The Internal Medicine Residency Program celebrated the graduation of the Class of 2026 on June 5, 2026. This milestone marks the culmination of years of rigorous clinical training, dedication to patient-centered care, and academic growth. Our graduates leave ready to excel in fellowship training, primary care, and hospital medicine, carrying forward the program’s commitment to clinical excellence.
Following the graduation, the annual awards ceremony was held on June 23, 2026 to recognize outstanding achievements in medical education, research, clinical care, and interprofessional collaboration.
The 2026 award recipients are:
Residency & Department Awards
- Resident of the Year: Jackson Nagamoto, MD
- PGY3 of the Year: Elise Duldner, DO
- PGY2 of the Year: Noah Geldberg, MD JD
- Intern of the Year: Matthew Chu, DO
- Dr. Zaki Dawoud Journal Club Award: Eileen Byeon, MD & Geoffrey Lo, DO
Faculty & Teaching Awards
- Teacher of the Year: Manvir Wadhwa, MD
- Teacher of the Year for Mentorship: Alina Popa, MD
- Teacher of the Year for Inpatient Education: Hoveda Mufti, MD
- Teacher of the Year for Outpatient Education: Haidy Youssef, MD
- Teacher of the Year for Procedural Education: Scott Anderson, MD
- Teacher of the Year for Early Career: Adam Robarge, MD
Interprofessional Collaboration & Support Awards
- Outstanding Nurse of the Year: Tawny Carranza, RN
- Outstanding Pharmacist of the Year: David Tran, PharmD
- Outstanding Support for Research: Kyle Mefferd, PhD
- Outstanding Off-Service Resident: Joshua Mahutga, MD
- Third-Year Medical Student of the Year: Monica Brizuela (University of California, Riverside)
Congratulations to the Class of 2026 and all of this year’s award winners. Your hard work, leadership, and dedication directly elevate the quality of care at our institution and strengthen our educational mission.
IM Riverside 
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