VCU news

By Malorie Burkett

Virginia Commonwealth University presented its highest faculty honors by recognizing the contributions of four faculty members during the 21st Convocation ceremony, which took place at the W.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts. An annual event that acknowledges the quality and excellence of the VCU faculty, Convocation also marks the formal opening of the academic year.

"No institution of higher education - anywhere in the world - succeeds without the kind of commitment and hard work that our four honorees have given to their students, their professions and this institution," said Dr. Roderick J. McDavis, provost and vice president for academic affairs.

Dr. Eugene P. Trani, VCU president, Dr. McDavis, Dr. Sheldon Retchin, vice president for health sciences and college deans presented the four outstanding faculty members, who were selected through a nomination process, with their awards.

This year's honorees included Lester Van Winkle, School of the Arts, Distinguished Teaching Award; Nicholas P. Farrell, Ph.D., College of Humanities and Sciences, Distinguished Scholarship Award; JoAnne K. Henry, Ed.D., R.N., School of Nursing
Distinguished Service Award; and Earl F. Ellis, Ph.D., School of Medicine, University Award of Excellence.

Dr. Trani also delivered his annual address, highlighting several faculty members for their exceptional accomplishments at VCU over the past year. They included Dr. John Fenn, who won the 2002 Nobel Prize for chemistry; Dr. Richard Wenzel and Dr. Michael Edmond for being among the leading commentators on the SARS outbreak and for being at the forefront of the national debate on smallpox vaccination; Dr. Rao Ivatury, who pioneered the procedure that saved the life of last fall's Ashland sniper victim, and with the help of his trauma team, helped race-car driver Jerry Nadeau avoid tragedy when Nadeau was brought to the VCU Medical Center; and Dr. Tom Smith and the VCU Massey Cancer Center, who were the subjects of a major story on cancer treatment in a June issue of The Wall Street Journal.

During his address, Dr. Trani acknowledged Virginia's budget situation, but praised the university for withstanding the challenges and working around the crisis. "When we acknowledge the fiscal pressure on our university, it is vitally important to remember that we are weathering this storm . . . and even thriving. . . thanks to our faculty," said Trani.

Dr. Trani continued by giving an update on current developments at VCU, noting topics such as tuition revenues, current enrollment, the celebration of the second commencement of the VCU School of the Arts in Qatar, and the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia's approval of two new interdisciplinary schools in the College of Humanities and Sciences: the School of Government and Public Affairs, directed by Dr. Robert D. Holsworth; and the School of World Studies, directed by Dr. R. McKenna Brown.

"Everything great and promising about VCU - every good student we attract . . . every state, private and federal dollar we earn . . . every patient and community organization we serve - all of it is founded on the strength of this faculty," said Dr. Trani.

For full biographies of this year's Convocation honorees, visit VCU 2003 Convocation.