Archive for April, 2011

GSB’s Charles O’Reilly III receives lifetime achievement award

April 14th, 2011
Charles O'Reilly

Charles O'Reilly

The 6,000-member Organizational Behavior Division of the Academy of Management will present its lifetime achievement award in August to CHARLES O’REILLY III, the Frank E. Buck Professor of Management at the Graduate School of Business.

The division’s members are scholars who study individuals and groups within an organizational context. The lifetime achievement award is reserved for scholars who have been outstanding publishers of research and teachers in the field over two decades.

The academy says that his research on “communication and decision making, culture, commitment processes, demography, compensation, social control, diversity and organization architectures has shaped the very way that OB scholars and practitioners look at the impact of social process and incentive mechanism.”

Read the full story from the GSB website.

Pedersen and Pohlen drafted; Kelsey heading to Wisconsin

April 13th, 2011

Bobbie Kelsey

Stanford women’s basketball senior stars KAYLA PEDERSEN and JEANETTE POHLEN have been drafted into the WNBA. Pedersen was chosen seventh by the Tulsa Shock, and Pohlen was chosen ninth by the Indiana Fever.

Pedersen ended her Stanford career among the best ever. She leaves as both Stanford’s and the Pac-10 Conference’s all-time leading rebounder. Pohlen enjoyed a breakout 2010-11 season. She earned All-America recognition from the Associated Press, the USBWA and the John R. Wooden Award.

See the story about their selection on the Stanford Athletic’s website.

In the meantime, BOBBIE KELSEY, who has been assistant women’s basketball coach for four years, has been named the new head coach at the University of Wisconsin. She is the sixth former Stanford star who played for TARA VANDERVEER to join the collegiate head coaching ranks.

“We are thrilled for Bobbie and for the opportunity she has earned at Wisconsin,” said VanDerveer, Stanford’s Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women’s Basketball. “Bobbie has done an outstanding job here at Stanford over the past four years and, truthfully, it is bittersweet to see her leave. I know that she will continue to do a fine job in Madison, and we wish her the absolute best.”

Read the article about Kelsey.

Axel Brunger wins the DeLano Award for Computational Biosciences

April 12th, 2011

Axel Brunger

Axel Brunger

AXEL BRUNGER, professor of molecular and cellular physiology, of neurology and neurological sciences, of photon science and, by courtesy, of structural biology, has been named the winner of the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology’s inaugural DeLano Award for Computational Biosciences.

Brunger will deliver his award lecture, “Toward Structural Biology with Single Molecules” tomorrow, Wednesday, April 13, at the Experimental Biology 2011 conference in Washington, D.C.

The award, given for the first time this year, honors those who “create accessible and innovative development or applications of computer technology to enhance research in the life sciences at the molecular level,” according to a press release issued by the society.

“Axel was the principal designer of CNS, which for over a decade, has been the standard refinement program used by the structural [biology] community,” according to nominator James Well of UCSF.

The award honors the late Warren L. DeLano, a scientist and entrepreneur who promoted open-source technology and believed in making his programs and source code freely available to users and enabling researchers to build on his developments. Wells credits Brunger for being a mentor to DeLano.

See the society’s press release for more information.

Farhat named fellow of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics

April 11th, 2011

CHARBEL FARHAT, the Vivian Church Hoff Professor of Aircraft Structures and chair of the Aeronautics and Astronautics Department, has been named a fellow of The Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM). Fellows are recognized for outstanding contributions to applied mathematics and computational science through research and community service.

Farhat is being honored for his contributions to parallel computing, modeling, and simulation. His research group develops mathematical models, algorithms, and software for applications in aerospace, marine, mechanical and naval engineering. For example, Farhat and two research associates recently published an efficient mathematical model to predict in real time a dangerous aeronautical risk known as wing flutter.

 

Stanford Video wins two awards at 32nd Annual Telly Awards

April 8th, 2011

The 32nd Annual Telly Awards have been announced, and STANFORD VIDEO won two bronze Tellys.

The Telly Awards honor “the very best local, regional and cable television commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions and work created for the Web,” according to the organization’s website.

Stanford Hospital & Clinics’ Interventional Cardiology Promo, which was shot in October 2009 and aired as the opener for the department’s live satellite training transmissions from the Catheterization Angiography Laboratory, was the recipient of one of the awards.

Tom Brokaw moderated the 2010 Roundtable whose broadcast was recognized with a Telly Award.

The second award went to the Tom Brokaw-hosted 2010 Roundtable. Called “Generation Ageless: Longevity and the Boomers,” the Roundtable was shot last year in Maples Pavilion during Reunion Weekend and was distributed nationally to about 40 stations in 30 markets and 11 states—“or about 20 percent of the country,” reports Gayle Loeber of the National Educational Telecommunications Association. There were a total of 57 broadcasts.

