National academies, professional associations, a news publication, and a private foundation have recently recognized Rochester faculty.
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University of Rochester faculty regularly earn regional, national, and international awards and honors for their professional contributions to research, scholarship, education, and community engagement.
As part of an ongoing series, we’re spotlighting their accomplishments.
Lauren Ghazal recognized among STAT’s top-emerging scientists
Lauren Ghazal has been chosen as a STAT Wunderkind, a “next-generation scientific superstar,” in a national contest that singles out young, high achievers from top research institutions. STAT, a respected news agency that exclusively covers health and medicine, created the annual “Wunderkind” award to celebrate early-career researchers who are not yet independent scientists or program leaders. Ghazal, a family nurse practitioner and researcher, joined the University in July 2023 as an assistant professor at the School of Nursing and associate member of the Wilmot Cancer Institute’s Cancer Prevention and Control Program.
- Discover Ghazal’s work as a nurse scientist.
Rachel Glade named a Packard Fellow
Rachel Glade, an assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences and of mechanical engineering, has been named a 2023 Packard Fellow by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Every year, the foundation honors 20 science and engineering professors across the United States who are pursuing research early in their careers. Each honoree receives a five-year grant of $875,000 to pursue their research.
Glade’s research focuses on connecting Earth science with soft matter physics, the study of “squishy” mixtures of fluids and particles that have an enhanced ability to become deformed. These mixtures can behave in complex and nonlinear ways, much like the way a cake can turn out differently if the ingredient ratios are even slightly altered. Specifically, she studies sediment dynamics on Earth and planetary landscapes with the goal of understanding deformations on the surface of Earth and how landscapes are formed. In that way, she strives to come up with better ways of predicting landslides, floods, coastal erosion, and other hazards. She hopes this work will lead to better methods of predicting the impacts of climate change on landscapes and infrastructure.
Glade and the members of her DRIP (Dirt, Rivers, Ice, Particles) Lab use a combination of physical experiments, fieldwork, and formal theory to address their research questions at both the granular and landscape levels.
- Get to know Glade better.
Ehsan Hoque receives 10-Year Impact Award from UbiComp community
Ehsan Hoque, an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science, received recognition for his pioneering work and its long-term effect on the field of human-AI interaction. Hoque is the first author on a paper that received the 10-Year Impact Award by the Association for Computing Machinery’s (ACM) pervasive and ubiquitous computing (UbiComp) community. Other authors on the paper include Matthieu Courgeon, Jean-Claude Martin, Bilge Mutlu, and Rosalind Picard.
The paper details the MACH (My Automated Conversation coacH) system, an animated character with vision and hearing capability that can respond in real time while people practice social interactions in private. Created for Hoque’s PhD thesis at MIT, the system yielded the first scientific evidence that it is possible for humans to improve their face-to-face interpersonal skills through a virtual assistant.
“This paper explored the potential of vision-based conversational interfaces in enhancing human skills—from acing job interviews and mastering public speaking to assisting individuals with autism,” says Hoque. “This concept inspired the ‘presenter coach’ feature in Microsoft PowerPoint, now utilized daily by millions.”
The paper caught immediate attention at the time it was published, winning a best paper award at UbiComp 2013. It helped propel Hoque to a bevy of awards and accolades, including receiving a World Technology Award in 2016, as well as being named to MIT’s Top 35 Innovators under 35, an inaugural member of the ACM Future of Computing Academy in 2017, a Science News 10 Scientists to Watch List for 2017, and one of 10 new emerging leaders selected by the National Academy of Medicine in 2020.
Hoque accepted the award at the UbiComp 2023 conference in Cancún, Mexico.
- Read more about Hoque’s path as a scientist.
Ann Leonhardt-Caprio recognized for American Heart Association leadership
Ann Leonhardt-Caprio was honored by the American Heart Association for her work on the local and national levels. The assistant professor of clinical nursing and program coordinator of the the University’s Comprehensive Stroke Center at Strong Memorial Hospital received the Leadership Legacy Award, which recognizes her exceptional service to the Eastern States Region of the American Heart Association as a longtime volunteer. She was one of only 11 volunteers to receive the award across the entire 13-state footprint of the Eastern States region.
- Check out Leonhardt-Caprio’s contributions.
Lainie Ross elected to the National Academy of Medicine
Lainie Ross has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), an organization comprising the best of the best in American health care and academic medicine. Academy members are elected by their peers and provide expert advice nationally and internationally on health, medicine, and related policy.
Ross, a pediatrician and philosopher, joined the Medical Center in 2023 as the inaugural chair of the Department of Health Humanities and Bioethics and director of the Paul M. Schyve, MD, Center for Bioethics. She is recognized by NAM for her nearly three decades of work on ethical and policy issues related to organ transplantation, genetics and genomics, clinical research ethics, human subject protections, and pediatrics. Ross recently led a group of national experts who developed new consensus recommendations for pediatric decision-making, and she is also known for her work around issues of equity and inclusion for solid organ transplant patients.
- Read what Ross has to say about her election NAM.
David Turnbull receives Stix Award for plasma physics research
David Turnbull, the Laser–Plasma Interactions Group Leader at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, has been awarded the 2023 Thomas H. Stix Award for Outstanding Early Career Contributions to Plasma Physics Research. The award recognizes an early-career researcher who has made outstanding theoretical, experimental, computational, or technical contributions in plasma physics. Turnbull is being honored for his “pioneering experimental work on plasma photonics in the pursuit of laser-plasma applications, including Raman amplification, plasma optics, and inertial confinement fusion.”
The award will be given in person at the American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics’ annual meeting in Denver, Colorado.
Turnbull was recently bestowed the 2023 Edouard Fabre Prize for his research contributions to inertial confinement fusion (ICF) through innovative laser–plasma instability studies. In 2020, he was selected as a recipient of the Excellence in Fusion Engineering Award from Fusion Power Associates.
- Learn more about Turnbull.
Mitchell Wharton inducted as a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing
Mitchell Wharton, an associate professor of clinical nursing in the School of Nursing, was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing’s 2023 class of fellows. They were among 250 distinguished nurse leaders representing 40 states and 13 countries chosen for the academy’s largest cohort to date. The academy comprises nearly 3,000 nursing leaders who are experts in policy, research, administration, practice, and academia who champion health and wellness, locally and globally. Induction into the academy is a significant milestone in a nurse leader’s career, in which their accomplishments are honored by their colleagues within and outside the profession.
- Learn about Wharton’s work as an educator, researcher, and clinician.
