Newsmaker of the Year

Michael K. Scullin, Ph.D., was named Baylor University’s inaugural Newsmaker of the Year for the worldwide media coverage of his research on how writing a to-do list before bedtime can lead to faster sleep. 

Mia Moody, Ph.D., was named Baylor University’s 2018-2019 Newsmaker of the Year for her national media presence and academic expertise on race, culture and media.

Planetary geophysicist Peter B. James, Ph.D., was named Baylor University’s Newsmaker of the Year award for 2019-2020 for his breakthrough discovery of an enormous mass buried beneath the Moon’s largest crater.

Samuel S. Urlacher, Ph.D., is Baylor University’s Newsmaker of the Year (2020-2021) for high-impact media coverage of his research that discovered the role of changing dietary intake in impacting childhood obesity.

Candi K. Cann, Ph.D., a highly respected “death scholar,” was named Baylor University’s Newsmaker of the Year for 2021–2022 for her insights on how COVID-19 changed the way we mourn the loss of loved ones. 

Daniel Peppe, Ph.D., was named Baylor University’s Newsmaker of the Year (2022-2023) for the international news coverage of his research that pushed back Africa’s prehistoric timeline by more than 10 million years. 

Bryan F. Shaw, Ph.D., has made worldwide news by making science education accessible to students with blindness or low vision (BLV), making him deserving of the Newsmaker of the Year award for 2023-2024

The 2024-25 Newsmaker of the Year is Byron R. Johnson. Ph.D., recognizing his leadership in the Global Flourishing Study (GFS) and the global attention it has received.