For the third consecutive year, the UAB School of Health Professions (SHP) has awarded members of the SHP faculty with faculty grants. This year’s winners are Alexandra Evancho, PT, DPT, assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy; Seung Yup (Joshua) Lee, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Health Services Administration; and Megan Carpenter, OTD, OTR/L, SCFES, assistant professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, and Elizabeth Wylie, PT, DPT, NCS, assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy.

Larissa Francis grew up in the suburbs of Detroit and earned a bachelor’s in Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration. In December 2022, she graduated with her M.S. in Nutrition Sciences, completing the Dietitian Education Graduate Certificate Program (DEP-C) through the Lifestyle Management and Disease Prevention track. So how did she go from the ATF to UAB?

Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, PhD, RD, Professor and Webb Endowed Chair of Nutrition Sciences was selected by the American Society of Preventive Oncology (ASPO) as the winner of the 2023 Joseph F. Fraumeni, Jr. Distinguished Achievement Award. 

Thanks to the generosity of alumni and friends, numerous scholarships have been established to benefit students in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program. These are the 2022-23 scholarship award winners.

After a nationwide search, Jane Banaszak-Holl, Ph.D., has been named chair of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Health Services Administration. Before coming to UAB, she was a professor of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Monash University, Australia.

Amy Y. Landry, Ph.D., the University of Alabama at Birmingham Howard W. Houser Endowed Professor in Health Administration, is the winner of the Association of University Programs in Health Administration, Quint Studer Gratitude Prize for Teaching Excellence.

Kiara Thompson, a third-year student in the UAB Doctor of Physical Therapy program was awarded the 2022 SAHPD Student Leadership in Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Award from the Southern Association of Health Professions Deans at Academic Health Centers.

A grassroots effort for a scholarship in honor of Richard Thompson, one of the co-founders of the School of Health Professions’ PhD in Administration Health Services program, has quadrupled expectations.

What can future CEOs learn from building a bridge with paper, tape, and paper cups? Quite a lot according to Nancy Borkowski, DBA, distinguished professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Health Professions.

Nicollette Houston-Turner and Yesi Villanueva, two students from the UAB School of Health Professions, were among the largest group of students selected for the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship. The Gilman scholarship strives to widen the range of students eligible to experience studying abroad. The program is intent on encouraging students to study and learn in an array of countries and world regions.

Ana Oliveira, DrPH, assistant professor in the Department of Clinical and Diagnostic Sciences, has been honored with the Provost's Award for Faculty Excellence.

Lakeshore Foundation President and CEO John Kemp recently released Disability Friendly: How to Move From Clueless to Inclusive. The book explores disability and employment with personal experiences and lessons that Kemp has gleaned in his 60-plus-year involvement in disability work and advocacy.

In October, the UAB School of Health Professions brought the Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) Campus Happiness meditation program to the university for two three-day sessions. These sessions taught more than 90 participants meditation and breathing techniques that can be used to de-stress anytime, anywhere—an increasingly important skill in a stressful, sometimes frightening world.

Nancy Borkowski, DBA, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Health Services Administration, has been selected to receive the President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, which honors those who have demonstrated exceptional accomplishments in teaching.

On the morning of Oct. 26, feedback about John Fetterman’s debate performance the night before was overwhelmingly abysmal. Critics acknowledged the auditory processing challenges he faced as a recovering stroke survivor but were unequivocally dismissive of his chances in the United States Senate race in Pennsylvania. Some called for him to withdraw from the race altogether.

Melanie Hart, Ph.D., has been named associate dean for Academic and Faculty Affairs of the UAB School of Health Professions. She comes to UAB after 19 years at Texas Tech University where she served in many leadership roles including associate dean for the College of Arts and Sciences, vice provost for eLearning and Academic Partnerships, and most recently, vice provost for Administrative Affairs.

University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers is shedding light on racial disparities in breast cancer mortality in women who live in economically deprived neighborhoods.

UAB Professor Sue Feldman, RN, Ph.D., has been inducted into the American College of Medical Informatics. The honor is reserved for those who have made significant and sustained contributions to the field of informatics. She is only the second faculty member in the School of Health Professions to become an ACMI Fellow.

Ayse Zengul, student in the UAB PhD in Nutrition Sciences program, has been awarded the Switzer Research Fellowship by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). The Merit Fellowship supports scientists in the earlier stages of a research career, who conduct research on various outcomes of individuals with disabilities.

Tara Pearce, PT, DHS, associate professor and director of Clinical Education for the UAB Doctor of Physical Therapy program, has received the Marilyn Gossman Award for Professionalism in Physical Therapy – the most prestigious honor given by the Alabama Chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association.