Peyton named a Pew Scholar in Biomedical Sciences

Shelly Peyton, assistant professor of Chemical Engineering, is one of 22 researchers who have been named Pew Scholars in the Biomedical Sciences by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The scholarships provide flexible funding to early career scientists researching the basis of perplexing health problems—including diabetes, autism, Parkinson’s disease, and cancer.
 
Pew’s scholars program awards recipients $240,000 over four years to pursue their projects without direction or restriction. To be considered, applicants must demonstrate excellence and creativity in their research.

Fulbright U.S. Student Program awards grants to 8

Eight campus scholars have been selected to participate in the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Program.
 
The competitive program selects current university students and recent graduates for their academic success and leadership potential and supports a year of study abroad. Participants teach and conduct research with the opportunity to exchange ideas, observe political, economic and cultural institutions, and embark on joint ventures in foreign lands.
 
Psychology professor Susan K.

Johnston elected chairman of Building Authority board of directors

Trustee and alumnus Philip W. Johnston is the new chairman of the UMass Building Authority Board of Directors, succeeding three-term chairman Robert Sheridan.
 
Johnston, who is president and chief executive officer of Johnston Associates, a Boston-based public affairs firm he founded in 1996, was elected chairman at UMBA’s recent annual meeting.
 
In announcing the selection of Johnston, President Robert Caret said,  “Given the many services that he was already providing to the University, I appreciate Phil Johnston’s willingness to take on this new leadership role at the UMass Building

Dining Services wins silver in national nutrition award competition

Dining Services is a recipient of the Silver Award for the 2013 Nutrition Awards, given by the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS). The Nutrition Awards aim to help member institutions advance their culinary expertise by acknowledging successful promotions and outstanding recipes.

Thirty colleges and universities across North America submitted entries in two categories, including Most Innovative Wellness and Nutrition Program, and Best Local Foods Recipe. Each entry was judged by a team of collegiate dining professionals.

New Badgett report shows higher poverty rates in LGB community

Poverty rates among all Americans have increased during the current recession, but people in our country’s lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) communities are more likely to be poor than their heterosexual counterparts, according to a new study co-authored by M.V. Lee Badgett, professor of Economics and director of the Center for Public Policy and Administration.
 
The report, “New Patterns of Poverty in the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Community,” shows that women, children and African-Americans are particularly vulnerable.

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