Meet the Buffalo State recipients of the 2026 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence
Buffalo State University proudly recognizes three exemplary students who have been awarded the 2026 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, the highest student honor bestowed by the State University of New York. The Chancellor’s Award recognizes students who have integrated academic excellence with distinguished achievement in areas such as community service, campus involvement, creative and performing arts, athletics, entrepreneurship, leadership, and career achievement.
The Chancellor’s Awards for Student Excellence were officially awarded by SUNY during a ceremony on April 27 at the Albany Capital Center in Albany, New York. Buffalo State’s winners will again be recognized during the university’s 154th Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 16, in the campus Sports Arena.
Joyce Assaf
SUNY CHANCELLOR’S AWARD FOR STUDENT EXCELLENCE
1:00 p.m. Ceremony | School of Arts and Sciences
Joyce Assaf has earned a bachelor of science degree in biology, attaining a 3.95 GPA while participating in exceptional and wide-ranging biomedical research, contributing to numerous campus activities, and volunteering in her community.
A native of Lebanon who taught herself English shortly before enrolling at Buffalo State, Assaf is bright, hardworking, and brings great curiosity and engagement to the classroom. As an undergraduate student taking a graduate-level class in advanced neurobiology as an independent study, she answered the most difficult questions and asked the most important questions. Her ability to read and interpret scientific literature is on par with the brightest graduate students, and she presents complex material with ease and works well with her graduate peers.
Assaf has been involved in four different research projects, overseen by different professors in different labs in different fields of biomedical science on and off campus. This reflects an exceptional ability and motivation to learn in terms of project scope and associated skills. In one instance, she conducted honors research studying mutations associated with a rare skin disorder; in another, she used fluorescent microscopy to study aspects of protein modification in cells; and in another, her work yielded results that she presented at Buffalo State’s Student Research and Creativity Conference. In addition, she completed a high-level research assistant internship at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, studying drug treatments for aggressive head and neck cancers at one of the nation’s leading cancer centers.
Fluent in multiple languages, Assaf works on campus as a library assistant and tutors fellow students in more than 30 different courses in Arabic, French, biology, and chemistry. She offers a warm, helpful approach to learning when students are struggling to understand course material. With the International Student Organization, she engaged in activities and events to promote cultural exchange, support international students, and build a welcoming community. She also serves as the Biology Department’s representative on the Dean’s Student Council for the School of Arts and Sciences.
In the community, she volunteers with St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy, focusing her efforts on activities such as the holiday food drive, clothing drive, and Hearts in Bloom Buffalo, a program that delivers flowers to widows and widowers on Valentine’s Day. She also volunteers at several Catholic churches in Buffalo, teaching children the Mass in Arabic and Syriac (Aramaic) and assisting with the choir, bake sales, food drives, and other community events.
Madison E. Sierra
SUNY CHANCELLOR’S AWARD FOR STUDENT EXCELLENCE
1:00 p.m. Ceremony | School of Arts and Sciences
Madison E. Sierra has earned a bachelor of arts degree in political science, attaining a 3.75 GPA while serving as a spring 2026 intern in the Washington, D.C., office of U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. At Buffalo State, she discovered a passion for public service through leadership roles that allowed her to make a tangible difference in the lives of others. She used her time in college with intention and purpose. An aspiring attorney, her career goal is to stand alongside and represent those whose voices are too often ignored.
In the classroom, Sierra is noted as a mature, critical, and original thinker who rigorously applies the skills and knowledge learned in the classroom to real-world issues. She conducted research on the impact of social media usage on political polarization in the United States, hypothesizing that higher usage relates to more extreme political views. She also studied how the ideology of Supreme Court justices affects their legal decision-making based on Robert Dahl’s research on that topic. In addition, she researched the impact of income level on political beliefs, utilizing data to perform a cross-tabulation analysis and hypothesizing that higher income levels increase the likelihood of identifying as Libertarian.
Sierra has taken her classroom research and activated it in numerous high-impact experiences. As a member of the highly selective and intensive Cornell University High Road Fellowship Program focused on community engagement, leadership development, and practical approaches to addressing social and civic challenges, she worked with the Partnership for Public Good to co-author a legislation proposal for a county poverty prevention plan. She also implemented social media strategies and co-hosted a podcast to advocate for local policy initiatives. In addition, she interned with the Masten District Office of the Buffalo Common Council, researching policy, developing reports, and responding to constituent concerns.
Apart from her internships, she volunteered her own time to help host evening and weekend community events with the office of Buffalo Common Councilmember Zeneta Everhart, to do hands-on gardening work with East Side Stewards community gardens, and to assist with Taisha St. Jean Tard’s campaign for the Erie County Legislature. She also completed Discover Law Undergraduate Scholars Program, a pre-law program at the University at Buffalo.
On campus, Sierra has served as captain of the university’s Moot Court team, cultivating and leading a group of students who became not just teammates on a highly competitive and successful squad, but also lifelong friends. As a teacher assistant for political science courses, she held office hours to assist students with research questions and created study guides to help her peers prepare for exams. She also served as the campus events programmer for United Students Government, coordinating diverse large-scale events that contributed to an inclusive campus environment.
Charvaye S. Hutchins-Carter
SUNY CHANCELLOR’S AWARD FOR STUDENT EXCELLENCE
5:00 p.m. Ceremony | Master’s and Advanced Graduate Certificates
Charvaye S. Hutchins-Carter has earned a master of public administration degree, attaining a 3.36 GPA while working as an accomplished community health professional who provides culturally relevant information, support, and advocacy to her clients. An East Side Buffalo native, she has dedicated her academic and professional journey to advancing maternal and child health equity, driven by a deep commitment to underserved communities and a vision for systemic, compassionate change in reproductive healthcare.
As a SUNY Diversity and Inclusion Graduate Fellow, she conducted research on the complexities of maternal health care policy administration and measures to ensure that women receive quality health care. Her graduate research project examined how private insurance and Medicaid reimbursement affect maternal health quality across racial groups—a study that directly reflects her commitment to eliminating health disparities and advancing equitable maternal care policy.
In the classroom, Hutchins-Carter excelled in coursework in public administration, nonprofit management, and research methods. Her faculty mentors praised her exceptional performance in research methods and her ability to apply academic knowledge directly to real-world public health challenges.
Beyond the classroom, Hutchins-Carter earned her DONA International Birth Doula Certification and will start a post-baccalaureate program in biological studies at the University at Buffalo this fall. She participated in the 2025 cohort of the Open Buffalo Emerging Leaders Program and has served as a board member for several local health organizations, including the Buffalo Prenatal-Perinatal Network Junior Board. She also serves as an associate preacher at Henry Durham Memorial AME Zion Church in Buffalo and performs original spoken word poetry at local open mic events. On campus, she represents graduate student interests as a senator-at-large with the Graduate Student Association.
Hutchins-Carter’s community service record spans over a decade. She volunteered with the Buffalo Kwanzaa Children’s Program for 10 years, serves annually on the Juneteenth Book Sharing Committee, and volunteers with the Maternal Stress-Free Zone supporting expectant mothers. She engaged in the Buffalo City Charter Program’s civic education campaign and distributed food and supplies to East Side residents following the Tops Market tragedy in 2022. Hutchins-Carter aspires to become an OB/GYN and a maternal health policy legislator in local, state, and federal government, championing maternal health equity for all.
