual Academic Recognition Dinner at the University Club. POIR faculty, staff, and advisors gathered together with students’ family and friends to celebrate the academic achievements of thirty-seven graduating seniors and honored four graduating student workers for their contributions to POIR and the Center for Active Learning in International Studies (CALIS). The event was emceed by Prof. Douglas Becker and Prof. Robert English.

This year, three POIR students were awarded Fulbrights, the prestigious international educational and cultural exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government to foster global peace through mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Valerie Aronhalt (B.A., IR and M.PP) will study and research in Spain before attending law school to focus on international development and humanitarian issues. Reid Hartman-Teske (B.A., IR) and Angelu Wu (B.A., IR) will be English Teaching Assistants in Timor-Leste and Taiwan, respectively. Hartman-Teske plans to attend law school or a graduate degree in journalism, and Wu plans to attend law school in international law, diplomacy, and public health.

Among the recipients of USC commencement honors, POIR commended Valerie Aronhalt and Leah Nwizugbo (B.A., POSC) as winners of the USC Global Scholar prize, which awards a scholarship towards postgraduate studies. Ranay Sah (B.A., POSC and COMM) and Ziqing “Olivia” Lei (B.A., IRGB) were named USC Dornsife Scholars. Sah, a Phi Beta Kappa award winner, will work for the United Nations Department of Economic Affairs before starting graduate studies at The Fletcher School at Tufts University; Lei, who is graduating summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA, will attend Columbia Law School in the fall. In addition to these achievements, several students earned distinction as USC Global, Renaissance, and Discovery Scholars (see full list below).

Professor Megan Becker presented honors sashes to eight POIR students who earned Department Honors. This award acknowledges students’ academic excellence throughout their time at USC, but also the completion of a year-long capstone course and thesis. This year’s recipients are Valerie Aronhalt, Reid Hartman-Teske, Shiza Khan (B.A., POSC), Olivia Lei, Isaac Millians (B.A., IR and B.S., ENVS), Kira O’Gorman (B.A., IRGB), Diya Raghavan (B.A., IRGB), and Ethan Situ (B.A., IRGB). Four students received honor cords and medallions from Pi Sigma Alpha, the Political Science honors society: Paris Esmailian (B.A., POSC), Grace Kishiyama (B.A., POSC), Shwetha Rajmohan (B.A., POSC and ECON), and Ranay Sah.

We closed out an evening of celebration with a recognition of the student workers who are an essential part of the departmental staff. Teresa Hudock, director of CALIS, acknowledged three senior staff, Pranavi Senthil, Leo Yang, and Marissa Yeh, and Doug Becker conveyed POIR’s appreciation of Joshua Kang.

Full List of Senior Awards

Department Honors:

  • Valerie Aronhalt
  • Reid Hartman-Teske
  • Shiza Khan
  • Ziqing “Olivia” Lei
  • Isaac Millians
  • Kira O’Gorman
  • Diya Raghavan
  • Ethan Situ

Pi Sigma Alpha Honors Society

  • Paris Esmailian
  • Grace Kishiyama
  • Shwetha Rajmohan
  • Ranay Sah

POIR Exceptional Student (4.0 GPA)

  • Benjamin Escobedo
  • Zachary Garcia
  • Rohan Jain
  • Ziqing “Olivia” Lei
  • Trisha Macagba
  • Ryan Prochaska
  • Sophia Seradarian

USC Dornsife Scholars

  • Ziqing “Olivia” Lei
  • Ranay Sah

USC Global Scholars

  • Valerie Aronhalt (winner)
  • Leah Nwizugbo (winner)
  • Dokyeong “Bright” Lee (distinction)
  • Paige Massey (distinction)
  • Ranay Sah (distinction)

USC Renaissance Scholars

  • Grant Barta (distinction)
  • Reid Hartman-Teske (distinction)
  • Aalameen Jessani (distinction)
  • Katherine Kang (distinction)
  • Ava Karlstad (distinction)
  • David Kim (distinction)
  • Grace Kishiyama (distinction)
  • Blake Levins (distinction)
  • Kira O’Gorman (distinction)
  • Holden Peterson (distinction)
  • Benjamin Poloner (distinction)
  • Ranay Sah (distinction)
  • Elisa Switzer (distinction)
  • Omnia Tensaew (distinction)

USC Discovery Scholars

  • Valerie Aronhalt (distinction)
  • Shiza Khan (distinction)
  • Dokyeong “Bright” Lee (distinction)
  • Ziqing “Olivia” Lei (distinction)
  • Ranay Sah (distinction)
  • Michael Zhang (distinction)

U.S. Fulbright Scholars

  • Valerie Aronhalt
  • Reid Hartman-Teske
  • Angela Wu

CSPC Presidential Fellowship

  • Naya Dukkipati

Leonard D. Schaeffer Fellowship in Government Service

  • Isabelle Del Gaudio
  • Leah Nwizugbo