Ph.D. students Albert Opare and Ally Thompson have been named the 2026 J.D. Smith Award winners.

The J.D. Smith Award is given annually to graduate students in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry with the most significant distinction in scholarship, research, teaching and service.

Yan Zhang, Ph.D., professor and director of VCU's Center for Drug Discovery, advises Opare, and Umesh Desai, Ph.D., chair and professor in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and faculty member in the Center for Drug Discovery, advises Thompson.

Congratulations to both students and their advisors for this honor!