UAB to Honor Public Health Graduates in Ceremonies May 6

UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham) will honor the School of Public Health Class of 2005 in ceremonies beginning at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, May 6, at The Club. The ceremony will salute 131 students earning their master's or doctorate degrees in public health. BIRMINGHAM, AL — UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham) will honor the School of Public Health Class of 2005 in ceremonies beginning at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, May 6, at The Club. The ceremony will salute 131 students earning their master's or doctorate degrees in public health.

 

Lynn Aquadro, of Florence, will receive the Alabama Public Health Hero award. Aquadro, a nurse practitioner, established a nurse practitioner-managed clinic for low-income residents in Northwest Alabama. The clinic helps individuals without health insurance reduce time off work due to illness.

Student and alumni awards also will be presented during ceremonies. The award for Outstanding Doctoral Student will be given to Muktar Hassan Aliyu, Dr.P.H., and the award for Outstanding Master's Student will be presented to Lesley Magnussen, M.P.H.

The 2005 Alumnus of the Year award will be presented to Bruce Taylor, M.D., who received his master's in public health from the Department of Epidemiology in 1995. (He also received his bachelor's and medical degrees from UAB.) Taylor, who practices internal medicine in Selma, was motivated by his public health training to create a primary care practice active in educating the community about the prevention of diabetes and other chronic diseases.

Faculty awards will be presented during the luncheon. John Waterbor, M.D., Dr.P.H., associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology, will be recognized as recipient of the President's Award for Excellence in Teaching. David Allison, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Biostatistics, will receive the Distinguished Faculty Investigator award. Ken Dillon, Ph.D., former associate professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, will be honored posthumously with the Outstanding Public Health Service award, which will be presented to his family.