Appointments

Susan Nolen-Hoeksema , professor of psychology and psychiatry, has been named the new director of the Institute for Research on Women and Gender.

Awards

Dr. Ragavendra Baliga , a clinical assistant professor in the Division of Cardiology, was nominated as a fellow by the Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh (Scotland) at its council meeting July 25. Baliga received the nomination in recognition of his achievements as a physician-educator. The college is an independent professional membership organization concerned with promoting the highest standards in internal medicine around the world.

Pam Fowler , director of financial aid, recently was honored by the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) at the group’s annual conference in Salt Lake City. Fowler received a regional leadership award for her service in the Midwest. The awards are presented to one individual in each region who exhibits high integrity and character; who has shown creative leadership and has inspired and encouraged others to participate actively in professional development; who has made outstanding contributions at the regional and state levels over a sustained period of time; and who supports the goals and objectives of NASFAA.

Catherine McLaughlin , professor of health management and policy and director of the Economic Research Initiative on the Uninsured, recently received two honors. McLaughlin has been elected a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance, and she is No. 65 on Modern Healthcare magazine’s list of the “100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare.”

Mark O’Brien , collections coordinator of insects at the Museum of Zoology, received the William and Anne Manierre Award Aug. 5 from the Huron Mountain Wildlife Foundation. The award recognizes excellence in research on the biota of the Huron Mountain Club (HMC) in Marquette County. O’Brien’s research on the region’s dragonflies and damselflies resulted in the documentation of 79 species on HMC property.

Dr. Maria Silveira , a lecturer in the Department of Internal Medicine, has received the Generalist Faculty Scholars Award from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The foundation awards four-year career development grants to outstanding junior faculty at medical schools in family practice, general internal medicine and general pediatrics. Silveira currently is conducting several studies to understand how the quality of end-of-life care can be improved for patients with life-limiting conditions.

Dr. Michael Szymanski , clinical assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine, was named Family Physician of the Year by the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians (MAFP) July 28 at the MAFP Annual Congress of Delegates meeting on Mackinac Island. Szymanski, who serves as president of the MAFP Foundation, sees patients at the U-M Health System’s Dexter Family Practice Clinic.

Ashutosh Varshney , associate professor of political science, received the Gregory Luebbert Prize in late August at the annual meetings of the American Political Science Association. The award, which recognizes Varshney’s book “Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life: Hindus and Muslims in India,” is given for the best book in the field of comparative politics.

Seven faculty members are recipients of seed grants from the Life Sciences, Values and Society Program and the Office of the Vice President for Research. The grants, which range from $5,000-$20,000 for individual or team projects, provide funds for faculty to explore the ethical, legal, social and cultural issues raised by developments in the life sciences, including genomics, bioengineering and evidence-based medicine. The 2003 recipients and their projects:

• Leslie Hollingsworth , associate professor of social work, “Parental Preference for Sex of Children in the U.S.: Implications for Informed Consent in Preconception Sex Selection”;

• Sherrie Kossoudji , associate professor of social work and adjunct associate professor of economics, “Pricing People: Life Sciences Advances and Markets for Human Components”;

• Jonathan Metzl , assistant professor of psychiatry and women’s studies, and director, Program in Culture, Health and Medicine, “Diagnostic Bracket Creep: The Role of SSRIs in Defining, Diagnosing and Treating Women’s Depressive Illness Across the Life Span”;

• David Mindell , associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, interim director and associate curator of birds, Museum of Zoology, “Evolution in Action: A Museum-Based Model for Communicating University Research Findings to the Public”;

• Kathryn Moseley , lecturer in pediatrics, “Measuring Cultural Mistrust in African-American Parents in a Health-Care Setting: A Pilot Study”;

• Jason Owen-Smith , assistant professor of organizational studies and sociology, “Universities and the Biotechnology Industry: Academic Institutions as Sources, Anchors and Shortcuts”;

• Jennifer Robertson , professor of anthropology, “Eugenics and the Making of Japanese Bioethics.”