Oluyemi has worked to support students in the Department of Food Sciences through a graduate student mentorship program she created as a member of the Food Science Graduate Student Association and as social chair of the Food Science Student Association. She serves as the mental health officer for the Nigerian Student Association and is a member of the Purdue Student Health Center (PUSH) Student Advisory Board and Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences (MANRRS). Oluyemi also advocates for student support through the Disability Resource Center and International Student Services. She is lauded for her passion to build campus community through mental health support.

The Steps to Leaps in Faculty Research Award was presented to Pam Sari, PhD, director of the Purdue Asian American and Asian Resource and Cultural Center (AAARCC). The award is given to a researcher or team whose published work exemplifies efforts to expand the understanding of one or more of the Steps to Leaps pillars. 

Sari is a principal investigator for AAARCC research projects and part of the affiliated faculty/staff for the Asian American Studies program. She currently serves as a principal investigator for several research projects, including a Purdue Institutional Review Board-approved research study, “Asian and Asian American Teens Living in Rural Indiana.” The research seeks to enhance Purdue’s mission as a land-grant institution by understanding how universities can support underrepresented adolescents in rural Indiana with their racial and ethnic identity formation. She has mentored more than 30 undergraduates and four graduate students in their research, academic and professional work. The AAARCC Research Lab will have published one book, two peer-reviewed articles and mentored two student-authored papers by the end of spring 2024.

The Steps to Leaps Student Support Award was also presented to Sari, who became the first person to receive two honors from Steps to Leaps in one year. The award is given to an individual or unit that consistently leveraged the language of Steps to Leaps in their conversations and communication with students.  

Sari provides dedicated support to students at Purdue, serving as an advisor and mentor to eight cultural and professional-based Asian-interest student organizations. She established a partnership between the AAARCC, ACE Campus Food Pantry and the Purdue Student Farm for an outdoor, raised-bed garden project supported by student organizations. She launched the Lions Dance team and founded a vocal ensemble to celebrate diverse cultures through music. Sari played a role in the creation of the Asian and Asian American Graduate Student Association and is currently working with undergraduate and graduate groups to revive the AAARCC’s graduation program. She has additionally designed programming that focuses on mental health and well-being and contributed to collaborative programs with Great Lakes Asian and Asian American Student Services.

The Award for Academic Integration of Steps to Leaps was bestowed to The Perspective Project. The award recognizes an educator or program that has woven Steps to Leaps into their pedagogy.

The Perspective Project is a Steps to Leaps initiative designed to help Purdue instructors infuse the Steps to Leaps pillars into classrooms. Students are given reflective opportunities to make connections between their academic pursuits and personal well-being. Campus resource professionals are also integrated into classroom experiences with opportunities to share campus services that contribute to the well-being of students. A partnership incorporating iData helped examine the experience of students and faculty within the program. Faculty and staff associated with the Perspective Project include:

• Will Evans, senior assistant director – wellness programs, Purdue Recreation & Wellness
• Stephanie Knight, director, Roger C. Stewart Leadership and Professional Development Department
• Heather Servaty-Seib, professor of counseling psychology and senior associate vice provost for Teaching and Learning
• Crystal Cordes, associate director of operations, outreach and campus engagement, Counseling and Psychological Services
• Felicia Ahasteen-Bryant, director, Native American Educational and Cultural Center
• Melissa Gruver, senior associate director, Roger C. Stewart Leadership and Professional Development Department
• Jenny Strickland, assistant director, co-op programs and student development, Office of Professional Practice
• Stephen Roach, interim director, Center for Career Opportunities
• Maureen Huffer Landis, senior career services consultant, Center for Career Opportunities
• Karen Jacobsen, senior assistant director, Academic Success Center
• Jacob Baumgartner, associate director for undergraduate education, Purdue On-Campus Writing Lab
• Britni Henze, student support specialist, Office of the Dean of Students
• Craig Nadelson, medical director, Purdue University Student Health Center
• Xiaorui Li, lecturer, College of Liberal Arts
• Brooke Max, assistant professor of practice in mathematics, Department of Mathematics
• Rucha Karve, lecturer, Department of Biological Sciences
• Michael Johnson, continuing lecturer, Department of English
• Lindsey Payne, assistant professor of practice, Environmental and Ecological Engineering
• Christie Sennott, associate professor, Sociology Department
• Tongxiao Zhang, senior lecturer, White Lodging-J.W. Marriott, Jr. School of Hospitality and Tourism Management
• Cassandra Ledman, clinical associate professor, Department of Health and Kinesiology
• Beth Hess, assistant professor of engineering practice and assistant head of undergraduate student well-being, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Steps to Leaps is a collaborative, campus-wide effort focused on enhancing and promoting holistic well-being. Steps to Leaps focuses on the key pillar areas of well-being, leadership, impact, building networks and grit/persistence. Steps to Leaps was created by students for students and today engages many segments of campus to help students flourish and become their best selves.