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Honors & Other Things |
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February 12, 2013,
Volume 59, No. 21 |
Investigator Award: Dr. Artis
The American Association of Immunologists (AAI) honored Dr. David Artis,associate professor of microbiology in the Perelman School of Medicine, with the AAI-BD Biosciences Investigator Award. He was honored “for outstanding, early-career research contributions to the field of immunology.”
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ACMI: Dr. Bowles
Dr. Kathryn Bowles, the Ralston House Endowed Term Chair Professor in Gerontological Nursing, has been elected as a Fellow to the American College of Medical Informatics (ACMI); she is the first Penn Nursing faculty member to be elected.
The American College of Medical Informatics is a professional society of elected fellows from the United States and abroad who have made significant and sustained contributions to the field of medical informatics and who have met rigorous scholarly scrutiny by their peers.
Dr. Bowles’ research examines decision-making supported by information technology to improve care for older adults.
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Philadelphia Photo Arts Center: Dr. Hansen-Flaschen
The Philadelphia Photo Arts Center, a nonprofit organization devoted to the study, practice and appreciation of contemporary photography, named Dr. John Hansen-Flaschen to its Board of Trustees. Dr. Hansen-Flaschen is professor of medicine, chief of the pulmonary, allergy, and critical-care division at the Perelman School of Medicine and medical director of the Penn Lung Center.
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Ernest Beutler Lecture and Prize: Dr. June
Dr. Carl H. June, the Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy in the department of pathology and laboratory medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine and the director of Translational Research in Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center, was honored as a recipient of the American Society of Hematology’s 2012 Ernest Beutler Lecture and Prize in December at the 54th ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition.
Dr. June received the prize along with Dr. Bruce R. Blazar of the University of Minnesota for their significant advances in the field of bone marrow transplantation (BMT) and adoptive immunotherapy.
The Ernest Beutler Lecture and Prize is a two-part lectureship that recognizes major translational advances related to a single topic. This award honors two individuals, one who has enabled advances in basic science and another for achievements in clinical science or translational research.
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ACS Regent: Dr. Levin
Dr. L. Scott Levin was recently elected to the American College of Surgeons’ (ACS) Board of Regents. Board-certified in plastic and reconstructive surgery, Dr. Levin is the chairman of orthopaedic surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine, director of the Penn Hand Transplant Program, professor of surgery (division of plastic surgery) and the Paul B. Magnuson Professor of Bone and Joint Surgery.
In his role as an ACS Regent, Dr. Levin will work closely with other members of the College’s Board of Regents to assist in formulating policy on research, health care delivery and continued education for surgeons. The Board’s diversity and the variety of experiences and interests among its members enable the Regents to represent views related to a myriad of issues in contemporary surgery. |
Most Influential Latino: Dr. Parrado
Dr. Emilio Parrado, director of the Latin American and Latino Studies program at the University of Pennsylvania, has been named one of the Delaware Valley’s Most Influential Latinos. He is featured among a group of more than two dozen prominent Philadelphia-area residents in the Impacto newspaper’s annual list.
Impacto cited Dr. Parrado’s work on the social demography of Latinos in the United States. His research focuses on international migration and how Latinos adapt to everyday life in the US.
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ACM Fellow: Dr. Pierce
Dr. Benjamin Pierce, professor in the department of computer and information science in Penn Engineering, has been named Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for “contributions to the theory and practice of programming languages and their type systems.”
ACM recognizes members as Fellows for contributions to computing that are fundamentally advancing technology in healthcare, cybersecurity, science, communications, entertainment, business and education.
Dr. Pierce’s research focuses on foundational principles leading to more robust, cohesive and secure software systems.
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Senior Scholar Award: Dr. Sehgal
Dr. Amita Sehgal, professor of neuroscience and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at the Perelman School of Medicine, has received a Senior Scholar Award from the Ellison Medical Foundation. This supports basic biological research in aging for $600,000 to be disbursed over the next four years. She is one of 20 investigators to receive this award.
“This grant will enable us to delve into the area of aging and address whether robust circadian rhythms of physiology are important for an optimal and healthy lifespan,” said Dr. Sehgal.
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Apple iOS Scholarship: Ms. Shapiro
Ms. Lauren Shapiro, a junior in Penn Engineering’s Digital Media Design (DMD) program, is a recipient of the prestigious Apple iOS Women in Technology Scholarship.
