NEWS BRIEFS

Two win SCHEV teaching awards
Two U.Va. professors are among this year’s 10 winners of the Commonwealth’s Outstanding Faculty Awards, the state’s highest honor for faculty at its colleges and universities. Nursing professor Barbara Brodie and education professor Daniel Hallahan were recognized for their demonstrated excellence in teaching, research and public service.

Brodie retired in December 2002 as the Madge M. Jones Professor of Nursing. She is the Nursing School’s first winner of the SCHEV award, but received many accolades during her 30-year tenure here.

Hallahan, who chairs the Department of Curriculum, Instruction and Special Education in the Curry School, co-founded the Center for Minority Research in Special Education and has been cited as one of the most influential people in the field. He holds the Cavalier Distinguished Teaching Professorship for 2002-04.
The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia administers the program, began in 1987.

U.Va. employees shake the giving tree
Despite feeling the effects of state budget cutbacks, U.Va. employees have contributed more than a half-million dollars to help others. To date, U.Va. employees have given $555,527 through the 2002 Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign, a statewide charity fund drive held each fall. Tentative figures released by the Virginia CVC Office in early January showed that U.Va. employees led the state in giving, with contributions representing nearly 18 percent of the $3,071,011 raised statewide. U.Va will receive a Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign Gold Award, a recognition for agencies with 6,000 or more employees that achieve at least a 30 percent participation rate, with an average gift of $125 or more.

Zelikow to lead national 9/11 Commission
It is a daunting mandate — assess the facts and circumstances of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and report back to the nation by May 2004. The point man in meeting the challenge will be U.Va. history professor Philip Zelikow, director of the Miller Center of Public Affairs. Named the executive director of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, Zelikow will lead the “9/11 Commission” created late last year by President George W. Bush and Congress. Zelikow will be on leave from teaching during the assignment.

Legislature may pass retirement service credit in lean years
One bill the General Assembly is considering has generated many questions, according to Nancy Rivers, director of U.Va.’s Office of State Governmental Relations. It is Senate Bill 1191, which would provide employees a year’s worth of service credit for each year in which there is no increase in the base salaries of state employees.

The additional retirement service credit would be granted for fiscal years 2002 and 2003, and for any year in the future when there is no general salary increase.
Each eligible employee would receive service credit equal to the number of months service that the employee had accrued in the relevant fiscal year. Partial months service would be rounded up to the nearest whole month.

Most faculty and some classified employees would not be eligible, because they are covered under a different retirement plan.

See http://www.virginia.edu/governmentalrelations/ for legislative updates.

‘Microbubbles’ used to detect blood-cell growth
Like many of our bodies’ functions, angiogenesis — the growth of new blood vessels — is a double-edged sword. For an ailing heart not receiving enough blood, angiogenesis can be a relief, even a life-saver. But new blood vessels can also feed life-threatening tumors. For researchers striving to learn more about controlling angiogenesis, a U.Va. team is offering a new technique for detecting the growth of microscopic blood vessels using ultrasound and tiny “microbubbles.”

Microbubbles injected into the body expand and contract in response to the pressure changes in an ultrasound wave. One hundred thousand microbubbles can fit on the head of a pin.

The first hurdle for Dr. Jonathan Lindner, associate professor at U.Va.’s division of cardiovascular medicine, and his team was to develop microbubbles that would stick to new blood vessels. They found that echistatin, a protein derived from snake venom, bound well to certain molecules that play a key role in angiogenesis.
The results, published in the Jan. 28 issue of the journal Circulation, were “a major step forward,” said Lindner.

Last call for biomedical research grants
Brief, preliminary proposals for the new $800,000 grant competition, supported by U.Va.’s Funding Excellence in Science and Technology Program and Carilion Biomedical Institute, are due Feb. 3 by 5 p.m. The program seeks proposals for biomedical research initiatives that are likely to lead to inventions with commercial potential, such as medical devices, therapies and software.

For information and proposal forms, visit the Web at http://www.virginia.edu/researchandpublicservice/research/funding/CBI_UVA.html.

