The Biological Sciences Division honored faculty members for research excellence, professional service, and leadership at the 16th Annual Distinguished Faculty Awards Reception on June 30, 2026. Since 2011, the BSD Faculty Advisory Committee (FAC) has been honoring fellow faculty members for their contributions to the BSD's collective missions of excellence in education, research, diversity and inclusion, program innovation, service to the community and patient care.
Mark Anderson, MD, PhD, Dean of the Division of the Biological Sciences and the Pritzker School of Medicine, Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs, presided over the reception, and Iris Romero, MD, Executive Vice Dean, presented awards to 18 faculty members who were nominated by their colleagues, former trainees, and community partners. The FAC reviewed nominations for many excellent candidates and selected this year’s winners for the following awards:
2026 Annual Distinguished Faculty Awards for the Biological Sciences Division
- Distinguished Clinician
- Junior: Nabil Abou Baker, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine
- Senior: Daniel Johnson, MD, Professor of Pediatrics
- Distinguished Investigator
- Junior: Mark Applebaum, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics
- Senior: Olufunmilayo F. Olopade, MD, Walter L Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine
- Distinguished Educator
- Junior: Allie Dakroub, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine
- Senior: Tia Kostas, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine
- Distinguished Leader in Community Service and Advocacy
- Junior: Jana J. Richards, MD, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Senior: Paul C. Sereno, PhD, Professor of Organismal Biology & Anatomy
- Distinguished Leader in Program Innovation
- Junior: Amelia Kellar, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics
- Senior: Tanya L. Zakrison, MD, Professor of Surgery
- Distinguished Leader in Diversity & Inclusion
- Junior: Rebecca Ortiz Worthington, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine
- Senior: Sharmilee Nyenhuis, MD, Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine
- Francis H. Straus Mentorship Award
- Clinical: Gini Fleming, MD, Professor of Medicine
- Non-Clinical: Maria-Luisa Alegre, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine
- Michael Reese Lectureship
- Marshall H. Chin, MD, Richard Parillo Family Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine
- Gold Key Award
- Susan L. Cohn, MD, Emerita Professor of Pediatrics
- Abraham H. Dachman, MD, Clinical Professor of Radiology
- Edward T. Naureckas, MD, Professor of Medicine
We would especially like to thank Faculty Advisory Committee co-chairs Anjana A. Pillai, MD, Yun Fang, PhD and Elbert S. Huang, MD, for their service this past year and for organizing the award selection process.
The winners will be commemorated in a display located in the lobby of the Surgery Brain Research Pavilion on the UChicago campus. The award guidelines and a list of previous award winners are available on the Office of Faculty Affairs website.
