Awards and Accolades

Awards and Accolades

By University Relations - Communications
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Michele Norin
Michele Norin
Gabrielle Giffords and Carolyn Lukensmeyer
Gabrielle Giffords and Carolyn Lukensmeyer
Aleix Serrat-Capdevila (left) with Bisher Iman (center), Deputy Secretary of UNESCO's International Hydrological Programme, and Hal Cardwell (right), director of Conflict Resolution and Public Participation Center of Expertise at the USACE Institute for Water Resources.
Aleix Serrat-Capdevila (left) with Bisher Iman (center), Deputy Secretary of UNESCO's International Hydrological Programme, and Hal Cardwell (right), director of Conflict Resolution and Public Participation Center of Expertise at the USACE Institute for Water Resources.
James Kloster
James Kloster
Jill Guernsey de Zapien
Jill Guernsey de Zapien
Jeannie Lee
Jeannie Lee
Donald Slack
Donald Slack
Peter E. Medine, Meg Lota Brown and David Soren
Peter E. Medine, Meg Lota Brown and David Soren
Richard Hanson
Richard Hanson

Congratulations to these recently honored University employees and programs.

Computerworld Names Michele Norin Among Premier 100 IT Leaders

Michele Norin, chief information officer at the UA, has been named a 2015 Premier 100 IT Leaders honoree by Computerworld, a leading information technology media brand. The Premier 100 program spotlights individuals who have had a positive impact on their organizations through technology. As the University's CIO, Norin leads and advocates for the development and use of information technology on campus in support of the UA's vision for excellence in research, teaching, outreach and lifelong learning. She also encourages collaboration among central and departmental IT units, champions the use and expansion of IT services to enhance student and academic success, facilitates information sharing within the campus IT community, and has recently developed a new campus IT governance model. The Premier 100 awards ceremony will be held in Florida in the spring.

National Institute for Civil Discourse Receives 2014 Common Ground Award

The UA National Institute for Civil Discourse was honored with the Search for Common Ground's annual Common Ground Award for 2014. The Search for Common Ground is an organization dedicated to ending violent conflict around the world. The award was presented earlier this month at the National Geographic Society Headquarters in Washington, D.C., and accepted by former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the institute's executive director, Carolyn Lukensmeyer. The National Institute for Civil Discourse works with people and institutions to support elected officials who are working to solve political issues, ensure better quality of public discourse, and address political dysfunction and the future of American democracy.

Aleix Serrat-Capdevila Receives U.S. Army Commander's Award for Civilian Service

Aleix Serrat-Capdevila, a research associate professor in the UA Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, has been awarded the Commander's Award for Civilian Service from the U.S. Army. He was recognized for his key role in helping fulfill the mission of the International Center for Integrated Water Resources Management, a consortium of government agencies, universities and non-governmental organizations that works to address water security and water-related challenges. The center is part of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and is headquartered at the U.S. Army Engineer Institute for Water Resources in Alexandria, Virginia. Among other accomplishments, Serrat-Capdevila has helped design tools for training and collaborating with water professionals in developing countries.

James Kloster Receives Distinguished Citizen Award

James Kloster, manager of long-term care services at the UA's Medication Management Center, has received the Findlay E. Russell Distinguished Citizen Award from the UA College of Pharmacy. This award honors an individual who is not a graduate of the College of Pharmacy but has achieved success, helped further the college's mission, provided leadership to the profession and the community, and made a positive impact on the state, nation and world. Kloster has been an active member of the College of Pharmacy for the past 16 years and is a founding member of the Medication Management Center.

Jill Guernsey de Zapien Receives 2014 Vision Award for Excellence in Health Planning

The American Public Health Association has awarded Jill Guernsey de Zapien, associate dean for community programs at the UA Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, with its 2014 Vision Award for Excellence in Health Planning. The award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated excellence, creativity and innovation in health planning practice. Award recipients are those whose contributions toward health planning go beyond the expectations of routine job performance. For more than 20 years, Guernsey de Zapien has worked to advance health planning and policy development in underserved populations in the U.S.-Mexico border region. She also established the first promotora community outreach program in Arizona; promotoras are Hispanic community members who provide basic health education. And she established Health Start, a program that focuses on prenatal care for farm worker women.

Jeannie Lee Receives 2014 Pharmacy Practice Research Award

Jeannie Lee, assistant professor in the UA Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science, has been named a recipient of the 2014 Pharmacy Practice Research Award, given by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists' Research and Education Foundation. The mission of the foundation is to improve the health and well-being of patients through appropriate, safe and effective medication use. Its awards program recognizes excellence and leadership in the training and mentoring of pharmacy residents. Currently, Lee is working on a project funded by the National Institutes of Health, "Chronic Disease Health Beliefs, Medication Adherence, and Health Literacy," in collaboration with the UA School of Anthropology. She also is working on the Pima County Asian American and Pacific Islander Navigator Program with the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health and UA College of Medicine.

Global Excellence Awards Recognize International Work

The UA's Office of Global Initiatives and Center for English as a Second Language have announced three Global Excellence Award winners. These awards recognize individuals and groups who have produced a substantial impact in the areas of international service or international education. Donald Slack, a professor in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, received the Excellence in Global Education Award. Slack has furthered the cause of international education through multiple initiatives and contributions for more than 40 years. UA alumna Chelsea Halstead, co-founder and program manager at the Colibrí Center for Human Rights, received the Excellence in Global Service Award. At Colibrí, Halstead coordinates with forensic specialists throughout Mexico and the border region, and travels throughout the Southwest giving public presentations on the humanitarian dimensions of the border crisis. The Student Award for Global Excellence went to Team Guate, made up of public health and development practice students. With guidance from faculty members in the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, the students developed a service learning practicum in western Guatemala and southern Mexico with a focus on border health, migration, sustainable development and cultural enrichment. 

Four University Professors Receive 2014 Superior Teaching Awards

Four UA professors have received the 2014 Humanities Seminars Program Superior Teaching Awards. The Humanities Seminars Program serves the adult learners by allowing community members to take a variety of humanities-related courses taught by UA faculty members. Now entering its 31st year, the program has served 15,000 people in the greater Tucson area.

This year's winners include Meg Lota Brown, English professor and Graduate College faculty director, for teaching "Milton and Revolution." Brown has received nearly every major UA teaching award, as well as recognition for her research, service and leadership.

Professor emeritus Peter E. Medine was recognized for his course, "The History Plays of Shakespeare's Second Tetralogy." He has taught 12 courses for the Humanities Seminars and has been the recipient of several Humanities Seminars Superior Teaching Awards. His principal research interests center on English literature of the Early Modern period.    

"Roman Archaeology: Myth and Reality" was the topic of Regents' Professor David Soren's course. In addition to his many national and international awards, Soren was a founder and the first director of the Humanities Seminars Program. He works in many fields, including archaeology, classics and art history.

Professor emeritus Richard Hanson has taught eight courses in the Humanities Seminars Program. Hanson created the nationally known Musical Theatre Program in the School of Theatre, Film & Television and was recognized for teaching "Gotta Sing! Gotta Dance!"

We want to know about your good news. If you, your department or a colleague have won any major awards, been honored nationally or internationally, or accomplished some other major feat that deserves recognition, let us know about it.

To submit your news, please send us an email with this information:

  • Name of the person or team receiving the honor.​
  • Name of the organization granting the honor.
  • A description of the honor.
  • When the honor was announced and when it will be presented (or was presented).
  • A photo of the honoree. If others appear in the photo, please provide their names and affiliations.

Questions? Contact Amanda Ballard at 520-626-4407 or amandaballard@email.arizona.edu.

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