Sambandh Dhal and Leah Kocian Named 2024 Montgomery Award Winners

The Texas A&M Graduate and Professional School proudly congratulates Sambandh Dhal and Leah Kocian as the winners of Montgomery Awards for 2024. Montgomery awards honor graduate or professional students who have exhibited exemplary leadership within recognized graduate student groups or service organizations, significantly contributing to the academic and professional advancement, as well as the overall well-being, of their peers. In addition to their leadership qualities, awardees demonstrate outstanding scholarly achievements.

The Montgomery Awards are supported by endowed gifts from the Jeff ‘41 and Leonora Montgomery family. Nominations for these awards are sought from the university community, with recipients chosen from among the nominees. Each recipient is recognized with a commemorative plaque and a monetary prize of $1,000.

"Congratulations to Sambandh and Leah," said Dr. Fuhui Tong, Interim Associate Provost and Dean of the Graduate and Professional School. "In showcasing a commitment to uplifting others in addition to academic excellence, they embody the core values of excellence, leadership, and selfless service that define the Aggie spirit. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Montgomery family for their generous support in helping us recognize such extraordinary Aggies," Tong said.  

Sambandh Dhal

Computer Engineering
College of Engineering

Sambandh Dhal is a Ph.D. candidate in computer engineering under the guidance of Dr. Stavros Kalafatis, with co-advisement by Dr. Ulisses Braga-Neto. He also earned an M.S. in electrical engineering from Texas A&M in 2019. He served as the inaugural Finance Officer of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Students' Association. Throughout his time at Texas A&M, Sambandh actively contributed to various student organizations, beginning with his directorial role in the Indian Graduate Students' Association. He held the position of Vice President before assuming his current role as advisor to the student body. Additionally, he is Vice President of Community Engagement in the Graduate and Professional Student Government. Academically, Sambandh has garnered numerous accolades, including induction into the prestigious Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-Eta Kappa Nu (IEEE-HKN) in 2022, as well as earning the Texas Instruments Graduate Mentoring Fellowship and the Excellence in Research-Doctoral award in 2024.
 

Leah Kocian

Biological and Agricultural Engineering
College of Agriculture & Life Sciences

Leah Kocian is a Ph.D. student studying hydrological contaminant transport in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering under the supervision of Dr. Binayak Mohanty. Her research, focused on urban contaminant transport, analyzes how contaminants move through soil in urban gardens, using physics-informed machine learning and artificial intelligence. Leah earned her undergraduate degree in the same department at Texas A&M. Leah advocates for equitable professional development opportunities for graduate students. As current chair – and former president – of the Texas A&M Graduate Student Consulting Club, she helps lead professional development and networking programming, successfully raising nearly $10,000 to support these initiatives. She also led the creation of Texas A&M's first consulting case competition, drawing experts from prestigious firms such as McKinsey, Bain, Google and Shell to Texas A&M to interact with students. Leah is committed to applying scientific discoveries for societal benefit. She supervises physics and chemistry laboratories and has contributed to significant research publications in the field of environmental engineering aimed at improving urban public health.