University of Richmond Alum Aamy Bakry Receives 2025 American Chemical Society Pride Merck Graduate Research Award

UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND — Aamy Bakry, who graduated from the University of Richmond in May 2024, is a recipient of the 2025 ACS Pride Merck Graduate Research Award.

This award annually recognizes up to six recipients who present their research during a symposium at the Spring American Chemical Society national meeting, which will be held in San Diego in March. Awardees also receive a stipend and a one-year mentorship program that pairs them with an industry employee.

Bakry, who is from Sohag, Egypt, majored in biochemistry & molecular biology with a minor in business administration. He is currently a first-year Ph.D. student in the chemistry and biochemistry program at University of Maryland, College Park. 

During his time at UR, Bakry was mentored by chemistry professor Carol Parish and worked as an undergraduate researcher in her lab for three years on four different projects. He had the opportunity to co-publish journal articles and present at University symposiums and national academic conferences.

“The Parish Lab uses tools from math and physics, which are implemented on a computer, to solve important problems in biology and chemistry,” Bakry said. “Dr. Parish is a supportive mentor whose goal is to help you develop as a skillful, independent scientist.”

Bakry plans to continue working in the field of theoretical and computational chemistry. He is currently researching methods for computationally modeling chemistry in the solid state, which has applications in pharmaceuticals and material science.

“Receiving this award so early in my graduate school career wouldn’t have been possible without all the hard work during my undergraduate research,” Bakry said. “Beyond that, I see it as a celebration of diversity in STEM, recognizing and uplifting underrepresented groups by providing opportunities and resources to share their work with the broader scientific community. It is a powerful reminder that the future of science is inclusive.”

###