Announcement
July 27, 2009
Four directors of NIGMS-supported programs are among those named recipients of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. The annual awards recognize institutions and individuals who have been leaders in encouraging minorities, women and people with disabilities to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
The recipients, all biology professors at their institutions, are Dr. Frank T. Bayliss, Jr., San Francisco State University; Dr. Goldie S. Byrd, North Carolina A&T State University; Dr. Mary Anne Nelson, University of New Mexico; and Dr. Steven B. Oppenheimer, California State University, Northridge. They direct NIGMS Division of Minority Opportunities in Research (MORE) programs aimed at creating a diverse scientific workforce through undergraduate student training, student and faculty development, and research at minority-serving institutions. Also among the recipients is the MORE-supported Leadership Alliance, an academic consortium of 33 institutions that seeks to develop underrepresented minority students into outstanding leaders and role models in academia, business and the public sector.
The awards were established by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in 1996 and are administered through the National Science Foundation. Awardees will be honored at a White House ceremony in the fall, where they will receive a $10,000 grant and a commemorative Presidential certificate in recognition of their mentoring activities.
Since the awards program began in 1996, 18 individuals and 4 organizations supported by MORE have been recognized with the honor. For a full list of MORE winners of the Presidential mentoring award, see http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Minority/PresidentialAwards.htm.