+ Selected Honors

The International Conference on Physics Education (ICPE, The flagship conference of Commission 14 of the International Union for Pure and Applied Physics -IUPAP), Hybrid (IIT Ropar, India), 2025, Plenary Lecture: ``Helping students become Leaders of the Second Quantum Revolution"

Keynote Speaker, The International Symposium on Quantum Science and Engineering (IQSE 2025), Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia (UPTC).

Keynote at Annual Meeting of the Human Anatomy and physiology Society (HAPS), Pittsburgh, 2025.

Keynote at CUWiP: Conference on Undergraduate Women in Physics sponsored by the American Physical Society, New York University, NY, 2025.

Distinguished Speaker at the Indian Association of Physics Teachers (IAPT) Webinar to celebrate International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, 2025.

Plenary Speaker, EPISTEME conference at the Bhabha Center for Science Education, India, 2025.

2024 J D Jackson Excellence in Graduate Physics Education Award, American Association of Physics Teachers, 2024.

What will it take to make physics more diverse?" featured in Pitt Wire, 2024. Click here for the Nature Physics article.

Yunker Lecture, 2024 Oregon State University, https://physics.oregonstate.edu/physics-news-events/yunker-lectures

Keynote at Annual SABER (Society for the Advancement of Biology Education Research) Conference, Minneapolis, MN (2024), 

American Physical Society, Nicholson Medal, 2022. For my acceptance speech, please click here.

Distinguished Alumna Award, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, 2022.

SEISMIC Leadership Award, 2022.

Panelist, Sessions on Physics Education for the 21st Century and on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Physics, International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) Centennial Symposium #IUPAP100, International Center for Theoretical Physics, Trieste Italy, 2022.

Workshop Leader, Inclusivity in introductory STEM courses, Cottrell Scholars Collaborative and FLAMnet, Promoting Equity in Science Learning, 2022. For more information click here. Also, browse over https://rescorp.org/gdresources/publications/Inclusivity-in-Introductory-STEM-Courses.pdf

Belonging Event Series, Sarah Lawrence College, How to Enhance Science by Making it Equitable and Inclusive, 2022.

Keynote Speaker, IBM Quantum Educator Summit, Preparing students to be the leaders of the quantum information revolution, 2021.

Special Advisor to the Provost for Quantum Education, 2021, University of Pittsburgh.

Workshop Leader (with Roni Ellington), American Association of the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Promoting Equity in Undergraduate STEM Classrooms through Pedagogical Approaches, 2021.

"One of the Keynote Speakers at the Frontiers in Quantum Computing Conference, University of Rhode Island", 2021.

The Quantum Computer Revolution Must Include Women, Scientific American, 2021.

 Women and the Quantum Revolution; My Interview was Featured on the NSF  Mathematical and Physical Sciences Website www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=302261&org=MPS&from=news

"Learning Incubator Colloquium at Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences", Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 2020.

Plenary Speaker, TEAM-UP Implementation Workshop, American Institute of Physics, July 2021.

Plenary Speaker, Taiwan International Science Education Forum, 2021.

Keynote Speaker,  College of the Holy Cross, Annual STEM Faculty Retreat, 2021.

Guest of Honor and Inaugural Speaker, MICROSPHERE 2021: Workshop Celebrating International Microbe Day, Delhi University, India, 2021.

Panelist, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Active Learning for a Post-Pandemic World, 2021.

Provost's Award for Excellence in Doctoral Mentoring, University of Pittsburgh, 2020.

Provost's Award for Diversity in the Curriculum, University of Pittsburgh, 2019 year.

Keynote Speaker,  Research-validated tools for helping students learn quantum mechanics, GIREP  Conference (originally in Malta, Europe but took place virtually so it was delivered in webinar format) 2020. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-06193-6

Invited to be the Editor of the "Assessment" Section of the International Handbook on Physics Education Research due to my expertise in Educational Assessment (unfortunately, I had to decline due to personal constraints), 2020.

Plenary Speaker,  Chinese Physical Society National Conference (organized by Secretariat of the Physics Education Committee of the Chinese Physics Society-it was streamed to tens of thousands of people), 2020.

Plenary Speaker, Sloan Equity and Inclusion in STEM Introductory Courses (SEISMIC) Inaugural Conference, Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2019.

Keynote Speaker, Australian Institute of Physics Congress, Perth, Australia 2018.

Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science  (AAAS), 2017.

Invited speaker in the session on research-based approaches to teaching quantum mechanics highlighted in Physics Focus as one of only four research sessions from APS April meeting, 2015.  https://physics.aps.org/articles/v8/38

Fellow, American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT), 2014.

Founding Director, Discipline-based Science Education Research Center (dB-SERC), University of Pittsburgh, Jan. 1, 2014 (official start, unofficial start in 2013). To find out more click here. More can be found here, here and here.

Keynote Speaker, Physics Faculty Retreat, University of Waterloo, Canada, 2013.

Distinguished Service Citation, AAPT, 2012. To find out more click here.

Fellow, American Physical Society, 2011. To find out more click here.

Keynote speaker, AAPT meeting, Chicago Section, Chicago, IL, 2011.

Plenary speaker, Conference on Upper-Division Physics Education Research, Crawfordsville, IN, 2010.

Keynote speaker, AAPT meeting, Appalachian Section, Bethany, WV, 2009.

Plenary speaker, Gordon Conference on Physics Research and Education: Computation and Computer-based Physics, Smithfield, RI, 2008.

Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching, Learning and Technology, Nominated by Pitt, 18th International Conference on College Teaching and Learning, Florida, 2007.

Plenary speaker, Gordon Conference on Chemistry Education Research and Practice, Lewiston, Maine, 2007.

Distinguished Visiting Scholar, Institute for Teaching and Learning, University of Akron, OH, 2005.

Keynote Speaker, Ohio Learning Network Institute, Kent State University, OH, 2005.

Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award,University of Pittsburgh, PA, 2002. To read more click here.

Plenary speaker, Gordon Conference on Physics Research and Education: Quantum Mechanics, South Hadley, Massachusetts, 2002.

School of Arts and Sciences Bellet Teaching Excellence Award, University of Pittsburgh, PA, 2000.  http://www.utimes.pitt.edu/?p=2906 , http://www.as.pitt.edu/teaching/bellet

Nominated to the freshman academic honor society Phi Eta Sigma, 2000.

Student Government Board Faculty Honor Roll, University of Pittsburgh, PA, 2000. To find out more, click here.

Nominated to the physics honor society Sigma Pi Sigma, 1998.

The Ferrando Fithian Award in Physics, University of California Santa Barbara, CA, 1990.

The Hughes Fellowship, University of California Santa Barbara, CA, 1989.

Medal, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India, 1988 for obtaining first place in B. Sc. and M. Sc. (integrated five year) physics.

The National Talent Search Scholarship, NCERT, India, June 1983-June 1988 (the scholarship spanned the entire college education in India and was sufficient for tuition, room and board).