Lucas Hildebrand Pires da Cunha, a fourth-year doctoral student in chemical and biomolecular engineering (ChBE) at Rice, is the 2022 recipient of the Graduate Teaching Award for Student Support.
The Rice University award recognizes graduate students who have “distinguished themselves in the support they provide to undergraduate students as teaching assistants (whether during class, recitations, or office hours).”
“Lucas was twice TA for our ChBE 401 core junior-level fluid mechanics class,” said one of his advisers, Lisa Biswal, the William M. McCardell Professor in Chemical Engineering. “This is a difficult class for students to both understand the physical phenomena and derive the analytical solutions.
“I observed Lucas patiently explain key concepts to the students in an easy-to-follow manner. He is able to lead students to figuring out what they are missing in solving a problem instead of just telling them how to do the problem. He has received nothing but glowing praise from our undergraduates.”
A native of Brasília, Brazil, da Cunha earned his B.S. and M.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Brasília in 2016 and 2018, respectively. He came to Rice in 2018 and joined the Ph.D. program in ChBE under the supervision of Biswal and Frederick MacKintosh, the Abercrombie Professor of ChBE.
Da Cunha is a member of the board of the Brazilian Student Association at Rice, where he works in the mentorship program for students who wish to join graduate programs.
Da Cunha will formally receive the award at the annual University Awards Ceremony, hosted by the Center for Teaching Excellence and held in McMurtry Auditorium, Duncan Hall, on April 26, from 3 to 5 p.m.