Tooka Zokaie, a graduate student in Public Health, won first prize at the 2018 UC Davis Grad Slam for her talk about how access to oral health care resources affects health maintenance and disease prevention. But guess who won “People’s Choice”?

Even Pamela Jennings, Director of Graduate Studies at the UC Office of the President (shown with Microbiology doctoral candidate and EEGAP alumna Allie Igwe), attended and cheered on the finalists. Audience members learned about topics that included oral health, earthquakes, marsh cordgrass restoration, variability in heart cells, and reconstruction of a Neanderthal pelvis, and the contestants all demonstrated superb skills in communicating research results.

In the words of Graduate Dean Prasant Mohapatra, “We’re incredibly proud of each and every one that participated in this year’s competition. Grad Slam is one of the highlights of our year – a rare opportunity to celebrate the work and talents of some of UC Davis’ brightest graduate students.”