The scholarship consists of an award of $10,000 and an internship with the Apple iOS Engineering team, which has the responsibility of taking the iPhone and iPad and continually making both devices better. This is where future generations of the software and user interface are born, which makes it one of Apple’s most inspiring and demanding teams.
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Best Children's Hospital: CHOP
Parents magazine named The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) #1 on its survey of the country’s best children’s hospitals. It also named CHOP #1 for cancer, emergency medicine and cardiology (tied), as well as #2 for neonatology and #3 for orthopedics and pulmonology.
This past summer, CHOP was also named #1, along with Boston Children’s Hospital, by the U.S. News and World Report.
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Zenith Fellows Award: Dr. Siman
Dr. Robert Siman, research professor of neurosurgery in the Perelman School of Medicine, has received a Zenith Fellows Award from the Alzheimer’s Association for his personal commitment to the advancement of Alzheimer’s disease research and his research contributions to better understanding and curing the disease.
The $450,000 award, provided over three years, will allow Dr. Siman’s lab to pursue research looking at neural pathways critical in the Alzheimer’s disease process. In particular, it will help to develop novel ways to model how tau protein may drive the disease progression and to create therapies to protect neural pathways and prevent structural and functional signs of disease.
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Forbes 30 Under 30: Dr. Sonnenberg
Dr. Greg Sonnenberg, research associate in the division of gastroenterology and the Institute for Immunology in the Perelman School of Medicine, was chosen for Forbes magazine’s list of the top 30 rising stars in science and health under the age of 30.
His work was described as studying “why the immune system sometimes overreacts to ‘good’ bacteria in the intestinal tract, potentially leading to cancer or inflammatory bowel disease.”
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Film Honors: Dr. Zuberi
Dr. Tukufu Zuberi, Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations, professor and chair of sociology, and professor of Africana studies in the School of Arts & Sciences, has been awarded two top honors at the recent San Diego Black Film Festival, including Best Documentary and Best Director, for his feature-length film titled African Independence. The film traces the story of the African continent since enslavement and colonization by Europeans.
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Fall Academic All-Ivy
The Ivy League released its list of student-athletes for 2012-13 Academic All-Ivy honors in its fall sports. The 80 men and women—10 of whom are from Penn—were starters or key reserves on an officially recognized varsity team, with 3.0 or higher cumulative grade point averages.
Joe Bonadies, C’13, Football
Olivia Chang, C’14, Golf
Alex Dayneka, C’13, Soccer
Jonny Dolezal, C’14, Soccer
Sol Eskenazi, C’15, Tennis
Mike Kiley, C’13, Cross Country
Scott Lopano, C’13, Football
Whit Shaw, C’13, Sprint Football
Dani Shepherd, C’14, Volleyball
Carly Sokach, C’15, Field Hockey
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2013 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Involvement Awards
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Left to right: Penn's 2013 MLK Community Involvement Award recipients: Cassandra Green, Danny Sutton, Roy Hamilton, Andre Ford, Alexis Rodriguez and Aaron Landrum |
The 2013 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Involvement Award recipients were honored at the recent Interfaith Program. The recipients are noted below, along with excerpts from their nomination letters:
Ms. Cassandra Green was recently trained with the Citizen’s Planning Institute to be a citizen planner for the City of Philadelphia. She immediately began visualizing, talking about and planning how the Mill Creek Community Partnership could continue to collaborate with LIFT-Philadelphia (LIFT) to have a larger impact on assisting the residents of the West Philadelphia community. She has been active in Community Block Parties, the Voter ID Blitz, Neighborhood Night Out events and the Saturday Art Workshops.
Ms. Green is an incredible resource and connection in the community. She has elevated the impact of LIFT in the Mill Creek community and has been incredible in spreading awareness about local initiatives and news through distribution of notices of upcoming events. Additionally, she recently spoke on the LIFT Urban Poverty Panel planned by LIFT Student Advocates at the University of Pennsylvania. Ms. Green is an experienced non-profit administrator, consultant, fundraiser, teacher, community and program developer and strategist.
Since 2004, Ms. Green has selflessly served the community in many different capacities. Devoting her energies full-time to this cause, she has helped many members of the community through the numerous programs and services she has developed and implemented.
Pastor “Danny” Sutton is the senior pastor of the Second Pilgrim Baptist Church located in North Philadelphia. Due to his love and passionate work in youth ministry, Pastor Sutton, at age 11, became the youngest president of the Pennsylvania Baptist State Convention (PBSC) Youth Ministry.
