Faculty and Staff Awards
Faculty and staff within the UMass Amherst School of Public Health and Health Sciences have been recognized for their outstanding accomplishments in academics, in research, and in the community.
ADVANCE Faculty Fellows
Through a combination of research, programming, and practices, UMass ADVANCE seeks to understand and address systemic and intersectional inequalities to lay the groundwork for a fairer, more equitable, diverse and inclusive campus. Faculty Fellows provide recommendations and feedback to the team about ADVANCE programming and liaise with their departments to promote the ADVANCE program. They also inform ADVANCE about successful equity and inclusion initiatives in their units.
- Laura Attanasio (Health Policy and Management) 2023-2024
- Soonkyu Chung (Nutrition) 2023-2024
- Eliza Frechette (Kinesiology) 2023-2024
- Megan Gross (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2023-2024
- Carrie Nobles (Environmental Health Sciences) 2023-2024
- Zhengqing Ouyang (Biostatistics) 2023-2024
- Elizabeth Evans (Community Health Education) 2022-2023
- Zhenhua Liu (Nutrition) 2022-2023
- Sara Mamo (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2022-2023
- Katie Potter (Kinesiology) 2022-2023
- Katherine Reeves (Epidemiology) 2022-2023
- Sofiya Alhassan (Kinesiology) 2021-2022
- Mary Andrianopoulos (Communication Disorders) 2021-2022
- Raphael Arku (Environmental Health Sciences) 2021-2022
- Lisa Troy (Nutrition) 2021-2022
- Jennifer Whitehill (Health Promotion and Policy) 2021-2022
- Katherine Boyer (Kinesiology) 2020-2021
- Lorraine Cordeiro (Nutrition) 2020-2021
- Kimberley Geissler (Health Promotion and Policy) 2020-2021
- Sarah Poissant (Communication Disorders) 2020-2021
- Laura Vandenberg (Environmental Health Sciences) 2020-2021
ADVANCE Faculty Peer Mentoring Award
The UMass ADVANCE Program disseminates resources, tools, and training on best practices for excellent faculty mentoring. The annual award was created this year for faculty in each school or college to recognize the vital role recipients serve in mentoring their colleagues. Their mentoring ensures that faculty members excel in their careers and helps develop a more inclusive environment at the university.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Eliza Frechette (Kinesiology) 2024
- Aline Gubrium (Community Health Education) 2023
- Jane Kent (Kinesiology) 2022
- Sofiya Alhassan (Kinesiology) 2021
- Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson (Biostatistics and Epidemiology) 2020
Center for Research on Families Scholars
Since 2003, the UMass Amherst Center for Research on Familiies (CRF) has offered its groundbreaking Family Research Scholars Program, which provides selected UMass Amherst and Five Colleges faculty with time and technical expertise, opportunities for peer mentorship, and national expert consultation to prepare a large grant proposal in support of their research.
Family Research Scholars participate in a year-long interdisciplinary faculty seminar that includes presentations and discussions of the Scholars’ developing proposals, concrete instruction on the details of successful proposal submission and the resources of the University, individualized methodology consultation, and information about relevant funding agencies.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Katie Potter (Kinesiology) 2024-2025
- John Sirard (Kinesiology) 2024-2025
- Soonkyu Chung (Nutrition) 2023-2024
- Amanda Paluch (Kinesiology) 2023-2024
- Sarah Gonzalez-Nahm (Nutrition) 2022-2023
- Cassandra Spracklen (Epidemiology) 2022-2023
- Raphael Arku (Environmental Health Sciences) 2021-2022
- Laura Attanasio (Health Promotion and Policy) 2021-2022
- Sarah Goff (Health Promotion and Policy) 2020-2021
- Alicia Timme-Laragy (Environmental Health Sciences) 2020-2021
- Airin Martinez (Health Promotion and Policy) 2019-2020
- Nicole VanKim (Biostatistics & Epidemiology) 2019-2020
- Jennifer Whitehill (Health Promotion and Policy) 2019-2020
- Krishna Poudel (Health Promotion and Policy) 2018-2019
- Aline Gubrium (Health Promotion and Policy) 2017-2018
- Krystal Pollitt (Environmental Health Sciences) 2017-2018
- Ning Zhang (Health Promotion and Policy) 2017-2018
- Sofiya Alhassan (Kinesiology) 2016-2017
- Louis Graham (Health Promotion and Policy) 2016-2017
- J. Richard Pilsner (Environmental Health Sciences) 2015-2016
- Lindiwe Sibeko (Nutrition) 2015-2016
- Laura Vandenberg (Environmental Health Sciences) 2015-2016
- Katherine Reeves (Biostatistics & Epidemiology) 2014-2015
- Gwyneth Rost (Communication Disorders) 2013-2014
- Lisa Troy (Nutrition) 2013-2014
- Jerusha Nelson Peterman (Nutrition) 2012-2013
- Yu-Kyong Choe (Communication Disorders) 2010-2011
- Lorraine Cordeiro (Nutrition) 2010-2011
- Jacquie Kurland (Communication Disorders) 2009-2010
- Lisa Marin Wexler (Health Promotion and Policy) 2007-2008
Chancellor's Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activity
The chancellor created the Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activity in 2005 for faculty members from across campus who have, within the past three years, demonstrated outstanding achievement that has received national and/or international recognition appropriate to the discipline. Each of the honorees receives a crystal award engraved with the Amherst campus seal at Convocation in the fall.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Susan Hankinson (Biostatistics & Epidemiology) 2017
- Patty S. Freedson (Kinesiology) 2007
- Priscilla M. Clarkson (Kinesiology) 2005
Chancellor's Citation for Excellence
The Chancellor’s Citation Award recognizes outstanding work performance by university staff. Any staff member who has demonstrated outstanding performance in helping the university achieve its goals and objectives may be nominated. Specifically sought are examples of original contributions to the university, attainment of high-priority university objectives, performance “beyond the call of duty,” and achievement of significant improvements in productivity or savings in university operations.
