Medical school appoints new deputy dean for finance and administration

Cynthia Walker, M.B.A., has been appointed deputy dean for finance and administration at the School of Medicine. Walker comes to Yale from Harvard Medical School, where she began as a financial analyst in 1983 and served as associate dean for finance, CFO, dean for finance and executive dean for administration. She has been active in a number of national organizations, including the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Institute of CPAs.

Walker has an undergraduate degree from Yale and an M.S./M.B.A. from Northeastern University. She started her new post at the medical school in January. She replaces Jaclyne Boyden, who served as deputy dean for finance and administration from 2004 until last year.

Her responsibilities will include budget and financial operations, strategic financial planning, facilities and space management, human resources and information technology.

Six faculty honored as AAAS fellows

Six faculty members in the biomedical sciences were honored as fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. They were inducted along with three other Yale faculty members at the association’s annual meeting in Boston in February.

Sankar Ghosh, Ph.D., professor of immunobiology, molecular biophysics and biochemistry, and of molecular, cellular and developmental biology, was named a fellow in the Section on Biological Sciences for “distinguished contributions to the field of immunology.”

Nigel D.F. Grindley, Ph.D., professor of molecular biophysics and biochemistry, was named a fellow in the Section on Biological Sciences for “distinguished contributions to our understanding of mechanisms of recombination.”

Andrew D. Miranker, Ph.D., associate professor of molecular biophysics and biochemistry, was named a fellow in the Section on Chemistry for “distinguished contributions to the field of protein folding.”

Anna M. Pyle, Ph.D., the William Edward Gilbert Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, director of the Division of Biological Sciences and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, was named a fellow in the Section on Chemistry for “fundamental studies on RNA tertiary folding and on the mechanical behavior of RNA remodeling enzymes.”

Gordon M. Shepherd, Ph.D., professor of neuroscience, was named a fellow in the Section on Neuroscience “for distinguished contributions to the understanding of the circuitry of the brain and the structure and function of the olfactory bulb.”

Thomas A. Steitz, Ph.D., Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, professor of chemistry and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, was named a fellow in the Section on Biological Sciences for “distinguished contributions to structural biology.”

Three Yale scholars have won the 2008 University of Louisville’s Grawemeyer Award in Education for their book, A Vision for Universal Preschool Education. Edward F. Zigler, Ph.D., Sterling Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Walter S. Gilliam, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Child Study Center, and Stephanie M. Jones, Ph.D. ’02, argue in their 2006 book that making preschool available to children aged 3 and older would improve the school readiness of the nation’s young children, fill a gap for working families, lower the high school dropout rate, reduce crime and boost the economy.

Sven-Eric Jordt, Ph.D., assistant professor of pharmacology, and Susan Kaech, Ph.D., assistant professor of immunology, received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers in a White House ceremony on November 1. The awards, which identify and honor outstanding researchers who are beginning their careers, include five years of support. Jordt was honored for conducting ethics seminars for incoming students and for his research on the effects of environmental irritants in airway diseases and inflammation. Kaech was selected for mentoring undergraduate and graduate students as well as postdoctoral fellows and for characterizing the development of memory T cells in long-term immune protection.

Notes

Peter S. Aronson, M.D., FW ’77, the C.N.H. Long Professor of Medicine and professor of cellular and molecular physiology, has been named the 2008 Carl W. Gottschalk Distinguished Lecturer of the American Physiological Society Renal Section. He delivered a lecture in April at the Experimental Biology Meeting in San Diego. Aronson served for 15 years as chief of the Section of Nephrology in the Department of Medicine.

Paul G. Barash, M.D., professor of anesthesiology, received the Distinguished Alumnus of the Year Award from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in October. This honor is accorded to physicians who have achieved a high level of excellence in their careers through research, public policy, development of innovations or delivery of exceptional quality of care to their patients. In 2004 Barash received the Commonwealth Award, given to physicians who have earned distinction for their leadership and contributions to medical care benefiting the college, the state and the nation. He is the only alumnus to receive both awards.

Michael Cappello

Michael Cappello, M.D., professor of pediatrics, of microbial pathogenesis and of epidemiology and public health, was named recipient of this year’s Bailey K. Ashford Medal from the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. The award is given each year for distinguished work in tropical medicine to a researcher in early or mid-career. Cappello received the medal at the society’s annual meeting in Philadelphia on November 4.

Vincent DeVita

Vincent T. DeVita Jr., M.D., the Amy and Joseph Perella Professor of Medicine at Yale Cancer Center, was presented with a 2007 FREDDIE Special Award for Public Service by MediMedia Information Technologies at their annual gala in Philadelphia on November 2. The award honors his leadership in cancer research and treatment. Director of Yale Cancer Center from 1993 to July 2003, DeVita served as director of the National Cancer Institute and the National Cancer Program.

