The College of Medical and Dental Sciences is delighted to announce that at the University of Birmingham Founders' Awards for Excellence 2017.
The College of Medical and Dental Sciences is delighted to announce that at the University of Birmingham Founders’ Awards for Excellence 2017 colleagues from across the College were awarded three of the evening’s four awards.
The Founders’ Awards, which were held on Thursday 13 July during the Chancellor's Dinner, are named after some of Birmingham’s most influential benefactors and demonstrate that their vision of ground-breaking research with local, national and global impact is as alive today as it was when the University was founded in 1900.
The awards recognise the very best academic work that has significantly contributed to the advancement of the University’s reputation. Nominations were received from each of the University’s College Boards and were reviewed by a panel of judges consisting of senior members of University management and colleagues external to the institution.
The Joseph Chamberlain Award for Academic Advancement
Named after the man who was the driving force behind the establishment of the University and was its first Chancellor, this was awarded to Professor Jo Morris and Professor Grant Stewart of the Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences.
The award, which recognises academic activity that has significantly advanced the discourse or understanding within a specific academic area, was presented to Professors Morris and Stewart for their contribution to the understanding of the cellular response to DNA damage.
The Charles Beale Award for Policy Advancement
This award, which remembers the man who was a close political ally of Joseph Chamberlain and the University’s first Vice-Chancellor, was presented to Professor Arri Coomarasamy and Dr David Lissauer of the Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research.
The award recognises academic activity that has significantly advanced the discourse or understanding within a specific academic or policy area. Professor Coomarasamy and Dr Lissauer are leading research into maternal mortality reduction, a Sustainable Development Goal identified by the United Nations.
The Aston Webb Award for Outstanding Early-Career Academic
Named after the industrialist and philanthropist, and the founder of Mason Science College that preceded the University, this was awarded to Dr Derek Kyte from the Institute of Applied Health Research.
This award identifies the work of an outstanding early-career academic whose research has international significance. Dr Kyte has been recognised for his ground-breaking work into the use of patient-reported outcomes in clinical trials.
‘It was a great night for our College,’ said Professor David Adams, Pro Vice Chancellor, Head of the College of Medical and Dental Sciences and Dean of Medicine.
‘To receive both of the top student prizes and then three of the four Founders’ Awards was remarkable. The Founders’ Awards winners highlight the incredible breadth of what we do in the College.
‘Our colleagues collected awards for a range of specialties, from work on patient reported outcomes to outstanding laboratory work into the mechanisms of cancer development and clinical trials work in Africa that is changing guidelines on management of pregnancy from the World Health Organisation (WHO).’
‘It was a real privilege to be at the Chancellor’s Dinner and to witness the outstanding success of the College,’ added Professor Paul Moss, Director of Research and Knowledge Transfer at the College of Medical and Dental Sciences.
‘I can't remember seeing a single College achieve so much at previous events, but when you saw the quality of our nominees it really was no surprise. I'm sure everyone in the College will congratulate our winners and also feel some associated pride in the exceptional environment that we have created together.’
The fourth award, the Josiah Mason Award for Business Advancement, was awarded to Professor Kai Bongs from the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences for his leadership of the Birmingham Quantum Technology Hub, established three years ago with investment from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and industry.
Two 2017 Medicine and Surgery (MBChB) graduates, Laura Davies and Hannah Cooke, won the Chancellor’s Prize 2017 and Vice-Chancellor’s Prize 2017 respectively while Dr Shayan Ahmed won the Outstanding Teaching Award for the College.
Congratulations also go to the College’s Professor Ed Rainger, who was shortlisted for the Josiah Mason Award for Business Advancement, and Dr Ricky Bhogal, who was shortlisted for the Aston Webb Award for Outstanding Early-Career Academic.