Staff recipients include:
- Aimee Gilbert Loinaz (Office of Career Planning) 2020-2021
- Lori Peterson (Professional Programs) 2020-2021
- Lisa Sullivan-Werner (Nutrition Extension) 2012–2013
- Linda Downs-Bembury (SPHHS Research Administration Office) 2011–2012
Chancellor’s Leadership Fellowship
The Chancellor’s Leadership Fellowship (CLF) program seeks to cultivate future campus leaders by offering a half-time, one-year temporary appointment to an administrative area on campus, and providing mentoring from the leaders of the host units. During the year, Fellows are expected to launch a significant program. Chancellor’s Leadership Fellows also engage with their cohort through a mutual mentoring group of Fellows.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Ken Kleinman (Biostatistics and Epidemiology) 2022
- Sarah Poissant (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2021
- Karen Helfer (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2019
- Nancy Cohen (Nutrition) 2016
College Outstanding Teaching Award
The College Outstanding Teaching Award was instituted in 1995 to augment the University Distinguished Teaching Award in an effort to recognize a larger number of talented teachers. The award is sponsored by the UMass Amherst Provost’s Office and the Center for Teaching & Faculty Development, and given annually to honor individual faculty members for their teaching accomplishments.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Elizabeth Cook (Epidemiology) 2023-2024
- Gregory Grinnell (Kinesiology) 2022-2023
- Gloria DiFulvio (Community Health Education) 2021-2022
- Krishna Poudel (Community Health Education) 2020-2021
- Claire Norton (Nutrition) 2019-2020
- Jill Hoover (Communication Disorders) 2018-2019
- Zhenhua Liu (Nutrition) 2017-2018
- Eliza Frechette (Kinesiology) 2016-2017
- Gwyneth Rost (Communication Disorders) 2015–2016
- Judi LaBranche (Kinesiology) 2014–2015
- Jerusha Peterman (Nutrition) 2013–2014
- Lorraine Cordeiro (Nutrition) 2012–2013
- Frank Rife (Kinesiology) 2011–2012
- Christine Rogers (Environmental Health Sciences) 2010–2011
- Brian Umberger (Kinesiology) 2009–2010
- Sarah Poissant (Communication Disorders) 2008–2009
- Alayne Ronnenberg (Nutrition) 2007–2008
- Elizabeth R. Bertone-Johnson (Epidemiology) 2006–2007
- Gary Kamen (Kinesiology) 2005–2006
- Daniel Gerber (Community Health Education) 2004–2005
- Elena Carbone (Nutrition) 2003–2004
- Barry Braun (Kinesiology) 2002–2003
- Shelley Velleman (Communication Disorders) 2001–2002
- Lisa Chasan-Taber (Epidemiology) 2000–2001
- Mary Andrianopoulos (Communication Disorders) 1999–2000
- Stella Volpe (Nutrition) 1998–1999
- Graham Caldwell (Kinesiology) 1997–1998
- Jane Baran (Communication Disorders) 1996–1997
Distinguished Community Engagement Award for Research
This award recognizes individuals within our campus community as well as community partner organizations for their outstanding contributions to community-engaged scholarship and teaching, and campus/community partnerships, with impacts at the local, regional, national, or international level.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Airín Martínez (Health Policy and Management) 2022-2023
- Lindiwe Sibeko (Nutrition) 2019-2020
- Elizabeth Evans (Health Promotion and Policy) 2018-2019
- Lisa Wexler (Health Promotion and Policy) 2015-2016
- Elena Carbone (Nutrition) 2012-2013
Distinguished Faculty Lecture Series/Chancellor's Medal
This lecture series celebrates the value of academic excellence and recognizes the distinguished achievements of faculty. Those chosen for the series also receive the Chancellor's Medal, the highest honor bestowed to faculty by the campus.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Richard van Emmerik (Kinesiology) 2023-2024
- Nicholas Reich (Biostatistics) 2021-2022
- Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson (Epidemiology) 2020-2021
- Lisa Chasan-Taber (Epidemiology) 2013–2014
- Patty S. Freedson (Kinesiology) 2003–2004
- Priscilla M. Clarkson (Kinesiology) 1997–1998
- Robert Tuthill (Public Health) 1995–1996
- Kenneth Mundt (Public Health) 1994–1995