Pastor Sutton serves as an executive board member and spiritual advisor of the Calcutta House, an organization that provides housing for the disenfranchised suffering with HIV and AIDS in Philadelphia. He is in the process of opening The Dream House, which will serve not only as a school for troubled teenage boys to further their educational endeavors, but will also provide residence until they complete the program designed to get them back on track. Every summer, Pastor Sutton reaches out to organizations that can and will provide school items not just for the children in his congregation, but also for the children in the North Philadelphia area surrounding his church. If there is a human need that an organization cannot provide, Pastor Sutton has been known to take money out of his pocket to meet that need.
Dr. Roy Hamilton has not only distinguished himself as an excellent researcher, teacher and scientist but also as an outstanding leader. During his years at Harvard University, he received honors in education and recognition for community service, especially with respect to disadvantaged and medically underrepresented communities.
At Penn he continued his spectacular clinical and community service achievements. He not only demonstrated the caring qualities that were described in his medical school evaluations, but he distinguished himself for his neurological expertise and for his leadership in his residency group.
Dr. Hamilton’s major contribution to the community, however, is his extraordinary efforts to introduce young and often economically disadvantaged students to medicine and neuroscience. Dr. Hamilton has been the faculty director of Penn’s Neuroscience Pipeline Program since 2003; this program introduces African American high school students to the wonders of neuroscience and the beauty of scientific inquiry at a young age. Over the years, more than one thousand high school students and hundreds of college and medical students have participated in some aspect of this program. Dr. Hamilton also helped to found the University of Pennsylvania’s Summer Mentorship Program in Medicine in 2004 and has a leading role in designing its curriculum. This project recruits public high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds to participate in an immersive medical education and mentorship program focused on clinical neurology. Many of these students are subsequently mentored through the college application and admission process. In recognition of his work with underserved students, Dr. Hamilton was awarded the 2011 American Medical Association Young Physicians Section Community Service Award.
Dr. Andre Ford volunteers his time and energy for the betterment of youth and organizations. Working on a senior project panel at New Media Charter School in 2009, he realized that the school needed some assistance with putting together a program that would be meaningful and productive for its seniors. This program would require much more time than the teachers could commit with their other obligations. Therefore, he developed a program outline and training materials for the faculty and students. He also mentors the school through the senior project process, which covers the academic school year. More important than the exposure of the program is his ability to turn students on to the world of research, inquiry and problem solving. His caring attitude and superior knowledge make him effective with students at all levels of ability. In fact, he is especially diligent with students who have learning disabilities and who have historically had major difficulties in writing and reading.
He is creative and innovative in his approach and has been selected on several occasions to head and serve on other schools’ senior project panels. He sets high standards for himself and the students he serves. Dr. Ford is relentless about ensuring these standards are met. He is constantly broadening his knowledge base, improving his skills and sharing with his peers what he has learned about students.
Additionally, he mentors young men who attend Fitzsimmons High School. To his credit and as a direct result of their experience with Dr. Ford, many of these young men have indicated a desire to mentor for others when they complete their education.
The Brotherhood@UPenn (Aaron Landrum and Alexis Rodriguez):
Aaron Landrum is a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences at Penn, majoring in health and societies and working towards a minor in Africana studies. He is extremely interested in medicine, music, media and technology and the role they play in the human condition. Furthermore, he has a genuine passion for culture and all its facets and its ability to highlight the connectivity among human beings. Mr. Landrum believes that in unity and connectivity there is power beyond measure, and he seeks to show people that they are all connected and that they have access to that power.
Alexis Rodriguez is a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences at Penn, majoring in English with a minor in urban studies. As a Bronx, New York, native, his experiences of living and working in underserved, impoverished neighborhoods via community outreach, mentorship in public schools and research at Montefiore Medical Center have exposed him to the injustices that manifest themselves within the many structural components of society. He is determined as a student, mentor, academic and future professional to dedicate his life to the disenfranchised.
Together, these two young men serve as the vital energy in sustaining a movement called Brotherhood@UPENN, which exists to offer an exemplary standard for Black manhood on campus and in communities. Brotherhood is a mode of interaction, an established ethic and collective consciousness. It is not a group, organization or fraternity, but a way of being. Its mission is to redefine the role, contribution and interactions of Black men by fostering influential community engagement in order to further establish a respected, thriving and united Black community. |
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Almanac -
February 12, 2013, Volume 59, No. 21
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