Accolades

Shyam Visweswaran appointed to National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine committee

Shyam Visweswaran, a biomedical informatics professor and vice chair of clinical informatics in Pitt’s School of Medicine, was recently appointed to a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine committee. The committee's goal is to assess the current use of racialized groups and ethnic categories in biomedical research, including clinical algorithms, and make recommendations to the scientific community in the future use of race and ethnicity.

Visweswaran develops, implements and evaluates artificial intelligence-powered clinical decision support systems. His current research focuses on cataloging clinical algorithms that incorporate a person's race and ethnicity and developing computational methods for understanding the effect of race and ethnicity on model bias. At Pitt, he also directs the Center for Clinical Artificial Intelligence and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s Biomedical Informatics Core.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine provide objective advice to guide policy, advance innovation and solve difficult problems for society. The Academies publish more than 200 reports each year offering authoritative, independent advice on important science and health policy issues. The reports are written by scientific expert committees and represent their consensus on the state of knowledge on a specific topic.

Marco Capogrosso receives Society for Neuroscience's Young Investigator Award

Assistant Professor Marco Capogrosso has received the Society for Neuroscience’s Young Investigator Award, a first for a Pitt faculty member. The award recognizes outstanding achievements and contributions by young neuroscientists who lead independent research groups.

As director of Pitt’s Spinal Cord Stimulation Laboratory, Capogrosso studies the interactions between electrical stimulation and the dynamics of neural circuits. He is interested in the use and development of computational models to support the design of effective neurotechnologies, with a particular focus on the restoration of sensory and motor function after neural damage or disease.

He led a first-in-human clinical trial for electrical stimulation in the upper spinal cord to treat patients with upper-body paralysis caused by stroke. The study found that stimulating the spinal cord instantly improves arm and hand mobility; and, after a few weeks of use, some of these improvements endure when the stimulation is switched off, indicating exciting avenues for the future of stroke therapies.

“This award is an honor and a great recognition of translational research in neuroscience,” Capogrosso said. “We’re showing that we can change people’s lives using science.”

Previous awardees include numerous distinguished neuroscientists, including Nobel Prize winner Ardem Patapoutian.

 

23 Pitt researchers included on Clarivate’s annual Highly Cited list

Twenty-three Pitt researchers are included on the 2023 Highly Cited Researchers list from Clarivate.

The data and analytics company designated 7,125 researchers to the list nationwide this year, and each researcher selected has authored multiple Highly Cited Papers which rank in the top 1% by citations for their fields and publication year over the past decade.

Pitt’s recognized researchers include faculty from the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, School of Medicine, School of Public Health and Swanson School of Engineering, with research interests ranging from immunology to nanoparticles. See the full list.

Kay Brummond publishes editorial on Organic Syntheses’ century of service

Kay Brummond, a professor of chemistry in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, reflected on the impact of the publication Organic Syntheses in an editorial that was co-published by nine chemistry journals.

Brummond currently serves on the board of directors for Organic Syntheses, a publication of reliable methods for the preparation of organic compounds that has served the organic chemistry community for more than 100 years. At the Fall 2023 National ACS Meeting in San Francisco, Brummond presented on the value of the journal’s website — which sees 50,000 visitors per month — and serving as a model for transparency by providing open access to several resources, including a rich database of experimental procedures for important synthetic transformations.

The editorial, co-authored by Margaret Faul of Amgen Inc., highlights these topics as well as how Organic Syntheses will adapt and evolve to meet the changing needs of chemists.

Anne Marie Lennon named next chair of Pitt’s Department of Medicine

Anne Marie Lennon, an internationally recognized leader in precancerous pancreatic lesions and early cancer detection, is the new chair of the Pitt's Department of Medicine and chair of medicine at UPMC, effective March 1, 2024. She will also be recommended for appointment as the Jack D. Myers, MD, Professor of Internal Medicine.

Lennon comes to Pitt from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where she serves as the Moses and Helen Golden Paulson Professor of Gastroenterology and director of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. A highly accomplished physician-scientist, Lennon’s research focuses on the development of tests for early cancer identification and their translation into clinical practice.

Along with colleagues, Lennon has developed a novel panel combining molecular evaluation of pancreatic cyst fluid with clinical and imaging features that could decrease unnecessary pancreatic operations by 60%. She is the senior author of a study that described the concept of combining circulating tumor DNA with cancer protein markers for cancer detection, which her team later expanded to a screen for eight common cancers — esophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, pancreatic, lung, ovarian and breast — from a simple blood test. Additionally, Lennon is first author on the first-ever interventional study of a multi-cancer early detection, which demonstrated the feasibility of using a blood test to detect early cancers in individuals with no history of the disease.

An advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, Lennon co-chaired the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy’s Women’s Task Force, which highlighted inequities in pay and career advancement. She is a fellow of the American College of Gastroenterology, the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE). In 2023, she was designated Master of ASGE, a distinction bestowed on a select group of ASGE members who have demonstrated outstanding contributions to teaching and patient care in gastrointestinal endoscopy.

23 Pitt researchers included on Clarivate’s annual Highly Cited list

Twenty-three Pitt researchers are included on the 2023 Highly Cited Researchers list from Clarivate.

The data and analytics company designated 7,125 researchers to the list nationwide this year, and each researcher selected has authored multiple Highly Cited Papers which rank in the top 1% by citations for their fields and publication year over the past decade.

Pitt’s recognized researchers include faculty from the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, School of Medicine, School of Public Health and Swanson School of Engineering, with research interests ranging from immunology to nanoparticles. See the full list.

Deborah Moon receives CDC new investigator award

Deborah Moon, assistant professor in the School of Social Work, received a Mentored Research Scientist Career Development award from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to study the effects of a community-based maltreatment prevention program for parents.

The study, which is titled Connected through Coaching for Flourishing Families, is a collaboration with researchers from the Ohio State University and Case Western Reserve University. Based on a randomized controlled trial, the researchers will examine how coaching for parents might impact family protective outcomes. The program, called the Family Success Network, is being pilot in three rural Ohio counties.

With a secondary appointment in the Department of Psychiatry, Moon’s research focuses on developing, adapting, implementing and evaluating interventions designed to prevent Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and promote mental health among marginalized families in under-resourced communities.

Sean Morrissey wins 2023 Creative Development Award from Heinz Endowments

Sean Morrissey, visiting assistant professor of studio arts in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, received a $20,000 Creative Development Award from the Heinz Endowments. They are one of 16 artists to earn the recognition out of 116 local applicants.

Morrissey, who holds an MFA in studio art with a specialization in printmaking from The University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a BFA in 2D studies from Bowling Green State University, will use the funding to establish a studio that focuses on creative experimentation with printmaking media.

The artists’ work — which examines questions of access and equity in the context of the American Dream — has been exhibited in more than 100 venues across the world over the last decade, including New American Paintings, Print Center New York and the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art.

City honors Ronald Roth with proclamation for years of community service

The City of Pittsburgh celebrated Ronald Roth, Pitt professor of emergency medicine, for his years of service to the community on Oct. 10. Mayor Ed Gainey also named the day in his honor.

Roth, a Pittsburgh native, served for 21 years as medical director for the Department of Public Safety, where he worked to train paramedics, EMTs, firefighters, police and others. He’s now a senior medical consultant for the department. Roth also currently serves as a medical command physician at the UPMC Medical Command Center, and as medical director for the Pittsburgh Marathon and the Allegheny County Emergency Operations Center. Additionally, he is an emergency medicine consultant for the Pittsburgh Steelers Football Club and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

In 1982, Roth earned his medical degree and went on to complete his residency at Pitt, where he staffed a 24/7 physician emergency response vehicle and served as a flight physician on a medical helicopter. He has worked at the UPMC Presbyterian Emergency Department for more than 30 years. Roth is board certified in Emergency Medicine and was one of the first physicians board certified in the subspecialty of Emergency Medical Services.

Tony Novosel appointed as Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire

Tony Novosel, senior lecturer and advisor in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, has been appointed as a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his contributions to peace in Northern Ireland.

Novosel began traveling to Northern Ireland in 1974, shortly after he graduated high school, and witnesses the deadly destruction of “the Troubles,” a conflict between religious groups in the country that lasted more than 30 years. His many years of travels inspired him to enroll at the University of Pittsburgh, and he graduated with a bachelor’s in 1989, a master’s degree in Soviet and Russian history in 1991 and a PhD in Soviet history in 2005.

Since he began his teaching career at Pitt, Novosel has prioritized making the cultural learning that comes from a study abroad a possibility for more students. He has partnered with Study USA since 1996 to counsel and support young people from Northern Ireland who study in the United States. He’s also led trips across Ireland — to Dublin, Derry and Belfast — for Pitt students since 2004.

When Novosel published his research on the Troubles in a 2013 book, he was invited to present his findings by groups on both sides of the conflict. And his students continue to benefit from his passion for and work within the country: Novosel invites many guest lecturers to his popular lecture courses on modern Irish history.

R.A. Judy earns 2023 Truman Capote Literary Trust Award

R.A. Judy, professor of critical and cultural studies, has been chosen as the 2023 recipient of the Truman Capote Literary Trust Award for Literary Criticism.

Judy — who teaches comparative literature, Black critique and world literature at Pitt — was selected for the $30,000 prize for his book “Sentient Flesh.” He has also authored many essays as well as the 1992 book “(Dis)forming the American Canon: The Vernacular of African Arabic American Slave Narrative.”