- E. Harris Nober (Communication Disorders) 1993–1994
- Nancy Sheard (Nutrition) 1993–1994
- David Buchanan (Community Health Education) 1992–1993
- William Darity (Public Health) 1988–1989
- Virginia Beal (Nutrition) 1985–1986
- Peter Pellett (Nutrition) 1981–1982
Distinguished Professor
The title Distinguished Professor is conferred on select, highly accomplished faculty who have already achieved the rank of professor and who meet a demanding set of qualifications.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Jane Kent (Kinesiology) 2023
- Susan Hankinson (Biostatistics and Epidemiology) 2020
Distinguished Teaching Award
Honoring individual excellence, the campus-wide Distinguished Teaching Award is highly competitive and prestigious. Only current students and alumni may nominate faculty for this award. Each year faculty, graduate, and undergraduate student committees review more than 100 nominations in a two-step process of data collection and analysis prior to selecting three faculty and two teaching assistant awardees. Recipients receive a monetary prize and are recognized at both the undergraduate and graduate commencements.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson (Biostatistics & Epidemiology) 2018-2019
- Lorraine Cordeiro (Nutrition) 2014–2015
- Shelley Velleman (Communication Disorders) 2009–2010
- Barry Braun (Kinesiology) 2006–2007
- Stella Volpe (Nutrition) 1998–1999
- Paula Stamps (Health Policy and Management) 1993–1994
- Howard Peters (Public Health) 1987–1988
- Esther Wallace (Kinesiology) 1978–1979
HERS Leadership Institute
HERS (Higher Education Resource Services) is a leadership development and research organization that is dedicated to creating and sustaining a diverse network of women-identified leaders in higher education. The University of Massachusetts Amherst supports the development of women leaders from the faculty and staff by supporting their participation in the HERS Leadership Institute, a transformational leadership development program for women in higher education.
- Lindiwe Sibeko (Nutrition) 2022
- Donna Falcetti (Associate Dean, Administration and Finance) 2020
- Karen Helfer (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2018
- Elena Carbone (Nutrition) 2014
- Marjorie Aelion (Environmental Health Sciences) 2009
- Jane Baran (Communication Disorders) 2009
Lilly Teaching Fellows
Fellows are tenure-track faculty selected by the Center for Teaching at UMass Amherst “for their promise in teaching and research, their interest in undergraduate teaching and in developing innovative teaching skills, and their potential for making a positive impact on the teaching culture in their department, college, and broader campus community.”
SPHHS recipients include:
- Jennifer Mack (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2024-2025
- Gregory Grinnell (Kinesiology) 2023-2024
- Sarah Gonzalez-Nahm (Nutrition) 2022-2023
- Young-Cheul Kim (Nutrition) 2010–2011
- Christine Rogers (Environmental Health Sciences) 2008–2009
- William Bartosch (Public Health) 2006–2007
- Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson (Epidemiology) 2003–2004
- Barry Braun (Kinesiology) 2001–2002
Manning Prize for Excellence in Teaching
The Manning Prize for Excellence in Teaching honors one outstanding faculty member from each of the five campuses of the University of Massachusetts. This competitive prize is presented to faculty members who demonstrate excellence in teaching along with exemplary dedication to students and the campus community. President Marty Meehan will host a luncheon celebrating the achievements of the selected faculty members, each presented with a $10,000 award.
- Lorraine Cordeiro (Nutrition) 2021-2022
Public Engagement Project Faculty Fellows
The Public Engagement Project (PEP) Fellows Program facilitates connections between fellows and lawmakers in the U.S. Congress and Massachusetts State House, journalists, practitioners and others to share their research beyond the walls of academia. The faculty fellows will receive a stipend and technical training in communicating with non-academic audiences.