HIV and AIDS Awareness for African Americans
AIDS is now the leading cause of death among African Americans between ages 24 and 44 accounting for 49 percent of newly reported AIDS cases in 2001. And the number is on the rise. To fight back with information, the Ryan White Program at U.Va. will host National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on Feb. 6. Free lunch, as well as free HIV testing, will be offered from noon to 2 p.m. in the first-floor classrooms A and B of the U.Va. Primary Care Center. For info., call Pamela Bickley at 982-1688.

Professor wins award for work on Architecture School
Timothy Stenson, assistant professor of architecture, received a 2003 Faculty Design Award from the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture for his design and building of the new Elmaleh Gallery in Campbell Hall and a new entrance to Campbell. A U.Va. alumnus, Stenson’s work includes commissions ranging from furniture to residential renovations, with an emphasis on the relationship between design and construction.

March 10 – Deadline for Teaching Fellowship
The University Teaching Fellows Program provides funding for promising junior faculty as they refine their teaching expertise while pursuing strong research agendas. The fellowship includes working through the Teaching Resource Center to find a mentor interested in exploring effective and innovative teaching technologies, strategies and course designs, and to participate in interdisciplinary discussions about various teaching and professional issues. At the end of the fellowship year, fellows receive a $7,000 summer research grant to develop one or more new or existing undergraduate courses. The deadline is March 10. For details, see http://trc.virginia.edu/Programs/utfprogram.htm.

Clarification on faculty retirement
The new faculty retirement incentive plan applies to general faculty as well as teaching faculty. Human Resources will be sending information in the next few days to all those who are eligible. For information, see the Inside UVA article from the Jan. 17 issue at http://www.virginia.edu/insideuva/retirement_incentives.html. Human Resources also is scheduling information sessions around Grounds in February. Check the Web site at http://www.hrs.virginia.edu/ for dates and times.

Nominations invited for Distinguished Alumna
A successful model of leadership. An extraordinary achiever in her field. A positive force for change. If you know of an outstanding female graduate, you can nominate her for the Women’s Center 2004 Distinguished Alumna Award. Nominations must be postmarked by Feb. 14.

The award’s 2003 recipient is Darden graduate Lawton W. Fitt, who recently left Goldman Sachs to become the first woman and first American to head the Royal Academy of Arts in London.

Nominations should include a letter clearly describing the candidate’s strengths and experience, one to three supporting letters, resume, and any pertinent materials, such as newspaper articles or other recognition. A candidate may be nominated by someone outside the school or department from which she graduated, but must be seconded in writing by someone from that school or department.

Send nominations to Virginia Moran, associate director, Women’s Center, P.O. Box 800588, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908.

Better care advocated for chronically mentally ill
Schizophrenic patients continue to be abandoned by society to homelessness or jail, argues Dr. C. Knight Aldrich in the Winter 2003 issue of the Virginia Quarterly Review. Aldrich, U.Va. Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry and Family Medicine, makes an urgent plea for reform in our society’s care of the chronically mentally ill. He calls for permanent federal funding of community mental health centers. Most community centers struggle to provide good care but have been forced by budget cuts to limit services, he notes.

“In the long run … a reformed system will more than pay for itself, not in direct savings but in the reduction of the indirect costs of mental illness,” he concludes.
Neurosurgeon honored for distinguished service

Dr. John A. Jane, chairman of U.Va.’s Department of Neurosurgery, has won the 2003 Distinguished Service Award from the Society of Neurological Surgeons. The award honors Jane’s contributions to academic neurosurgery through the years, his leadership of one of the nation’s premier neurosurgery training programs and excellence in clinical practice. The award will be presented at the society’s annual meeting in mid-May in Cincinnati.

International activities on the Web
The University’s new Web site for international activities features up-to-date information on international funding opportunities for faculty and staff, initiatives such as Universitas 21 and a variety of other topics. The address is http://www.virginia.edu/international/. From that page, click on headings for areas of particular interest.

Recycle office supplies
If you’re wondering what to do with surplus office supplies, U.Va.’s recycling office makes them available to student organizations, staff and faculty groups conveniently and free of charge. The Reusable Office Supply Exchange collects the surplus supplies from offices and students on Grounds and updates the inventory twice each month. Donations can be dropped off at the recycling office on Leake Drive Monday through Friday 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. The information can be accessed at http://recycle.virginia.edu under “ROSE Program.” Requests for materials can be made via e-mail, recycle@virginia.edu, or by phone, 982-5050.