The selection committee spoke highly of Judy: “His work as a philosopher, a literary and cultural critic, a teacher, an editor, and a colleague is a unique and emphatic announcement of what a certain fundamental strain of and in black studies has long been — namely the irruptive, disruptive turning and overturning of the ontological, metaphysical and epistemological foundations of modernity.”

Created in 1994, The Truman Capote Literary Trust Award is administered by the Iowa Writers’ Workshop on behalf of the estate of Truman Capote. Judy officially accepted the award and gave remarks at an Oct. 4 ceremony at the Old Capitol Museum in Iowa City.

Alexander Deiters wins American Chemical Society Pittsburgh Award

Alexander Deiters, professor of chemistry in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, is the 2023 recipient of the Pittsburgh Award from the local branch of the American Chemical Society. Created in 1932, the honor recognizes outstanding local leadership and distinguished service to the field of chemistry.

Deiters joined the University of Pittsburgh in 2013 as a professor of chemistry. His lab research ranges from the discovery of small molecule modifiers of biological pathways, medicinal chemistry, peptides and aptamers to cell, protein and nucleic acid engineering. He has presented more than 180 research seminars and has published six book chapters, 14 review articles and over 190 peer-review papers.

Along with his academic accolades, the professor has organized outreach activities and demonstrations. Deiters also co-founded Pitt’s iGEM team; the iGEM Foundation is a nonprofit that works to advance education on synthetic biology.

Deiters accepted the award at an American Chemical Society Section dinner in November.

Hooman Henry Rashidi named first associate dean for AI in medicine

Hooman Henry Rashidi will join Pitt's School of Medicine effective Jan. 1, 2024, in the newly created role of associate dean for artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine.

In this capacity, Rashidi will both teach and develop curricula for MD and graduate students on the fundamentals of AI to better prepare them to understand, evaluate, use and develop technologies that will advance their research and improve patient care. He will also serve as professor of pathology, executive vice chair for computational pathology, and founding executive director of the Computational Pathology and AI Center of Excellence (CPACE), a collaborative effort of Pitt and UPMC. CPACE will support pathology and laboratory medicine and also be available to complementary disciplines. 

Rashidi combines his passion for education and patient care with his unique training in bioinformatics and machine learning to create innovative tools and resources that improve clinical practice, research and education. He joins Pitt from Cleveland Clinic, where he serves as founding director of the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Institute’s Center for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science and vice chair of technology innovation and computational pathology.

Prior to these roles, Rashidi was director of artificial intelligence and professor and vice chair of informatics and computational pathology for UC Davis Medical Center, where he led AI studies that have led to numerous products and filed patents, including the proprietary software Machine Intelligence Learning Optimizer (MILO), whose suite of applications has been licensed to several industry and academic institutions for clinical, quality improvement and educational projects.

A widely known AI expert and educator, Rashidi has earned numerous teaching awards and has created several popular hematology apps. He is also co-founder and senior editor of the online hematology atlas HematologyOutlines.

Omid Shekari earns Sculpture Space residency

Omid Shekari, assistant professor in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, was awarded a two-month residency at the Sculpture Space studio in Utica, New York.

The Iranian multimedia artist who teaches painting in the Department of Studio Arts will be one of six artists from across the nation to spend October and November living near the 5,500-square-foot shared studio. The program emphasizes a collaborative environment, and communal aspects of the residence help foster dialogue, the exchange of ideas, creative experimentation and both personal and professional connections.

In his artworks, Shekari reveals how force and violence determine the rhythms of power structures. His most recent installation — “مخل (Disruptive),” inspired by power dynamics and revolution in his homeland — was on display this summer at the Sculpture Center in Cleveland, Ohio.

Shekari’s paintings, drawings and 3D art have also been exhibited at The Drawing Center, Wilmer Jennings Gallery, the New Art Dealers Alliance Art Fair in New York, the Woodmere Art Museum in Philadelphia and Azad Art Gallery in Tehran, Iran.

11 Pitt researchers earn support from Competitive Medical Research Fund

The Competitive Medical Research Fund (CMRF) awarded grants to 11 Pitt biomedical researchers. Supported by UPMC, CMRF primarily provides funding for junior independent scientists at Pitt to develop preliminary data, hypotheses and methods for competitive national grant applications.

Over the past five years, the success rate for applications has averaged more than 35%. Standard CMRF awards are $30,000, with potential funding up to $50,000.

