UC Santa Cruz Celebrates 2025 Alumni Award Honorees
The UC Santa Cruz Alumni Association has announced the recipients of the 2025 Alumni Awards, recognizing graduates and faculty whose vision, leadership, and service exemplify the university’s values. The awards span five categories: Fiat Lux, Alumni Achievement, Distinguished Graduate Alumni, UCSC Ethos, and Outstanding Recent Alumni.
This year’s distinguished recipients are: Barry J. Bowman, professor emeritus of molecular, cell, and developmental biology (Fiat Lux Award); Terri McCullough (Oakes ’90, politics), former chief of staff to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and director of the Clinton Foundation’s women’s initiative (Alumni Achievement Award); Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein (M.S. ’05, astronomy and astrophysics), a nationally recognized theoretical physicist and author (Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award); Nane (Daniel) Alejandrez (Merrill ’81, community studies), founder of Barrios Unidos and leader in community peace-building (UCSC Ethos Award); and Aviv Elor (Crown ’19, robotics engineering; Ph.D. ’21, computational media), an emerging leader in robotics, immersive technology, and health innovation (Outstanding Recent Alumni Award).
Among these celebrated alumni, Santa Cruz Works 2022 Titan of Tech Award winner, graduate and finalist of Santa Cruz Accelerates Cohort 4, Aviv Elor earned both his bachelor’s in robotics engineering (2019) and Ph.D. in computational media (2021) from UC Santa Cruz, has quickly established himself as a pioneer at the intersection of robotics, healthcare, and virtual reality.
Elor is the co-founder, president, and chief research officer of Immergo Labs, a company transforming physical rehabilitation by creating immersive VR telehealth platforms. In recognition of his groundbreaking work, Elor was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 in Healthcare in 2025. Beyond his entrepreneurial success, Elor has contributed significantly to academia as an adjunct professor of computational media at UC Santa Cruz’s Baskin School of Engineering, where he mentors students and advances research in human-centered technology.
Elor has authored more than 25 peer-reviewed publications and has secured over $1.5 million in research funding. In addition to the Santa Cruz Works Titan of Tech Award, he has also been awarded the ACM Virtual Reality Software and Technology Best Paper Award, the Barry Goldwater Scholarship, and the ARCS Foundation Fellowship.
As UC Santa Cruz celebrates these five honorees, the awards also serve as a reminder of the university’s enduring mission: to empower students and alumni to think boldly, lead with purpose, and drive meaningful change in the world.
