Basic Sciences Dean’s Award recognizes exceptional graduate student achievement

By Lorena Infante Lara

Thanks to their high academic and scientific achievement, eight graduate students have been presented with the Dean’s Award for Exceptional Achievement in Graduate Studies. Each of the awardees was recognized for the originality, significance and rigor of their dissertation research.

The students, who were selected by a committee made up of the directors of graduate studies for each of the Ph.D.-granting programs in the School of Medicine, will receive $5,000 in stipend support for each of the next two years.

“This year’s Dean’s Award recipients are an outstanding group of scholars, researchers and colleagues,” said Larry Marnett, dean of Basic Sciences and Mary Geddes Stahlman Chair in Cancer Research. “They remind us of the privilege we have as faculty to work with exceptional young scientists to prepare them for a future in biomedical research.”

The awardees, their programs and mentors are:

• Andrea Shiakolas, Microbe-Host Interactions. Advised by Ivelin Georgiev.
• Slavina Goleva, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics. Advised by Lea Davis.
• Kim Thibeault, Neuroscience. Advised by Erin Calipari.
• Paige Vega, Cell and Developmental Biology. Advised by Ken Lau.
• Jooeun Kang, Human Genetics. Advised by Douglas Ruderfer.
• Sarah Glass, Biochemistry. Advised by Fred Guengerich.
• Tiffany Richardson, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics. Advised by Al Powers.
• Anna Kasdan, Neuroscience. Advised by Reyna Gordon.

“We are pleased to recognize the accomplishments and contributions of these eight students to Vanderbilt and look forward to following their career development,” said Marnett.

All students in Ph.D. programs tied to the School of Medicine are eligible for nomination, including students working on the Ph.D. portion of the Medical Scientist Training Program, the School of Medicine’s M.D./Ph.D. program.

Recipients are selected based on research excellence, evidenced by fellowship awards, publications, and presentations at conferences. The awardees demonstrate a mastery of their disciplines through a track record of high achievement in their classes and of strong performances in their qualifying exams and committee meetings.