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Spring 2007 | RETURN TO NEWSLETTER HOME

Awards & Achievements
Faculty, Staff, Students, and alumni receive much deserved recognition this year

Professor Liz Van Volkenburgh was recently awarded a Fulbright Award for research in the Czech Republic. Professor Jennifer Ruesink who was given a Fullbright Award for research in Namibia!

Professors Liz Van Volkenburgh and Barbara Wakimoto were named Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 2006.

Chris Himes was named a 2006 American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) Diversity Scholar.  Chris will receive money to cover his expenses to present his research at a meeting of one of the AIBS member societies - the Evolution Meeting in New Zealand.  He will also be honored at the AIBS Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. in May, recognized at an annual lunch with AIBS Board members and other mentors, and registration fees will be waived and travel expenses will be paid by AIBS. Diversity Scholars receive a full one-year AIBS membership, which includes a subscription to BioScience. Diversity Scholars are encouraged to participate in AIBS programs and activities.

Alex Coverdill has just been awarded the University of Washington Excellence in Teaching Award. Please read the full article about this exceptional graduate student.

Richard Strathman just received the honorable mention for the Distinguished Graduate Mentor award.  Among nearly 300 nominations, Richard was ranked by the selection committee to be among the top four graduate mentors for the 2006-2007 year.

UW Zoology listed as top ranking degree program in the country.  The Chronicle of Higher Education publishes rankings of Doctoral Degree Programs with sub-rankings within field.   The list includes the top in each field nationally. UW is proud to have four such departments:  Genetics (new name here), Fisheries (new name here), Microbiology, and Zoology (new name here).  This is made possible by having great staff that makes this a fantastic and supportive department. http://chronicle.com/weekly/v53/i19/19a00801.htm#top

Dr. Elena Shpak, a former post-doc of Keiko Torii lab, awarded the 2007 Early Career Award from the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB). This award was instituted by the Society's executive committee in 2005 to recognize outstanding research by scientists at the beginning of their careers. It is a monetary award made annually for exceptionally creative, independent contributions by a member of the Society.  Elena is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

John Wingfield and Gordon Orians were selected to be featured in the upcoming book "Leaders in the Study of Animal Behavior, Vol. 2."