Annual honors and awards ceremony puts spotlight on teaching, student achievement

May 23, 2016

One might say the academic year is made up of millions of individual moments of effort, service, scholarship and teaching. On Friday, May 20, the collective significance of these countless contributions by students and faculty members were added up and celebrated during the OHSU School of Medicine 2016 honors and awards ceremony.

Congratulations to this year's award winners and honorees. The list below represents a portion of the awards given out this year. For a complete list, view the event program.

Faculty Teaching Excellence Awards

Excellence in Teaching Awards - Graduate and M.D. Program

• Amy Garcia, M.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics
• Melanie Gillingham, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics
• Peter Heeman, Ph.D., Research Associate Professor, Computer Science and Electrical Engineering
• Steven Kinder, M.P.A., Adjunct Instructor, Division of Management
• Ali Olyaei, Pharm.D., Professor, Department of Medicine (Nephrology and Hypertension)
• Nicole Steckler, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Division of Management
• Peter Sullivan, M.D., Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Medicine (Hospital Medicine)
• Melissa Wong, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Cell, Developmental and Cancer Biology
• Craigan Usher, M.D., Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry
• Philip Copenhaver, Ph.D., Professor, Cell, Developmental and Cancer Biology

Excellence in Education Awards – Graduate and M.D. Program

• Allison Fryer, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Medicine (Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine)
• Lynne Morrison, M.D., Associate Professor, Department of Dermatology
• Mathew Thayer, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• Brandon Tieu, M.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery (Cardiothoracic Surgery)
• John Saultz, M.D., Professor, Department of Family Medicine
• Diane Stadler, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine (Health Promotion and Sports Medicine)
• Peter Sullivan, M.D., Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Medicine (Hospital Medicine)

The first annual Edward J. Keenan Teaching Award went to Philip Copenhaver, Ph.D., professor, Cell, Developmental and Cancer Biology. This distinguished faculty teaching award was created to memorialize Dr. Edward J. Keenan's legacy as a celebrated teacher, scientist, mentor and colleague, and to honor Dr. Keenan's passion for teaching and for teachers. This award is being given annually to a member of the School of Medicine faculty for outstanding and sustained contributions to teaching medical students at OHSU.

The Faculty Mentor Award is made by the Dean and recognizes a faculty member who demonstrates outstanding skill and dedication to advising and mentoring medical students. This year, the award went to David Jones, M.D., assistant professor, Department of Emergency Medicine.

The Community Preceptor Award is made by the Dean and recognizes a physician or physician group that has demonstrated outstanding dedication to the education of medical students in the urban and rural setting.

The Urban Preceptor award went to Gordon Johnson, M.D., affiliate assistant professor, Department of Medicine (General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics).

William Irvine, M.D., affiliate instructor, Department of Family Medicine, received the Rural Preceptor award.

 

Graduate Student Achievement Awards

The John A. Resko Outstanding Research Achievement Award recognizes outstanding contributions to biomedical research in the School of Medicine and is presented to a graduate student in recognition of research leading to completion of an outstanding thesis. The award is made in honor of John A. Resko, Ph.D., chairman and professor emeritus of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, for over 30 years of excellence in research, mentoring and dedicated leadership of the basic science graduate studies program.

Melanie Pina, Ph.D., Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, received the John A. Resko Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award. Her dissertation title is: Regulation of Ethanol Seeking by the Bed Nucleus of the Stria Terminalis and the Ventral Tegmental Area: Evidence for a direct Neural Circuit. "Her thesis is a superb example of adapting modern molecular approaches to address important mechanisms regulating behavior," said Allison Fryer, Ph.D., associate dean for graduate studies, OHSU School of Medicine.

Eric S. Orwoll, M.D., professor, Department of Medicine (Endocrinology, Diabetes and Clinical Nutrition), received the John A. Resko Faculty Excellence in Research and Mentoring Award.

The Deans' Award for Exemplary Contributions to the Graduate Program – a new award – went to Kevin Watanabe-Smith, Cancer Biology Graduate Program.

The Outstanding Master's Thesis Award went to Elizabeth Massey, M.S., RD, Human Nutrition. Massey's thesis was titled: Altered Activities and Shame Among Children Reporting Food Insecurity in Rural Oregon.

For the first time, the Graduate Student Organization presented awards for outstanding contributions made by fellow grad students. Elizabeth Sunderhaus received the GSO Student Engagement Award for her exceptional work in helping to nurture a community, both academic and social, for OHSU graduate students.

Morgan Wirthlin received the GSO Exemplary Future Scientist Award. "This award is peer nominated and is intended to be a way for us, the graduate student body, to recognize and honor one of our peers who we feel embodies the scientific spirit, who practices the qualities of a fully formed scientist, including innovation, communication, dedication to discipline and a strong understanding of their field of study," said Kayly Lembke, fifth-year Ph.D. student and GSO president.

Medical Student Achievement Awards

Eight M.D. students were recognized for academic excellence:

• Margaret Bruce Pregont Algranati
• Michael Barish
• Sarah Vivien Click
• Ngoc Nhu Le
• Lauren Elise Noll
• Alexandra Rich
• Willy Zebulon Terrall
• Jennifer Patricia Wherley

The Alpha Kappa Kappa Award recognizes medical students chosen by their peers who demonstrate the qualities of a true physician: sound knowledge, integrity, humility, compassion, out-standing dedication and skill in the care of patients. This year, the award went to Paul Michael Jones and Ramsey Nabil Selbak.

The Deans' Award for Exemplary Contributions to the M.D. Program went to Taryn Marie Hansen and Sowmya Palam.

The Edward S. Hayes Gold-Headed Cane Award, with the trust it symbolizes, is presented annually to a member of the graduating medical school class who has been selected for this high honor by a vote of his or her peers and teachers. The award is given to a student in recognition of the compassionate devotion and effective service to the sick, with the conviction that its holder will forever epitomize and uphold the traditions of the true physician. Congratulations to Charles Procknow for being the 50th recipient of this prestigious award. He is pictured (top) with Cornelia Hayes Steven, granddaughter of Edward S. Hayes, M.D.

Nominees were Britta Marie Ameel, Devin Clark, Andrew James Lichtenheld, Mariko Nomura, Charles Baldwin Procknow and Elizabeth Eunbee Suh.

Pictured in this article:

Top (left to right): Dr. George Mejicano, Dr. Tracy Bumsted, Cornelia Hayes Stevens, M.D. student Charles Procknow, Dr. Nicole Deiorio and Dr. Ben Schneider

Second from top: Dr. Tracy Bumsted (left) and Dr. Allison Fryer

Third from top: Dr. Diane Stadler (left) and Dr. Allison Fryer

Second from bottom: Dr. Gordon Johnson (left) and Dr. George Mejicano

Bottom (left to right): Graduate students Lillian Klug, Kayly Lembke, Morgan Wirthlin and Courtney Betts