Nathan Tobias Hart of Valdosta, Georgia, is the recipient of the Spring 2021 President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the College of Science and Mathematics at Valdosta State University.

The President’s Award for Academic Excellence is presented to the graduating student with the highest grade point average in each of VSU’s six colleges — Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, College of the Arts, James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and College of Science and Mathematics.

Hart will be recognized during VSU’s 231^st Commencement at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 8, at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium. He will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and a Minor in German.

“Being named the top graduate of the College of Science and Mathematics means that I used my time at VSU to the fullest extent and took advantage of every opportunity given to me to grow not only as a student but also as a professional,” he said.

“I feel very honored to be named the top graduate of the College of Science and Mathematics and even more honored to have had the privilege of working with caring professors who are passionate about what they do and learning alongside hard-working students determined to succeed.”

As a student at VSU, Hart was a member of Student Members of the American Chemical Society, where he served as secretary for one year, and the German Club. He also volunteered his time to support the Department of Chemistry’s Science Saturday events.

Hart presented research conducted with Dr. Linda de la Garza, associate professor of chemistry, and Dr. Gopeekrishnan Sreenilayam, assistant professor of chemistry, at VSU’s 2019 Undergraduate Research Symposium and at the 2020 Georgia Undergraduate Research Conference. He co-published an article in the American Chemical Society’s Journal of Chemical Education with de la Garza.

Hart’s commitment to academic, research, and leadership excellence resulted in him earning repeated Dean’s List honors, the Georgia Power Recruitment and Retention Scholarship, the 2020 Department of Chemistry Outstanding Chemistry Senior Award, the 2021 College of Science and Mathematics Outstanding Student Award, the 2021 American Institute of Chemists Award, as well as other undergraduate awards.

Hart will continue his education this fall at the University of Florida, where he will pursue a doctorate in analytical chemistry. He hopes to work in the field of education at the college level or chemical research at the industrial level. He is the son of David Hart and Susanne Hart.