Here are the 2024 award recipients:

  • Ümit Akbey, assistant professor of structural biology in the School of Medicine
  • Yomna Badawi, research assistant professor of neuroscience in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences
  • Yu-Chih Chen, assistant professor of computational and systems biology in the School of Medicine
  • Joseph Church, assistant professor of surgery in the School of Medicine
  • Peng Gao, assistant professor of environmental and occupational health in the School of Public Health
  • Marcus Malek, assistant professor of surgery in the School of Medicine
  • Maya Ragavan, assistant professor of pediatrics in the School of Medicine
  • Deepika Vasudevan, assistant professor of cell biology in the School of Medicine
  • Hua Zhang, assistant professor of hematology and oncology in the School of Medicine
  • Haodi Wu, assistant professor in Pitt Med’s Vascular Medicine Institute
  • Hamza Yazdani, research assistant professor of surgery in the School of Medicine

The experience of applying and receiving feedback from CMRF is valuable regardless of funding outcomes. The deadline to apply for the 2025 fiscal year awards is Friday, Jan. 12; funding will be granted July 1.

Shyam Visweswaran appointed to National Institutes of Health study section

Shyam Visweswaran, a biomedical informatics professor and vice chair of clinical informatics in Pitt's School of Medicine, began a four-year term as a charter member of the Clinical Informatics and Digital Health (CIDH) Study Section on July 1. The section is part of the Center for Scientific Review of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which has over 250 chartered or recurring study sections.

Members of the study sections — which review most investigator-initiated research applications submitted to the NIH — are chosen for their demonstrated competence and accomplishment in their scientific discipline, as demonstrated by the quality of their research, scientific journal publications and other significant scientific achievements.

Visweswaran’s research focuses on developing, implementing and evaluating high performance clinical decision support systems powered by artificial intelligence. At Pitt, he also directs the Center for Clinical Artificial Intelligence and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s Biomedical Informatics Core.

Jamelle Price selected as Appalachian Leadership Institute fellow

Jamelle Price, external relations manager for the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, was selected for the Appalachian Leadership Institute Class of 2023-24.

Price — who oversees the institute’s marketing, communications, and external and government relations efforts — is one of 40 fellows who live or work across Appalachia’s 13 states selected for this year’s class. Together, they will undergo a nine-month leadership and economic development training program designed by the Appalachian Regional Commission in partnership with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; The Howard H. Baker Jr. School of Public Policy and Public Affairs; Tuskegee University; and Collective Impact.

In the McGowan Institute, Price focuses on strategy development and execution of a comprehensive marketing communications plan to highlight the institute’s research, faculty, students, staff and programs. Jamelle holds a bachelor’s degree in social sciences and an MBA from Waynesburg University and Master of Science in integrated marketing communications from West Virginia University.

Cynthia Golden wins 2023 Educause Leadership Award

Cynthia Golden, senior advisor for the University Center for Teaching and Learning (UCTL), received the 2023 Educause Leadership Award for her work, including as UCTL associate provost and executive director, a position she held for more than a decade.

In her roles at Pitt, Golden (SCI ’83G) has contributed to teaching, technology-enhanced education, online and hybrid learning, assessment and other academic support service efforts. She not only rebranded and relaunched UCTL but led efforts to create Pitt’s Center for Diversity in the Curriculum, the Diversity Institute for Faculty Development and the Provost’s Award for Diversity in the Curriculum.

Golden also played a central role in creating the first massive open online courses at Pitt and was at the forefront of the University’s COVID-19 pandemic response.

She joined the University in 2009 after nearly 10 years as vice president at Educause, an international nonprofit that aims to advance higher education using information technology. Golden has also led IT efforts at Carnegie Mellon University, Duquesne University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Leah Jacobs earns $1 million grant from National Institute of Justice

Leah Jacobs, assistant professor in the School of Social Work, received nearly $1 million in funding from the National Institute of Justice to study the impact a law enforcement training program.

Jacobs’ project will evaluate Effective Youth Interactions, a program seeking to improve officer-youth interactions, reduce youth entry into legal systems and address racial disproportionality in youth legal system involvement. She’ll increase knowledge on policing practices and promote racial equity as she studies how the program has been implemented at 21 police departments in one California county.

A former case manager, program planner and evaluator, and community organizer, Jacobs’ research focuses on socio-structural risk factors for criminal justice involvement among members of vulnerable communities. She’s the principal investigator for From Cell Blocks to City Blocks, a study examining the way in which neighborhood risk/protective factors and behavioral health treatment affect recidivism among probationers.

Michael Giazzoni named associate editor for Concurrent Enrollment Review

Michael Giazzoni, director of Pitt's College in High School program, is on the editorial board of a new journal, Concurrent Enrollment Review.

The first edition of the publication — which is the only independent, open access, peer-reviewed journal focused on research in the field of dual and concurrent enrollment — is now available to read.

Along with directing Pennsylvania’s oldest and largest concurrent enrollment program, which serves more than 4,000 students each year, Giazzoni also serves as an adjunct faculty member in Pitt’s Department of English and David C. Frederick Honors College. An advocate for concurrent enrollment, he is an ambassador for the College in High School Alliance and regular contributor to the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships.

Giazzoni also serves on boards for the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the Carnegie Science Center of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Regional STEM Ecosystem.