January Faculty Features

Melvin Urofsky, Ph.D., Center for Public Policy (emeritus)
Urofsky was honored by the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities for his work as one of the leading Bill of Rights and constitutional law scholars in the country. He was one of six Virginians to receive an Award for Excellence in the Humanities, which highlights the positive work being done in the humanities in Virginia by residents, community leaders, teachers, scholars, librarians and philanthropists. The foundation cited Urofsky's effort in designing a successful teachers' institute on the Bill of Rights in the mid-1980s, which was the inspiration for much of the foundation's subsequent work on the Bill of Rights and for all three editions of "The Bill of Rights, The Courts, and The Law." Urofsky was a major contributor to these publications. He has been the editor of the "Journal of Supreme Court History" since 1993, and has done much to further public understanding of the work of the court and of the Bill of Rights as a living document. Urofksy is author of numerous books and articles on legal and political history, including the definitive scholarly work on Justice Louis Brandeis. Urofsky also has written extensively on American Jewish history.

Sarah C. Rutan, Ph.D., Department of Chemistry
Rutan received a research opportunity award of more than $49,000 from the Research Corporation for her studies involving the characterization of drug metabolism using chemo metrics. The awards are presented to mid-career and senior scientists at graduate institutions who wish to reestablish long-term funding by initiating a new program of experimental research. Research Corporation is a private foundation that aids in basic research in the physical sciences including chemistry, physics and astronomy at U.S. and Canadian colleges and universities.