Teachers, students, mentors and family gather to celebrate outstanding work in education

June 4, 2018

The OHSU School of Medicine came together Saturday morning, June 2 to recognize the hundreds of moments throughout the academic year that add up to teaching, learning and service excellence.

The 2018 Undergraduate Medical Education and Graduate Studies Honors and Awards Ceremony drew 200 honorees and guests to the Robertson Life Sciences Building Atrium for brunch and celebration.

"Your striving is what defines excellence in our profession and in our School of Medicine," said Dean Sharon Anderson. "Your work is the essence of both giving back and making progress in medicine and the biomedical sciences."

Tracy Bumsted, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean for undergraduate medical education, presented the M.D. Program awards. Allison Fryer, Ph.D., associate dean for graduate studies, presented the Graduate Studies awards.

Congratulations to this year's award winners and honorees. The list below represents just a portion of them. 

View the event program for the full list.

Faculty Teaching Excellence Awards

Excellence in Teaching – M.D. Program

• Erin Bonura, M.D., M.C.R., Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
• Amy Garcia, M.D., M.S., Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics
• David Mansoor, M.D., Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry
• Ali Olyaei, Pharm.D., Professor, Department of Medicine
• Peter Sullivan, M.D., Associate Professor, Department of Medicine

Excellence in Teaching – Graduate Studies Program

• Steve Kinder, M.P.A., Head, Division of Management
• Garet Lahvis, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Behavioral Neuroscience
• Stephen Moore, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics

Excellence in Education – M.D. Program

• Clifford Coleman, M.D., M.P.H., Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine
• Anna Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine

Excellence in Education – Graduate Studies Program

• Cheryl Maslen, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Medicine
• Alison Hill, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics
• Lina Reiss, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery

Graduate Studies Faculty and Student Achievement Awards

The John A. Resko Outstanding Research Achievement Awards recognize outstanding contributions to biomedical research in the School of Medicine and is presented to a graduate student and a faculty member. The awards are 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.

Greg Martin, of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Program, received the John A. Resko Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award for his dissertation entitled, "Elucidating the structure of the pancreatic ATP-sensitive potassium channel by single particle cryoelectron microscopy." Martin also took home the Outstanding Journal Article Award, for his work titled, "Cryo-EM structure of the ATP-sensitive potassium channel illuminates mechanisms of assembly and gating."

Monica Hinds, Ph.D., professor of biomedical engineering, received the John A. Resko Faculty Excellence in Research and Mentoring Award.

The Dean's office gave out two awards for exemplary contributions. Lizzy Sunderhaus, Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Program, and Eileen Torres, Behavioral Neuroscience Graduate Program, were recognized for their contributions to the graduate community and the graduate programs, respectively.

The Outstanding Master's Thesis Award went to Brittany Cummings, Environmental Biomolecular Systems Graduate Program, for her work on "Spatiotemporal Distribution of the Anti-Diabetic Drug, Metformin, in the Lower Columbia River and Its Effect on Phytoplankton Growth."

M.D. Program Faculty and Student Achievement Awards

The Edward J. Keenan 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 given annually to a member of the School of Medicine faculty for outstanding and sustained contributions to teaching medical students at OHSU. This year the award went to Stephen Planck, Ph.D., professor of ophthalmology; cell, developmental and cancer biology; and medicine.

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 Peter Sullivan, M.D., associate professor of 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. This year the award goes to Eve Klein, M.D., clinical instructor of medicine, and Elizabeth Powers, M.D., clinical assistant professor of family medicine.

The Dean's Award for Exemplary Contributions to the M.D. Program went to Mackenzie Deane, M.D. Class of 2019, and Rajkaran Sachdej, M.D. Class of 2018.

The Multicultural Recognition and Service Award honors student leaders who have made outstanding contributions to the promotion of diversity, equity and inclusion within and through service to the community. This year, the award went to Claudia Lopez and Skender Najibi, both of the M.D. Class of 2018.

The Edward S. Hayes Gold-Headed Cane Award is presented annually to a member of the graduating medical school class selected by his or her peers and teachers. The award recognizes 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.

Cornelia Hayes Stevens, granddaughter of Dr. Hayes, was there to present the gold-headed cane, a commemorative plaque, and a monetary gift to support the furtherance of the recipient's postgraduate education. This year this prestigious award went to Sophia Hayes.

The Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award presented by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation is given to a graduating medical student and to a physician faculty member who are judged by their peers to best exemplify the humanistic qualities of a physician and their consistent expression of compassion, empathy, respect and sensitivity toward their patients and colleagues, while maintaining the highest professional and ethical standards and devoting themselves to the welfare of our citizens who are most vulnerable and in need of their care.

Elizabeth Lahti, M.D., assistant professor of medicine, received the faculty award and Peter Engdall received the student award. Engdall also gave a rousing address during the M.D. Program Hooding Ceremony the following day.

To conclude, Dr. Bumsted gave a special recognition to Nicole Deiorio, M.D., assistant dean for medical student affairs and professor of emergency medicine, who recently accepted a student affairs leadership position at Virginia Commonwealth University. The two long-time colleagues embraced and the crowd erupted with applause – a fitting end to this year's Honors and Awards ceremony.