“Stanford Video is proud to support the university’s national television presence with our dedicated, professional crew. A lot of hard work goes into these productions, so it’s great to get recognized,” says GORDON GURLEY, Stanford Video director.

The Interventional Cardiology Promo was produced by executive producer KAREN SUTTON. The 2010 Roundtable was co-produced by Sutton, Gurley and MELINDA SACKS, director of media initiatives for the Office of Public Affairs. It was directed by MAURICIO QUIJANO, a longtime freelancer who has directed broadcasts for a variety of events, including Commencement.

Last year, Stanford Video also received two bronze Tellys, one of which was for the Stanford “Leadership” spot that still airs regularly on TV during Stanford sporting events. It features Rosalyn Gold-Onwude, the starting guard for the women’s basketball team in the 2008-09 season.

Visit the Stanford Video website.

 

Hillel at Stanford names new executive director

April 7th, 2011

RABBI SERENA EISENBERG has been appointed executive director of Hillel at Stanford, effective August 2011.

“We look forward with great enthusiasm to introducing Serena to Hillel at Stanford’s wonderful community of students, faculty, alumni and supporters,” Hillel board members and search committee co-chairs Jim Heeger and Joan Karlin wrote in an announcement. “We also want to thank everyone who participated in the search process and all who provided additional input to our committee.”

Since 2007, Eisenberg has lived with her family in Israel while serving as a Mandel Jerusalem Fellow at the Mandel Leadership Institute and as a consultant in Jewish education.

Before moving to Israel, she served as executive director for Hillel at Brown University, her alma mater, from 2005 to 2007.

Eisenberg has strong ties to the Bay Area. After completing graduate work in law and social work at the University of California-Berkeley, she developed the foster care ombudsman office for the Alameda County Social Services Department. She has served as interim director of the Israel and Overseas Committee at the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund in San Francisco and as the founding director of the Community Jewish Youth Foundation of the East Bay. She also has worked as a Jewish educator and program administrator at several Bay Area synagogues.

BETH SCHECTER, who has served as interim executive director of Hillel since September 2010, will continue in that role until Eisenberg arrives.

The full announcement is posted on the Hillel website.

 

 

 

Lawrence Steinman to receive award for lifetime achievement in research on multiple sclerosis

April 5th, 2011

LAWRENCE STEINMAN, the George A. Zimmerman Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, will receive the 2011 Multiple Sclerosis International Federation Charcot Award, a biennial award that recognizes a lifetime achievement in research into the understanding or treatment of multiple sclerosis.

“Few investigators have been so widely recognized or successful in illuminating critical disease mechanisms, in a way that has moved knowledge from molecular analysis to licensed therapy,” Alan Thompson, MD, chair of the award panel, said in announcing Steinman’s selection.

Steinman’s research has focused on the immunological mechanisms of relapse and remission in MS, the identification and characterization of genes that regulate inflammation in the brain and the development of novel therapies that modulate the immune system.

He is now leading efforts to develop a vaccine that turns off the autoimmune response in MS and to define mechanistic biomarkers for MS — substances whose presence in the body can be used to predict the outcome of current therapies and illuminate the pathogenic mechanisms of the disease.

“I’ve never been more excited about the discoveries we are making in the lab and in the clinic,” Steinman said after being notified of the award. “However, until MS is cured, such prizes may be greeted with more than a bit of legitimate skepticism for many of those individuals whom I know, whose MS is a massive, daily challenge.”

The prize, with a cash award of around $2,500, will be presented at the annual European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis meeting in Amsterdam later this year.

Admission staff savors the annual ‘Peel and Seal’

April 1st, 2011

Dean Shaw

Director of Admission Bob Patterson, right, and his staff seal, stamp and prepare to mail the acceptance letters.

The “Peel and Seal” has become an annual ritual for the Office of Undergraduate Admission, which this week mailed invitations to join the Class of 2015. As most staff swiftly sealed envelopes containing formal offers to 2,427 students, University Photographer LINDA CICERO spotted RICK SHAW, dean of undergraduate admission and financial aid, taking a little extra time with each packet, savoring the task. “He looked like he was enjoying himself,” Cicero said.
Shaw showed her the address label on one envelope: “Casper, Wyoming,” Shaw said. “Think about that.”

Email notifications were sent Tuesday, March 29. The hard copies followed Thursday.

This is the inaugural Stanford class for BOB PATTERSON, director of admission, who came to the Farm from Berkeley last September. He praised his staff for their hard work: “They were amazing throughout the entire process and were truly passionate about sending letters to admitted students,” he added.