David A. Fiellin, M.D., associate professor of medicine, was elected to the board of directors of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD). CPDD is the premier membership organization for NIH-funded researchers addressing drug dependence and abuse.

Richard Flavell, Ph.D., professor of immunobiology, received the Rabbi Shai Shacknai Memorial Prize and Lectureship in Immunology and Cancer Research for 2008 from the Lautenberg Center of Hebrew University in Jerusalem in January. The prize recognizes and brings outstanding investigators in immunology or cancer biology to lecture at the Faculty of Medicine at the university.

Erin Lavik

Erin Lavik, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering, was honored by the Connecticut Technology Council as one of their 2008 Women of Innovation. The annual event honors Connecticut women for their achievements as small-business owners, entrepreneurs, researchers, community leaders and innovators. Lavik focuses her research on developing new therapeutic approaches to the treatment of spinal cord injury and retinal degeneration.

James F. Leckman, M.D., was honored in October by NARSAD, the world’s leading charity dedicated to mental health research. Leckman, the Neison Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Psychiatry, Psychology and Pediatrics and director of the Child Study Center, received the Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research. Leckman’s research focuses on autism, Tourette disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Robert J. Levine, M.D., professor of medicine, has been appointed to the National Academy of Sciences’ Panel on Collecting, Storing, Accessing, and Protecting Social Survey Data Containing Biological Measures. The panel has been asked to provide recommendations for best practices, procedures and guidance for funding agencies, institutional review boards and researchers.

Richard P. Lifton, M.D., Ph.D., chair and Sterling Professor of Genetics, received the Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences in April for discovering genes that cause many forms of high and low blood pressure. The prize, given by a worldwide publisher of medical and scientific books, consists of a $25,000 grant and an invitation to deliver a lecture at The Rockefeller University in New York City.

Thomas H. McGlashan, M.D., professor of psychiatry and director of the Yale Psychiatric Institute, has received the Stanley Dean Award for Research in Schizophrenia from the American College of Psychiatrists (ACP). The award is presented annually to an individual or group that has made major contributions to the understanding and treatment of schizophrenic disorders. McGlashan received the award at the ACP annual meeting on March 1 in Kauai, Hawaii.

Ruslan Medzhitov, Ph.D., professor of immunobiology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, has received a Blavatnik Award for Young Scientists from the New York Academy of Sciences. Medzhitov studies the way in which the human immune system detects and subsequently becomes activated by infection. The Blavatnik Awards recognize the most noteworthy and innovative researchers from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, and carry an unrestricted cash prize of $25,000.

Alexander Neumeister

Alexander Neumeister, M.D., associate professor of psychiatry and director of the Molecular Imaging Program of the Clinical Neuroscience Division, has received a five-year, $600,000 Investigator Award from the Patrick and Catherine Weldon Donaghue Medical Research Foundation for Health-Related Research. The funding will support Neumeister’s study of the relationship between trauma and stress and an increased risk of depression.

Marina Picciotto, Ph.D., received the Jacob P.Waletzky Memorial Award for Innovative Research in Drug Addiction and Alcoholism in November. The award is supported by the Waletzky family and the Philanthropic Collaborative at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. The Society for Neuroscience confers this award on a scientist who has done or plans to do research in the area of substance abuse and the brain and nervous system.

Jennifer Prah Ruger

Jennifer Prah Ruger, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Division of Global Health at the School of Public Health, has received a five-year, $600,000 Investigator Award from the Patrick and Catherine Weldon Donaghue Medical Research Foundation for Health-Related Research. The funding will support Ruger’s study of ways to allocate high-quality health care in an equitable fashion while retaining desired levels of efficiency and technological innovation.

Gerald I. Shulman

Gerald Shulman

Gerald I. Shulman, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine and of cellular and molecular physiology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, is the 2008 recipient of the Stanley J. Korsmeyer Award in recognition of his contributions to the fields of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus. The award is given by the American Society for Clinical Investigation and carries an unrestricted $10,000 grant. Shulman has pioneered the application of magnetic resonance spectroscopy to noninvasive examination of intra-cellular glucose and fat metabolism in humans.

Dennis D. Spencer

Dennis Spencer

Dennis D. Spencer, M.D., HS ’77, chair and the Harvey and Kate Cushing Professor of Neurosurgery, was elected president of the 3,000-member American Epilepsy Society (AES) during the organization’s annual meeting in Philadelphia in December. AES is the professional society for physicians and scientists who study and treat epilepsy. Spencer is internationally recognized for his contributions to the surgical treatment of neurological diseases causing epilepsy.


			Originally published in Yale Medicine, Spring 2008. Copyright © 2008 Yale University School of Medicine. All rights reserved.