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High honors
Faculty, Brookings awards presented at Founders Day By Barbara Rea Four remarkable faculty members and three exceptional citizens of the University community will receive awards at the 149th Founders Day event Nov. 9 at America's Center. The Washington University Alumni Association will present this year's Distinguished Faculty Awards to Rosa M. Davila of the School of Medicine; Lee Epstein of political science in Arts & Sciences and the School of Law; Ronald A. Leax of the School of Art; and James T. Little of the Olin School of Business. Receiving this year's Robert S. Brookings Award are Whitney R. Harris and Robert J. and Julie Skandalaris. Rosa M. Davila Rosa M. Davila, M.D., is an associate professor of pathology and immunology in the School of Medicine. She focuses on anatomic pathology with clinical expertise in cytopathology and renal pathology.
Several years ago, she established the first Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-approved Cytopathology Fellowship Training Program at the Washington University Medical Center and continues to serve as its director. Over the years, students have honored Davila with seven awards for teaching excellence and dedication, including the Distinguished Teaching Service, Lecturer of the Year and Professor of the Year awards. In addition to her teaching, research and clinical practice, Davila serves the medical school as a member of several administrative committees. Davila earned a bachelor's degree in biology and a medical degree from the University of Puerto Rico. After completing a cytopathology fellowship at Saint Louis University, she became the first board-certified cytopathologist in the St. Louis area. Recognized worldwide as a leader in her field, Davila is a member of the American Society of Cytopathology, the Papanicolaou Society of Cytopathology, the Renal Pathology Society, the International Academy of Cytology, the American Society of Clinical Pathology and the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology. Her clinical research centers on the evaluation and refinement of cytomorphologic criteria for various pathologic entities and in defining the role of ancillary testing in diagnostic cytopathology. Her work has been featured at professional conferences around the world, and she has authored more than 50 articles. Lee Epstein Lee Epstein, Ph.D., joined the Department of Political Science in 1991 and soon after became a full professor. From 1995-99, she served as department chair, and in 1998 she was named the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished Professor of Political Science. In 2000, she received a dual appointment in the School of Law.
Epstein is the recipient of seven grants from the National Science Foundation to support her research. Contributing to her profession, Epstein serves as a member of the bard of directors of the American Judicature Society, and as a member of the board of trustees of the Law and Society Association. She sits on the editorial or advisory boards of several scholarly publications, and she currently serves as president of the Midwest Political Science Association. As an active member of the University community, Epstein is on the Academic Planning Committee for the College of Arts & Sciences; the advisory boards for the law school's Center for Interdisciplinary Studies and for the Whitney R. Harris Institute for Global Legal Studies; and the University's Academic Freedom and Tenure Hearing Committee. Recognized for her inspiring and demanding role as a teacher, she was honored recently with a Faculty Member of the Year Award from the University's Student Union, and as Professor of the Year by the Undergraduate Political Science Association. Ronald A. Leax During his 17 years as a member of the faculty in the School of Art, Ronald A. Leax has made significant contributions by his teaching, creative endeavors and service.
His major work, Ontological Library, is a compendium of books and objects, categorized by branches of knowledge, undergoing various processes of decay and corrosion induced by chemical and physical treatments. His work has been exhibited in a number of museums and galleries, including the Maine Coast Artists Gallery, the Chicago Cultural Center and the Forum for Contemporary Art in St. Louis. Leax's influence as a teacher is borne out by his students, who refer to him as an outstanding teacher, showing an ability to help both beginning and advanced art students understand the elements of three-dimensional design, creative building techniques and their aesthetic context. One of his most significant contributions to art education is his membership in the National Advisory Board for the Advanced Placement Studio Art Program for the Educational Testing Service. Through this service, Leax has helped develop curriculum for art education that is being distributed through the College Board to more than 10,000 secondary schools throughout the country. In addition, Leax serves the School of Art as chair of its faculty. For the University, he has served on many committees; they currently include the Retention, Promotion, Tenure Committee and the Curriculum Committee. He earned a bachelor's degree in arts from Brown University in 1969 and a master's degree in fine arts from the Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1980. James T. Little For the past 31 years, James T. Little, Ph.D., has been a teacher, administrator and scholar at the University, first in Arts & Sciences as a professor of economics and currently in the Olin School of Business as professor of finance and economics.
His accomplishments in the classroom are matched by his administrative successes. From 1983-89, Little served as associate dean for academic affairs, where he led the effort to restructure the Olin School's undergraduate curriculum and to create a new study abroad program, which has been widely adopted by other undergraduate business programs throughout the country. In addition, he currently administers the Olin School's London Summer Program and serves as academic director for the school's executive master of business administration program. His administrative expertise is matched by his teaching. Little has received three awards for outstanding teaching, including the 2001 professional MBA class award and the 2000 and 2001 executive MBA class awards. As a responsible citizen of the University, Little has contributed in many ways over the years, including as a member of the Faculty Council, the Freshman Advisory Board and the International Relationships Committee. Little earned a bachelor's degree in communications from the University of British Columbia in 1967 and a doctorate from the University of Minnesota in 1977. Whitney R. Harris Whitney R. Harris has long been associated with human rights and universal justice.
These remarkable experiences were later recounted in his 1954 book, Tyranny on Trial: The Evidence at Nuremberg, widely considered to be the first definitive account of this unprecedented chapter in modern history. It is currently in its third edition. Returning to the States after the war, Harris taught law at Southern Methodist University, where he also directed the Law Institute of the Americas. In addition, he served as staff director of Legal Services and Procedure for the Commission on the Organization of the Executive Branch of the U.S. government and as the executive director of the American Bar Association. From 1954-1963, he served as general solicitor for Texas for the Southwestern Bell Telephone Co., and until 1965 as general solicitor for the company in St. Louis. Following that, Harris entered private practice with Sumner, Harris and Sumner until his retirement in 1989. Known for his philanthropy and civic involvement, Harris has supported many institutions in St. Louis and has been especially generous to the University. In 1980, he established the Whitney R. Harris Collection on the Third Reich, which is housed in Olin Library's Jane and Whitney Harris Reading Room. For his achievements in international justice and for his support, the School of Law recently renamed its Institute for Global Legal Studies in his honor. Robert J. and Julie Skandalaris Robert J. and Julie Skandalaris embrace the concepts of entrepreneurship and philanthropy and have successfully combined these interests through their involvement at the University.
Prior to founding Noble, Skandalaris was a shareholder and vice chair of the Oxford Investment Group. He also co-founded the Michigan Trust Bank, the Bank of Bloomfield Hills and the Bank of Rochester, some of the state's most successful private banks. Last year, he helped found and now manages Quantum Associates LLC, a leveraged buyout fund for acquisition of distressed middle-market manufacturing and distributing entities. Before that, Skandalaris was a senior vice president and member of the Chairperson's Council for Prudential Bache Securities. He began his career as a certified public accountant with Touche Ross and Co. For the University, the Skandalarises have created a significant and successful program that facilitates students' understanding of what it takes to start a business. The Skandalaris Entrepreneurial Program provides valuable help with student-started companies. Under this program, the Olin School has more than doubled its student entrepreneurial opportunities. Robert and Julie Skandalaris serve the University in very meaningful ways. They serve as co-chairs for the Parents Council and they also belong to the Detroit Regional Cabinet and Campaign Committee. Robert was recently named a member of the University's Board of Trustees. In addition to program support for the University, they direct the Skandalaris Family Foundation, which provides scholarships to exceptional students throughout the country. |
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