2007 Award Winners

C. DAVID ALLIS (BS, '73, Biology)

C. David Allis, a leader in the emerging field of epigenetics, discovered the universal mechanisms whereby modifications in proteins called histones affect genome stability and gene transcription.

Allis is the Joy and Jack Fishman Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Chromatin Biology at The Rockefeller University, New York, N.Y. Elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2005, he has made significant contributions to understanding how these proteins function in cancer and in eukaryotic microorganisms.

Allis, who earned his PhD from Indiana University, has been a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences since 2001. His awards include The Dickson Prize in Medicine (2002) and the Wiley Prize (2004). In April 2007, he was named a recipient of a Gairdner Foundation International Award. Allis is one of five scientists to be honored in October for "fundamental discoveries that will have impact on human genetic development, cancer and other diseases."

"Thee fruit of David's work has potential for developing treatments for diseases caused by misregulated genes, including cancer," says Rockefeller University President Paul Nurse.

BENJAMIN GETTLER (BA, '45, Economics)

Benjamin Gettler has made diverse and far-reaching contributions to our community and to the University of Cincinnati. A 1945 UC Economics graduate named for high honors and elected to Phi Beta Kappa, he earned his law degree in 1948 from Harvard Law School, and served our country as a member of the U.S. Army. In 2003, Mr. Gettler was awarded an honorary doctoral degree from UC.

Gettler is the CEO of Vulcan International, Inc. He served on the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees from 1994 to 2003, leading as chairman from 2000 to 2002. He also has served as chairman of the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority and as chairman and president of the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati. As national chairman of the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs, he has conferred with the heads of government and military leaders in numerous nations including Israel, Turkey, India, Ethiopia and Uzbekistan. He is a founding member of the UCATS athletic booster organization.

He is married to Deliann A. Gettler. The Gettlers have five children and seven grandchildren.

THE HON. MARK PAINTER (BA, '70, Political Science)

The Honorable Mark Painter has forged a precedent-setting career in his hometown of Cincinnati and throughout the Ohio legal and academic community.

Painter was elected to the Court of Appeals in 1994 and re-elected without opposition in 2000 and 2006. Previously, he served on the Hamilton County Municipal Court for 13 years, and at 34, was one of the youngest judges ever in Hamilton County.

He was elected UC student body president in 1969. After earning his BA in 1970 and a JD degree in 1973, Painter practiced law for nine years before becoming a judge. He was, as a municipal court judge, the most-published trial judge in the state. To date, more than 350 of his decisions have been published nationally, making him the most-published Hamilton County judge ever, and one of the most-published in Ohio history.

As an adjunct professor of law at the UC College of Law from 1990 to 2006, Painter taught agency and partnership for 12 years and now teaches advanced legal writing. He is a member of the Cincinnati, American, and Ohio State Bar Associations.

He and his wife, Sue Ann Painter, were married in 1986.

BARBARA SHAILOR (MA, '71; PhD, '75 Classics)

Barbara Shailor has forged an extraordinary career as an administrator and scholar. Shailor was appointed deputy provost for the arts at Yale University in July 2003; she came to Yale in 2001 as the director of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Prior to that, she served as dean of Douglass College, professor of classics at Rutgers University, and as a faculty member and administrator at Bucknell University. Shailor has published extensively in the Fields of Latin paleography and codicology, including Five books and a series of articles on medieval and renaissance manuscripts. In addition, her skills as a paleographer have resulted in the recent completion of her comprehensive catalogue of Yale's rare book and manuscript library.

She has been awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Council of Learned Societies and the American Philosophical Society. She is currently serving as a trustee of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and treasurer of the Medieval Academy of America. Shailor was elected to membership in the Comité International de Paléographie Latine in Paris in 2000, and was elected a Fellow of the Medieval Academy of America in 2006.

STEPHEN WELLS (MS, '73; PhD, '76 Geology)

Stephen Wells heads one of the world's largest multidisciplinary environmental research organizations as president of the Desert Research Institute (DRI) of the University and Community College System of Nevada.