- Jamie Hartmann-Boyce (Health Policy and Management) 2024
- Amanda Paluch (Kinesiology) 2023
- Susan Shaw (Community Health Education) 2021
- Leontine Alkema (Biostatistics) 2020
- Alicia Timme-Laragy (Environmental Health Sciences) 2019
- Brian Whitcomb (Epidemiology) 2019
- Elizabeth Evans (Community Health Education) 2018
- Louis Graham (Community Health Education) 2016
- Lisa Chasan-Taber (Epidemiology) 2015
- Aline Gubrium (Community Health Education) 2015
Research Leadership in Action
Research Leadership in Action is an internal grant competition sponsored by the Vice Provost for Research for full-time UMass Amherst tenure-track and research faculty to showcase leadership in research and scholarly activity. The program's inaugural year was 2005.
SPHHS recipients include:
- David Buchanan & Lisa Wexler (Community Health Education) 2007–2008
Samuel F. Conti Faculty Fellowship Award
A University of Massachusetts Amherst Samuel F. Conti Faculty Fellowship provides faculty members with a unique opportunity to focus on their research or creative activities. These Fellowships are managed by the office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Engagement (VCRE) and provide a one-year release from teaching and service duties in addition to a $3,500 cash award.
Fellows are chosen based on their record of outstanding accomplishments in research and creative activity and on their potential for continued excellence, particularly with regard to the project that would be undertaken during the Fellowship period and as proposed in their nomination materials. Accomplishments in research and creative activity as a UMass Amherst faculty member are paramount.
SPHHS recipients include:
- Jane Kent (Kinesiology) 2021-2022
- Susan Hankinson (Biostatistics & Epidemiology) 2018-2019
- Richard van Emmerik (Kinesiology) 2017-2018
SPHHS Outstanding Graduate Student Teacher Award
The SPHHS Graduate Student Teacher Award was instituted by the school in 2020 to recognize excellence in graduate student instruction. Recipients include:
- Rong Fan (Nutrition) 2023-2024
- Melanna Cox (Kinesiology) 2022-2023
- Samantha Scripture (Communication Disorders) 2021-2022
- Brittany Ranchoff (Health Promotion and Policy) 2020-2021
- Joshua Nugent (Biostatistics and Epidemiology) 2019-2020
SPHHS UWW Outstanding Teaching Award
The SPHHS UWW Outstanding Teaching Award was instituted by the school in 2010 to recognize excellence in online instruction. Recipients include:
- Susan Brown (Public Health Practice) 2022-2023
- Lawrence Pellegrini (Health Promotion and Policy) 2021-2022
- Carol Bigelow (Biostatistics and Epidemiology) 2020-2021
- Sofija Zagarins (Nutrition) 2019-2020
- Thomas St. Laurent (Kinesiology) 2018-2019
- Daniel Gerber (Public Health Practice) 2017-2018
- Amber Hromi-Fiedler (Nutrition) 2016-2017
- Melissa Brown (Nutrition) 2015–2016
- Daniel Goldstein (Public Health Practice) 2014–2015
- Renee Turzanski-Fortner (Public Health Practice) 2013–2014
- Anne Hewitt (Public Health Practice) 2012–2013
- Carol Bigelow (Public Health Practice) 2011–2012
- Patsy Beffa-Negrini (Nutrition) 2010–2011
TIDE Ambassadors Faculty Fellows
TIDE (Teaching for Inclusiveness, Diversity and Equity) Ambassadors explore how they can enhance students’ learning and academic success across cultural, social, and learning differences by adopting a strength-based, inclusive, and equitable approach to teaching and learning grounded in the value of diversity.
- Christy Maxwell (Nutrition) 2023-2024
- Jing Qian (Biostatistics) 2023-2024
- Gwyneth Rost (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2023-2024
- Elizabeth Cook (Epidemiology) 2022-2023
- Sarah Goff (Health Policy and Management) 2021-2022
- Lindiwe Sibeko (Nutrition) 2021-2022
- Gloria DiFulvio (Community Health Education) 2020-2021
- Nathaniel Whitmal (Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences) 2020-2021
- Andrea Ayvazian (Community Health Education) 2019-2020
- Katherine Reeves (Epidemiology) 2019-2020
- Laura Vandenberg (Environmental Health Sciences) 2018-2019
- Gayatri Guhanarayan (Kinesiology) 2016-2017
UMass Amherst Spotlight Scholars
Scholars are UMass Amherst faculty members who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in research, scholarship or creative activity.
- Kathryn Derose (Community Health Education) 2024
- Elizabeth Evans (Community Health Education) 2022
- Laura Balzer (Biostatistics) 2021
- Jane Kent (Kinesiology) 2020
- Lisa Chasan-Taber (Epidemiology) 2013
- Susan Hankinson (Epidemiology) 2012
- Barry Braun (Kinesiology) 2011