UConn’s MLK Legacy Awards for 2025 were presented on Friday, Jan. 31 during a ceremony at the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts. The ceremony was part of the MLK Living Legacy Convocation, which featured Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter Todd Dulaney and UConn’s Voices of Freedom gospel choir.

The MLK Legacy Awards at UConn are presented by the Office for Diversity and Inclusion and recognize members of the community who have demonstrated a commitment to raising awareness, fighting injustices, assisting their communities, and embodying the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s philosophy of nonviolence. The awards affirm and honor work and a continued dedication to making communities just, equitable, and fair for all people.

This year’s winners by category are:

Undergraduate Student – Andy Zhang ’26 (CLAS, CAHNR)

Zhang is pursuing dual degrees in economics and environmental sciences. The Sandy Hook native works as an intern in the Office of Sustainability and is the founder and president of the UConn chapter of Plant Futures. He is a member of the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources DEIJ Strategic Vision Implementation Committee and represents CAHNR in the Undergraduate Student Government. He is also an intern with Friends of the Earth. Zhang is passionate about progressive policy and food advocacy and hopes to pursue a career focused on creating equitable and sustainable food systems through innovative policy solutions.

Graduate Student – Adanma Akoma

Akoma is a doctoral student in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and focuses on advanced characterization of materials used for industries that include energy and biomedicine. She serves as the president of BlackSTEM – a group for Black scholars pursuing graduate degrees in the STEM field and is the creative director and founder of the Writing Black Collective (WBC).  Her most recent project for WBC provides a platform for a cohort of writers that aim to demystify the challenges that are often faced by minority students in pursuit of doctoral degrees.

Community Member – Nelson Merchan

Merchan is a business advisor at UConn’s Small Business Development Center. In 2019, he was recognized as the state’s top business advisor for securing the highest lending impact. Merchan is a board member of the Western Connecticut State University Foundation, Housatonic Habitat for Humanity, and Housatonic Industrial Corp. Merchan has participated in entrepreneurship development programs in Costa Rica, Chile, and El Salvador.

Alumni – N. Chineye (Chi) Anako ’12 (CLAS)

Anako is a public health practitioner whose work has focused on the intersection of public health and health equity solutions. She is currently the regional director of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Trinity Health. She also serves as administrator of the 3+1 Language Services Program at the organization, which provides cultural and linguistic services to patients. Anako serves on the board of the Copper Beech Institute and Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut.

Faculty – Kate Capshaw

Capshaw is associate dean of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She has shaped cluster hires that brought new faculty to UConn, worked with departments on inclusion, and supported research and pedagogy on diverse topics and approaches. She is a professor of English and social and critical inquiry, teaching courses on Black youth culture, the graphic novel, and youth literatures. Her research focuses on the role of Black childhood to social justice movements, and she has published books on the Harlem Renaissance, Civil Rights Movement, and 19thcentury Black childhoods, along with  dozens of essays on race, culture, and creativity.

Staff – Alexis T. R. Monteiro

Monteiro is a residence hall director committed to fostering equitable and developmental spaces for students and professionals. A first-generation First Year Experience instructor, Monteiro champions impactful initiatives like the prayer room and “Humans of UConn” art exhibit in McMahon Residence Hall. He is the diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging chair of the Northeast Association of College and University Housing Officers and chair of the Black Professional Network for the Association of College and University Housing Officers-International.

Team – College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources’ Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Strategic Vision Implementation Committee

This committee includes faculty and staff representing the nine academic units in the college. The committee’s goal is to develop mechanisms to build systems with clear and meaningful commitment to DEIJ in the college. The group’s four priority areas are: increasing the diversity of CAHNR community; creating inclusive, culturally sustaining learning environments; identifying and addressing harmful institutional policies and practices; and creating pathways to successful community engagement.