Two Alfred University seniors are recipients of the 2026 State University of New York (SUNY) Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence. Matthew Bittel and Summer Aquino were among more than 200 students from 64 SUNY campuses to receive the award from Chancellor John B. King Jr. during a ceremony held Monday, April 27, in Albany.
The SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence acknowledges students for outstanding achievements that have demonstrated the integration of SUNY excellence into many different aspects of their lives, including academics, leadership, diversity, equity, inclusion and justice, campus involvement, civics and service, research and development, or creative and performing arts. It is the highest honor bestowed upon a student by SUNY.
“SUNY students are New York's future, and the outstanding individuals I am proud to recognize with the Chancellor's Awards for Student Excellence embody the very best of our state university system,” said SUNY Chancellor King. “The students who have earned this recognition have inspired their classmates, their educators, their campuses and me with their inspiring work, tenacious drive, and dedication to their academic success. I commend each of the awardees and thank them for being examples for others to follow.”
Bittel is a senior from Wellsville, NY, majoring in ceramic engineering with a minor in business administration. A member of the Dean’s List for every semester of his time at Alfred, he has been deeply involved on the Alfred University campus, in and out of the classroom. He is the founder and President of our Mug Drop Club, an organization that prioritizes professional development as well as competes in the national Materials Advantage conference competition against top engineering schools in the country (picture below). He helped this organization grow from nothing to nearly a hundred members, as well as secure both funding and space for operations. He is also a part of Chi Alpha Sigma – an honors society on campus.
“Matthew is quite passionate about passing down his love of engineering and ceramic engineering,” Gabrielle Gaustad ’04, dean of the Inamori School of Engineering, said in nominating Bittel for the award. She noted that he has been a leader in the Night of Art and Science event, which attracts over 400 local community members – mainly K-6 students – to campus for an evening of science, engineering and art demonstrations. “He has volunteered extensively with recruiting and outreach events. He has served as a significant mentor to underclassmen, I often see him offering advice and tutoring undergraduate classmates – especially our athletes,” Gaustad commented.
A four-year member of the Saxons’ men’s tennis team, Bittel has been recognized as an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) 2025 Division III Scholar Athlete requiring a GPA of at least 3.50 and being a varsity letter-winner. He also was instrumental in leading the team to be named a 2024-25 College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team for Division III.
“Matthew Bittel is certain to continue his success in his post-graduation activities,” Gaustad said. “Even though he is incredibly busy with athletics and activities, he has managed to gain an incredible amount of work and entrepreneurial experience as well.”
He was part of a team of students that took first place in the fifth annual AHA! Allegany County Startup Collegiate Competition, held last year at Alfred State College. The competition pits teams from Alfred University, Alfred State, and Houghton University, who pitch ideas for start-up businesses to a panel of judges. Their business, DeCayse, maker of a line of eco-friendly phone cases, has already captured the eye of potential investors.
Bittel has taken advantage of a variety of research internship opportunities. He worked with a space materials company – Blue Star Advanced Manufacturing – to help launch several research initiatives including lunar regolith sintering for a NASA program. In summer of 2025 he worked on a research project under my supervision modeling trade dynamics for rare earth materials – a fascinating exercise in real-time shifts as tariffs continued to be proposed and implemented through-out the summer.
Over the past year, Bittel has worked as an engineering intern for Lockheed Martin working on significant materials characterization including x-ray diffraction and microscopy work and batching ceramic materials for a variety of experiments.
“Matthew Bittel represents everything we hope to achieve in preparing “T-shaped” engineering students that have phenomenal technical depth but also incredible breadth of skillsets in other disciplines,” Gaustad said.
Aquino, a senior from the Philippines, has demonstrated sustained accomplishment in Research and Development through interdisciplinary material investigation, technical leadership, and nationally recognized art–science innovation, according to Lauren Lake, dean of the School of Art & Design at Alfred University.
Lake noted that since 2023, Aquino has led Moon Dust as a formal research initiative translating geochemical data from lunar missions into ceramic glaze systems. In 2023–2024, she served as an undergraduate research associate with the New York State College of Ceramics (NYSCC) Space Materials Institute, collaborating with materials scientists and engineers to develop lunar regolith simulants, high-temperature vitrification, and sustainable ceramic systems. Her work integrated empirical testing, digital modeling, and studio experimentation and was presented in interdisciplinary research forums and public lectures at Alfred University.
“Her work demonstrates a rare integration of creative imagination, rigorous research, and deep civic consciousness—qualities that embody the very spirit of this award’s mission to recognize creativity, initiative, originality, and sustained accomplishment,” Lake said in nominating Aquino for the award. “Summer’s practice operates at the intersection of art, science, and social inquiry, traversing sculpture, ceramics, performance, writing, and digital design.”
Aquino’s research excellence has been recognized through competitive honors and national professional organizations. She is a recipient of Alfred University Undergraduate Research Grants (2023, 2024). In 2025, she received national recognition from the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) for her research-driven practice, and in 2026 she was awarded the NCECA Regina Brown Undergraduate Fellowship, a prestigious national honor recognizing emerging artists whose work combines technical rigor, conceptual depth, and social engagement.
As an artist and immigrant from the Philippines, Summer brings to her practice an expansive understanding of citizenship, belonging, and interdependence, Lake noted. Her projects, including FRUITBODY and I am a body, & so on, invite communal reflection on embodiment, ritual, and shared vulnerability.
“Beyond the studio, she has demonstrated exceptional civic initiative through leadership and entrepreneurship, co-founding SOUP [ceramics], a collaborative platform supporting emerging artists, and curating community-based exhibitions with PICNIC and Culture Hole,” Lake said. “These efforts extend artmaking into acts of cultural stewardship, mentorship, and mutual care.”
Aquino’s academic journey—from her early education in the Philippines, to community college in Texas, to Alfred University, where she received a full merit scholarship—"has been shaped by resilience, adaptability, and intellectual drive,” Lake said.
“She has excelled in both creative and scholarly arenas, contributing meaningfully to interdisciplinary research and serving as a technical leader within our ceramic facilities through kiln operation, materials testing, safety systems, and exhibition organization.”
In recognition of her exceptional vision and impact, faculty selected her as one of only two nominees from Alfred University for the Windgate-Lamar Fellowship, one of the most competitive national honors for undergraduate artists. Her recent features in Nasher Sculpture Center Magazine and Picnic Issue No. 4 affirm her growing national profile and the critical relevance of her ideas.
“Within the landscape of contemporary ceramics and interdisciplinary sculpture, Summer’s work stands at the forefront of emerging practices that integrate material science with conceptual rigor,” Lake said. “She is already contributing substantively to national dialogues on sustainability, technology, and artistic responsibility- offering not only creative output, but models of open research, collaborative knowledge production, and public engagement that advance the field.”
