2023 Alumni Award Winners pictured (from top, l-r): Karen Albright, Myra Crawford, Himel Mallick, Melissa Galvin Lumpkin, Laura Fiveash and Corey WigginsThe UAB School of Public Health congratulates the recipients of our annual Alumni Awards, who are chosen each year to recognize outstanding alumni and their contributions to the field of public health . The mission of the UAB School of Public Health is to make positive and lasting change in the public’s health through the pursuit of excellence in scholarship, teaching and service to the larger community. We are proud to select six graduates from our School who are executing this mission daily in their professional careers. Winners of the 2023 Alumni Awards include:
The Early Career Achievement Alumni Award: This year’s recipient is Karen Albright, D.O., Ph.D., Medical Officer/Clinical Reviewer at the Food and Drug Administration, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Office of New Drugs, Office of Neuroscience, Division of Neurology II. Albright received a Ph.D. from the UAB School of Public Health in 2017. The Early Career Achievement Alumni Award recognizes excellence in public health for alumni who have graduated from the School of Public Health within the last seven years.
The Alumni Award for Practice: This year’s recipient is Myra Crawford, Ph.D., Executive Director of Cahaba Riverkeeper. Crawford received an MPH from the UAB School of Public Health in 1979. The Alumni Award for Practice recognizes an alumnus/alumna who has helped to make a difference in the community by working with local, state, or national public health stakeholders.
The Alumni Award for Research: This year’s recipient is Himel Mallick, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at Cornell University. Mallick received a Ph.D. from the UAB School of Public Health in 2015. The Alumni Award for Research recognizes an alumnus/alumna who has developed and engaged in funded, public health cutting-edge research and discovery as evidenced by national recognition of their accomplishments and scientific articles that illustrate the nominee’s significant contributions.
The Alumnus/Alumna of the Year Award: This year’s recipient is Melissa Galvin Lumpkin, Ph.D., Interim Dean of the Samford University School of Public Health, Chair and Professor in the Department of Public Health. Lumpkin graduated with her MPH from the School of Public Health in 1985. The Alumnus/Alumna of the Year Award recognizes an established alum who graduated from the School of Public Health at least eight years ago and has made significant contributions in the field of public health that are considered exemplary.
The Dean’s Distinguished Alumni Award: This year’s award goes to two recipients: Laura Fiveash, DrPH, Executive Director of Spring Valley School and Corey Wiggins, Ph.D., Federal Co-Chairman of the Delta Regional Authority, Presidential Appointee, United States of America. Fiveash received a DrPH from the UAB School of Public Health in 2003, and Wiggins received a MSPH from the UAB School of Public Health in 2005. The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes graduates who have shown a substantive commitment to the School’s mission while serving as a source of inspiration and pride to others. This unique award is bestowed each year by the Dean of the UAB School of Public Health.
Congratulations to the 2023 recipients of the UAB School of Public Health Alumni Awards and thank you to those who nominated a deserving individual. Nominations for the 2024 awards will open later this Spring.