Two Upstate Medical University students have been honored with the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence.

Ingrid Martinez, a graduate of the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program in the College of Nursing, and Matthew Norris, a graduate of the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program in the College of Health Professions, received the awards in a Saratoga Springs ceremony last month.

The Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence acknowledges students who have received recognition for distinguished achievements. It is the highest honor bestowed upon a student by the University. This year, 180 students from 61 campuses received this award.

SUNY Interim Chancellor Deborah F. Stanley said the CASE award winners “are students who fight, innovate, dream and achieve. They are students who never fail to try their best and have proven that their best is extraordinary.”

Ingrid Martinez, DNP, FNP-C is a full-time family nurse practitioner at Upstate University Hospital Inclusive Health Services Clinic, specializing in the prevention and treatment of HIV. She is an alumnus of the Upstate Medical University College of Nursing’s Doctor of Nursing Practice and master’s degree in Family Nurse Practitioner as of 2014. As a native of Honduras, Martinez has a distinct understanding of healthcare disparities experienced by marginalized populations and brings this important cultural sensitivity to her current work with her patients.

Matthew Norris, DPT, graduated in May with a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree. While enrolled at Upstate, Norris served as class president and had been highly involved in areas of leadership, community service, and campus involvement. He was awarded the Kevin Reistrom Memorial Scholarship and the Sue Miller Scholarship Award during his tenure at Upstate. He graduated from SUNY Cortland in 2019 with a BS in exercise science. 

~ Written by Darryl Geddes Published on Wednesday, May 18, 2022 (Original Story: In Distinction)