From state-of-the-art facilities in both Las Vegas and Reno, Wells leads three core divisions and three interdisciplinary science centers that serve the state of Nevada and every continent in the world. Prior to joining DRI in July 1995 as executive director of the Quaternary Sciences Center, Wells was professor of Geomorphology and chair of the graduate program in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of California, Riverside. He has published approximately 60 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters and edited six volumes. These works focus upon the geomorphology and Quaternary geology of arid and semiarid regions, geomorphic and hydrologic responses to Quaternary climate change, and tectonic and volcanic activity. He is the current president of the Geological Society of America and is a graduate faculty member in the Hydrologic Sciences Program and Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Nevada, Reno.

McMicken Excellence Award

ROBERT VOORHEES, Chemistry

Colleagues see Robert Voorhees as a person who "strongly exemplifies all that is great about academics."

The 25-year veteran of the Department of Chemistry has shared unique skills necessary to develop and maintain scientific equipment in teaching laboratories and research facilities. His willingness and desire to contribute helped lead to innovations including MeasureNet, the electronic data collection system used by the department since 1995.

"What is most impressive...is Bob's leadership in bringing together researchers and educators in a variety of departments in our college to undertake new educational missions," says professor Pat Limbach, acting Department of Chemistry head. "Bob clearly exceeds the criteria for this award."

CARL MILLS AWARD for outstanding Faculty & Student Relations

JAY TWOMEY, English and Comparative Literature

Assistant professor of English Jay Twomey finds receiving the Carl Mills award "especially gratifying," since Mills, his former mentor, was "well loved by the department and by our students." In turn, Twomey inspires his nominator, Angel Zachel, a non-traditional student Twomey calls "one of the most interesting, mature and sincere students it has ever been my pleasure to teach."

"Teachers like him are the ones who make an indelible impact on students who go on to do great things," said Angel, who has been accepted at George Washington University Law School.

Twomey joined the UC faculty in 2002. His primary areas of interest are the reception history of biblical texts, especially in literary contexts, and the rhetoric of biblical interpretation.

McMICKEN DEAN'S AWARD for Distinguished Adjunct Performance

ERWIN ERHARDT, Economics

For most freshmen and sophomores, Erhardt is the Introduction to Economics "teacher of choice," says Wolfgang Mayer, Department of Economics head.

"He teaches with enthusiasm, inspires his audience, is readily available to help, and goes out of his way to advise students on academic and nonacademic concerns."

Erhardt, an adjunct assistant professor, is a versatile, dedicated teacher, excellent colleague and motivated and prolific researcher, Mayer adds.

Those traits have led to extraordinary contributions to the Economics Department's service obligations and strong curriculum. Erhardt, who earned his MA and PhD at the University of Cincinnati, has taught 2,672 students in 20 courses over the past two years alone.

EDITH C. ALEXANDER Award for Distinguished Teaching

KATHLEEN BURLEW, Psychology

Professor of psychology Kathleen Burlew has gained notice as an inspiring, innovative psychologist and teacher with more than 30 years of research, leadership and honors in her field.

Graduate students cite her dedication to their education and her "unwavering commitment to the future of psychology."

Department of Psychology head Steven Howe notes Burlew's impressive research funding, ongoing work at the Crossroads Center, 100-percent student retention rate and her "truly outstanding ability" to recruit, train and mentor African American psychologists.

A "model professional," she also serves on boards, writes books and has edited the Journal of Black Psychology. "She does it all, and she does it well, and in keeping with the very highest standards of professionalism and excellence," Howe says.

McMicken Dean's Award for Distinguished Scholarship

CARLTON BRETT, Geology

Professor Carlton Brett has earned an international reputation as a scholar and leader in paleontology and geology.

A widely published author with a record of strong external grant support for his research, Brett is a Fellow of the Graduate School, the Paleontological Society and the Geological Society of America. He has served as mentor to 18 PhD and 21 master's students, and sponsored dozens of undergraduates.