Clothes from Cupid seeks donations
That hot-pink sweater that you didn’t really want for Christmas or those pants that don’t quite zip would be welcome contributions to a community-wide, student-sponsored clothing drive. Bring your unwanted clothing to the U.Va. Bookstore on Feb. 6 from noon to 7 p.m. All donations will benefit the local chapter of the Salvation Army. Clothes from Cupid is sponsored by students from the Transfer Student Peer Advisor Program, the Office of African-American Peer Advisor Program and the Peer Advising Family Network. For information, e-mail Laurie Casteen, Office of Orientation and New Student Programs, at lcasteen@virginia.edu, or call 982-4540.

‘Winter Carnival’ broadens horizons for library staffers
For 364 days a year, the University Library’s staff is focused on running the library, whether providing customer service or keeping on the cutting edge of new technology. But on that 365th day, in early January, staffers can learn about gardening. Or dulcimers. Or hardware. Or investing. It’s all part of the library’s “Winter Carnival,” an annual event designed to engage library staff in non-library subjects.

This year library staff chose among 19 presentations by area businesses and enthusiasts, including experts from Snow’s Garden Center, Crutchfield, Ragged Mountain Running Shop and Albemarle Veterinary Hospital.
“We’ve seen increased participation every year,” said Suzanne Bombard, the library’s training coordinator.

Women to join in celebration of holistic health
Join students from schools and disciplines across Grounds for a Women’s Health Festival Feb. 10, noon to 9 p.m. in Newcomb Hall Ballroom, and experience the integration of mental, physical, social, sexual and spiritual health. Men are welcome to participate, too. For details, see http://www.student.virginia.edu/~uvanow/WHF

Are policies for at-risk children helping?
A new lecture series, sponsored by the Curry School, is bringing education scholars to U.Va. to talk about how to help families and children prevent and face the challenges that can lead to higher rates of academic failure and serious health and psychological problems.

Lindsay Chase-Lansdale of Northwestern University gives the first talk Jan. 31 on “Mother Transitions from Welfare to Work and the Well-Being of Preschoolers and Adolescents: Findings from the Three-City Study,” describing the impact of welfare reform legislation passed during the Clinton administration.

Kyle Snow of the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development will speak Feb. 21 on “Methods in Early Childhood Education: Illustrations and Illusions.”

Lectures are held at 10 a.m. in Ruffner Hall Auditorium 4C.

Students’ Career Week coming up Feb. 3
More than 100 schools and 60 businesses will be on Grounds for this year’s Career Week Feb. 3-7, sponsored by University Career Services. Events include a job fair for college undergraduates Feb. 3 in Newcomb Hall, an Education Expo for Curry School candidates Feb. 6 and 7, and a job-search workshop for graduate students.
A range of organizations, from banks and consumer product industries to Teach for America and the Peace Corps, will have representatives on hand to answer questions about jobs and summer internships.

Although companies are hiring fewer new employees, U.Va. students still will come up on the short list, said Ladd Flock, who directs career activities for Arts & Sciences.

U.Va.’s career services also will join other schools in holding a job fair in Washington for students interested in working for government agencies or large non-profit organizations.

For information, go to http://www.virginia.edu/career and click on the link to Career Week.

In Memoriam
• Rita H.Doran, 63, of Charlottesville, died Jan. 15. A devoted U.Va. sports fan, she worked in the Department of Internal Medicine from 1988 until 1991. Doran was a former member of the U.Va. Women’s Club.

• Jeffrey K. Hadden, longtime professor of sociology and religious studies at the University and a nationally known authority on religious trends, died at his home in Charlottesville Jan. 26 of pancreatic cancer. He was 66. A memorial service will be held for him on Feb. 7 a 3 p.m. at University Chapel, followed by a reception at the Colonnade Club.

A prolific writer and researcher in various fields of sociology, including urban studies, the family, civil rights, race relations and, most notably, religious movements, Hadden published some 25 books and dozens of articles in professional journals. He was probably best known for his studies of religious broadcasters and the emergence of the Christian Right in America during the 1980s. He also received international attention for a Web site he and his students developed on religious movements.