PRA alumnae Shloka Dhar ’18 and Giovanna “Gio” Ruffolo ’21 have both been awarded the Women Who Make a Difference award from the University of Colorado at Boulder. The 2023 awards reception took place on Dec. 12. Dhar and Ruffolo graduated from PRA four years apart, but have grown closer as they continued their academic careers at CU Boulder.
Dhar is a professional research assistant and lab manager for the Olwin Laboratory, a stem cell skeletal regeneration lab, at CU Boulder. She has been featured in several CU Boulder articles, highlighting her art displays that combine physical art and natural science in creative ways. When she graduated from CU in 2022, Dhar was named the Outstanding Graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Ruffolo, Dhar’s friend and fellow Women Who Make a Difference award recipient, said she doesn’t know anyone more deserving of the recognition.
“To know Shloka is to love Shloka. I’ve had the privilege of knowing her for several years, and each year she never fails to amaze me,” Ruffolo said. “She’s been an outstanding role model for me throughout the past years, and she’s a beacon of light to all of those around her. Right now she may be the Woman Who Makes a Difference at CU Boulder, but I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if she became the Woman Who Makes a Difference for the state of Colorado or the entire nation in the upcoming years!”
Dhar graduated from CU Boulder in 2022 with dual bachelors degrees in sculpture and post-studio practices and in molecular, cellular, and developmental biology. She plans to continue her art education.
Ruffolo is currently a third-year student at CU Boulder, majoring in integrative physiology and psychology, and is an emergency medicine student at CU Boulder’s EMT school. She is known for her work in the nationwide cancer community as she spreads awareness and raises money for the American Cancer Society. Following a neurosurgery internship in the summer of 2023, Ruffolo works as a research assistant in two research laboratories, one at CU Boulder and one The Children’s Hospital of Colorado. Both concentrate on chromosome disorders and psycho-oncology research. Ruffolo plans to graduate from CU Boulder in the fall of 2025 and hopes to advance her medical education.
The Ph.D. student who nominated Ruffolo for the Women Who Make a Difference award said the work she has done for pediatric and adult cancer patients is exceptional.
“Giovanna has a backbone of steel and a heart of gold. Her passion for the medical profession is reflected in her academic and social success. She greets everyone with a smile or a hug, and is never afraid to step up and get the job done. She is wise beyond her years and sets an example for all of us. I think if all of us had a little bit of Gio in us, the world would be a much more loving and safer place.”