Awards
May 02, 2016

Medical School professor receives Harold R. Johnson Diversity Service Award

Associate professor of pediatrics and communicable diseases one of 7 faculty honored for dedication to developing cultural and ethnic diversity at the U-M

Harold Johnson
Harold R. Johnson

Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases R. Alex Blackwood, M.D., Ph.D., is one of seven University of Michigan faculty members to receive the 2016 Harold R. Johnson Diversity Service Award for their dedication to developing cultural and ethnic diversity at the U-M.

Established in 1996, the award is given by the Office of the Provost in honor of Harold Johnson, dean emeritus of the School of Social Work. The award provides $5,000 to recipients to further research, scholarship or student service opportunities.

Blackwood, who also serves as director of pathways in the Office for Health Equity and Inclusion in the Medical School, has demonstrated an ability to inspire mentees during more than 20 years on the U-M faculty. His mentees include 11 undergraduate students who have received American Heart Association of Michigan grants and three who have been awarded Presidential Scholars Fellowships from the National Science Foundation.

An example of his mentorship involves fourth-year medical student Mohammad Issa, a Palestinian-American. Together they developed a personal hygiene, safe water assessment in the Kulandia Refugee Camp in the West Bank. This relationship led to the formation of the Middle Eastern Global Health Initiative, a group of Michigan pre-health students promoting awareness of global health needs in Middle East refugee camps. Blackwood serves as the faculty facilitator. Data has been collected from four refugee camps in the last three years and additional publications are anticipated.

“The attributes that make Dr. Blackwood especially well-suited for this award are a combination of versatility, preparation, and vision. Dr. Blackwood has been building a cohort of mentees and a panel of programs that are eminently linkable,” wrote David J. Brown, M.D., associate vice president and associate dean, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion.

The other campus recipients are: 

• Omolola Eniola-Adefeso, Ph.D., College of Engineering (CoE)

• Arline T. Geronimus, Sc.D., Institute for Social Research and School of Public Health

• Robert Jagers, Ph.D., School of Education

• Nojin Kwak, Ph.D., College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA)

• Jennifer Linderman, Ph.D., CoE

• Ruby Tapia, Ph.D., LSA

“I was very impressed by the deep pool of nominations we received this year. It was inspiring to read about the faculty on our campus who have a long-standing commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion,” said Robert M. Sellers, Ph.D., vice provost for equity, inclusion, and academic affairs. “Their hard work and commitment make us better as a university, and their contributions will have a real and lasting impact on the difficult issues we face on our campus, particularly in this first year of the diversity strategic planning process.”

Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases R. Alex Blackwood, M.D., Ph.D., is one of seven University of Michigan faculty members to receive the 2016 Harold R. Johnson Diversity Service Award for their dedication to developing cultural and ethnic diversity at the U-M.

Established in 1996, the award is given by the Office of the Provost in honor of Harold Johnson, dean emeritus of the School of Social Work. The award provides $5,000 to recipients to further research, scholarship or student service opportunities.

Blackwood, who also serves as director of pathways in the Office for Health Equity and Inclusion in the Medical School, has demonstrated an ability to inspire mentees during more than 20 years on the U-M faculty. His mentees include 11 undergraduate students who have received American Heart Association of Michigan grants and three who have been awarded Presidential Scholars Fellowships from the National Science Foundation.

An example of his mentorship involves fourth-year medical student Mohammad Issa, a Palestinian-American. Together they developed a personal hygiene, safe water assessment in the Kulandia Refugee Camp in the West Bank. This relationship led to the formation of the Middle Eastern Global Health Initiative, a group of Michigan pre-health students promoting awareness of global health needs in Middle East refugee camps. Blackwood serves as the faculty facilitator. Data has been collected from four refugee camps in the last three years and additional publications are anticipated.

“The attributes that make Dr. Blackwood especially well-suited for this award are a combination of versatility, preparation, and vision. Dr. Blackwood has been building a cohort of mentees and a panel of programs that are eminently linkable,”

David J. Brown, M.D., associate vice president and associate dean, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion.

The other campus recipients are: 

• Omolola Eniola-Adefeso, Ph.D., College of Engineering (CoE)

• Arline T. Geronimus, Sc.D., Institute for Social Research and School of Public Health

• Robert Jagers, Ph.D., School of Education

• Nojin Kwak, Ph.D., College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA)

• Jennifer Linderman, Ph.D., CoE

• Ruby Tapia, Ph.D., LSA

“I was very impressed by the deep pool of nominations we received this year. It was inspiring to read about the faculty on our campus who have a long-standing commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion,”  “Their hard work and commitment make us better as a university, and their contributions will have a real and lasting impact on the difficult issues we face on our campus, particularly in this first year of the diversity strategic planning process.”

Robert M. Sellers, Ph.D., vice provost for equity, inclusion, and academic affairs.