"Carl is certainly among the most versatile, imaginative and hard-working researchers anywhere in the allied fields of paleontology and stratigraphy," says Professor Arnold Miller, head of the Department of Geology.

Dr. Steven Stanley of the University of Hawaii sums up Brett's credentials: "Carl, in my view, is the world's best field paleontologist of all who study invertebrate fossils."

McMicken Dean's Award for Distinguished Service

DANIEL LANGMEYER, Psychology

Professor of psychology Daniel Langmeyer is honored for extensive contributions to the college. He has, colleagues say, achieved distinction at every level of department, college and university life.

Langmeyer's notable and valued accomplishments include helping establish the graduate program in social psychology and the Community Psychology Institute, and his long tenure as director of undergraduate studies. He also has a distinguished history of service with the Faculty Senate, McMicken College Undergraduate Council and AAUP.

Department of Psychology head Steven Howe calls Langmeyer "a fine teacher and creative methodologist."

"He has also compiled the most impressive record of service I have ever seen. I am proud that he is my colleague," Howe says.

McMicken College of Arts & Sciences Alumni Scholarship

Jennifer Graf, Biology

Biology major Jennifer Graf finds encouragement goes hand in hand with education.

She and her friends "all push each other to do better," and biology professor Denis Conover "makes material easier to learn."

Winning the scholarship is "a great feeling," says the Cincinnati native. "I was still excited for days aer I found out, and continue to be today."

McMicken College of Arts & Sciences Alumni Scholarship

SARAH ROVITO, English & Comparative Literature

First-year English major Sarah Rovito is already writing her future. A Cincinnati native, Sarah works at a local retail store and coaches volleyball.

When she graduates, she hopes to work for a magazine writing a weekly column that makes people think about or question the world around them. Field service assistant professor Lisa Beckelhimer inspires Sarah's progress: "She is easteacher I have encountered so far," Sarah says.

THE ELENOR HICKS AWARD for the Outstanding Undergraduate Female Senior

JESSICA LAWRENCE, Biology & Environmental Studies

Jessica Lawrence thrives on challenge. She will start on a master's in biological sciences at UC this fall, concentrating on ecology, and holds down a full-time job.

Professor Eric Maurer impresses Jessica: "He's always cordial and makes time to meet with students even when he's swamped. Many of my professors have directly and indirectly encouraged me to continue pursuing my educational and professional goals, even during those times when it all seemed a bit overwhelming."

THE ROBERT PATTERSON McKIBBIN MEDAL for the Outstanding Undergraduate Male Senior

ALAN GROVE, Political Science

Alan Grove approaches new ideas and concepts with an eye on the future, thinking about how he would present information to students.

An aspiring professor, Alan credits Richard Harknett as key in his success, "because of the way that he has helped me become the student that I am today."

The Findlay native, who will begin graduate studies at UC, has served as a senator in student government. His memberships include Tau Kappa Epsilon and the UC Club Ice Hockey Team.

OUTSTANDING MASTER'S STUDENT AWARD

BYRON ADAMS, Geology

Byron Adams, an Indianapolis native, has been the key graduate student in the Department of Geology's budding tectonic geomorphology program. He considers associate professor Craig Dietsch an "integral part" of his achievement, while Dietsch praises Byron's innovative lab technique and groundbreaking field research in the Himalaya of India. Byron will pursue a PhD at Arizona State University and plans a teaching career.

OUTSTANDING DOCTORAL STUDENT AWARD

RALUCA DUMITRU, Mathematical Sciences

Raluca Dumitru, a mathematics student, has proven herself a talented researcher, exceptional student and valued collaborator who will "contribute significantly" to knowledge of the field, says professor Costel Peligrad.

A native of Craiova, Romania, Raluca says Peligrad has had a tremendous effect on her graduate career, "because of his guidance, support and encouragement."

Raluca has accepted a tenure-track assistant professor position at the University of North Florida.