The book donation enabled each student to self-select a book to read with their families and add to or start their home librar

Doreen C. Harper, Ph.D., dean of the UAB School of Nursing, will transition from her day-to-day duties effective Jan. 1, 2022, and focus on strategic goals until her full retirement in spring 2022. Linda Moneyham, Ph.D., senior associate dean for Academic Affairs, will assume those executive responsibilities until Harper retires and then will become interim dean until a new dean has been named.

UAB alumnus and former employee David L.K. Dada will be the director of government relations at UAB. Dada most recently was deputy director of the Division of Youth Services within the Office of the Mayor for the City of Birmingham. He succeeds Ceil Snow, who recently retired after more than 20 years of service to the university.

May will begin work full time at UAB Nov. 1 leading human resource units responsible for ensuring a positive employee experience at each point along the employee continuum.

The UAB chapter of Beta Alpha Psi provided 72 school supply kits filled with pens, notepads, crayons and folders to students at Glen Iris Elementary to help offset the high cost of school supplies for low-income families.

“We are so fortunate to have Dr. Cook in the leadership position and are looking forward to her continuing to help students access opportunities that develop intercultural, academic and other competencies through fellowships and scholarships.”

The UA System Board of Trustees awarded the rank of Distinguished Professor to Jerry Oakes and Trygve Tollefsbol and University Professor to Molly Wasko.

Twelve faculty have been selected to receive the President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, which honors those who have demonstrated exceptional accomplishments in teaching. The 2021 honorees represent each school, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Honors College and the Graduate School.

Janene Sims, associate professor of optometry, is the winner of the 2020 Odessa Woolfolk Community Service Award for her work to influence change in the greater Birmingham community.

The UA System Board of Trustees awarded the rank of Professor Emeritus to Craig Beard, Etty “Tika” Benveniste, Louis Dell’Italia, Robert F. Pass, John Hablitz and Clark Douglas Witherspoon and the rank of Endowed Professor to Jeff Holmes during its June 3-4 meeting.

Lisa Harvey, Timothy Key, Malcolm Marler, Kerry McAlpine, Akia McCurdy and Justin Roth are the first six honorees of the UAB Shared Values in Action Program launched this year to honor employees whose work best exemplifies institutional values.

Seven individuals and two registered student organizations were named Mental Health Champions by Student Counseling Services for their efforts during this past year.

Kristine Ria Hearld, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Health Services Administration and past chair of the Faculty Senate, exemplifies core values that propel institutional excellence.  

Deputy Chief Zandral Washington received the West End chapter’s Respect for Law Program Award, which honors law enforcement practitioners for exemplary job performance and contributions to creating safer communities.

The UA System Board of Trustees awarded the rank of Distinguished Professor to William Benoit, Smita Bhatia, James Cimino, Gene Siegal and J. Michael Wyss and the rank of University Professor to Sylvie Mrug during its April 9 meeting.

UAB has initiated a national search to replace retiring Chief Human Resources Officer Alesia Jones, who has served UAB for 27 years.

Ten graduate faculty were honored with the UAB Graduate Dean’s Excellence in Mentorship Award for exceptional work with graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.

Students labeled and bagged books to be donated to child development centers in Alabama.

The new role aligns leadership of the Graduate School with the Office of Global Engagement at an intersection of two pillars of UAB’s strategic plan, Forging the Future.

This year, the university recognizes 50 years of service by Jeanne Hutchison, Ph.D., and Ferdinand Urthaler, M.D., and 45 years of service by Robert Kim M.D., and Joseph Lovetto. In addition, 294 employees with 20 or more years and 904 with five, 10 and 15 years will honored for their longevity.

A group of eight volunteers helped rebuild roads, clear deadfall logs and sticks and cleaning horse fields at Red Barn, a family-run organization that teaches low-income children with disabilities to ride horses.

Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration Allen Bolton was honored by the Faculty Senate in January for his service to UAB with the new Outstanding Administrator Award for Excellence in Shared Governance, which is named for him and will be presented periodically to a UAB administrator who shows exceptional commitment to shared governance at UAB.

Gayan Wijeratne, Ph.D., assistant professor of chemistry, is studying versatile molecules with heme iron centers that could be useful in new cancer therapies and greener, cheaper fuel cells. He also will use this grant to attract more high school students to higher education in science.

This year, the new President’s Award for Excellence in Shared Values honors Blazers who demonstrated one or more of UAB’s shared values in the course of their work during the extraordinary times presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Assistant Professor Wenli Bi, Ph.D., in the Department of Physics will expand studies in a field that could lead to new green technologies — and more opportunities for women and underrepresented minorities in cutting-edge physics.

UAB’s Employee of the Month program has been revamped to recognize staff who demonstrate at least one of the university’s shared values. Submit a nomination for the first quarter of 2021 by March 31.

Robert Centor, M.D., one of the world’s leading experts on sore throat and a mentor to generations of medical students, will receive the highest honor of the Academic Health Center.

Fifteen students helped sort and prep donated items and distribute them at the Gardendale Civic Center drive-thru.

Brian Burnett, Ph.D., who is interim associate vice president and chief financial officer for the University of Maryland, will begin work at UAB May 1.

Maggie Amsler, a benthic ecologist and longtime member of UAB’s Antarctic research team, has been selected for membership in The Explorers Club inaugural Explorers 50 program, which recognizes remarkable people working to change the world and extend the meaning and impact of exploration.

Meet four more hardworking staff who completed their degrees this month.

The first installment, “Bending the Arc: The Vote,” which tells the stories of Black people and white allies who fought for racial justice during the 1960s, is the collaborative effort of retired and current UAB employees and community partners.

What was it like to complete a degree while working full-time during a pandemic? Three employees share their stories ahead of this weekend’s commencement ceremonies.

The newly created role will advance effective learning, teaching, scholarship and service as detailed in UAB’s strategic plan, Forging the Future.

“Is Mommy a Doctor or a Superhero?,” written by emergency medicine physician Amy Faith Ho, M.D., uses colorful illustrations and whimsical characters to show that doctor moms are heroes and children can find superheroes within themselves.

University Professor Jennifer Kilgo, Ph.D., is the recipient of the Ellen Gregg Ingalls/UAB National Alumni Society Award for Lifetime Achievement in Teaching, the highest award for teaching presented by UAB.

With his idea for a coil that travels through the vasculature much like a sailboat riding the breeze, a UAB neuroradiologist has earned a commercialization grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration.