Awards and Recognition

Brigid Tuck is quoted in Marketplace about what rurally-based companies can teach us about shrinking labor pools; Marla Spivak and Eric Watkins are mentioned in the Star Tribune story, “A guide to garden lingo, from flawns and stumperies to nativars”; Matt Simcik is quoted in the Washington Post about how to know if your drinking water is safe from forever chemicals; Angela McArthur is quoted in an NBC News story about the need for body donation regulations after the Harvard human remains case; Jon Oliver is quoted in Time magazine about the potential for an at-home lyme disease test; Aaron Kelly is quoted in ABC News about teens with severe obesity turning to surgery and new weight loss drugs; Heather Peters and Kerry Michael are quoted in MinnPost about a new program in Morris to train addiction treatment specialists for Greater Minnesota; Samuel L. Myers Jr. is quoted in the New York Times story, “Creating a Path for More Black Economists”; Thaddeus LaCoursiere spoke about the significance of summer solstice for a CBS News story.

For the second year in a row, the University of Minnesota participated in the Times Higher Ed Impact Rankings (THE Impact Rankings), which in 2023 ranked submissions for 1,591 institutions from 112 countries/regions. The U of M ranked eighth in the U.S. for the overall ranking and in the 101-200 range worldwide (up from the 201-300 range in 2022). The Impact Rankings compare educational institutes worldwide for their commitment and efforts to conduct research, outreach, stewardship and teaching in areas of building a more sustainable, equitable and healthy future. 

Professors Lorenzo Fabbri (French & Italian) and Maggie Hennefeld (Cultural Studies & Comparative Literature) have been selected as 2023-25 Imagine Fund Arts, Design, and Humanities co-chairs. Their project, Curating Diversity: Community Engagement through Film Programming, will promote cultural education and social justice by screening rare, unseen, marginalized, and archival cinema at a range of venues across the Twin Cities and U of M campuses via two new film festivals: The Twin Cities Black Europe Film Festival and Il Cinema Ritrovato On Tour—Minneapolis. Fabbri’s project uses cinema to project a more diverse and inclusive understanding of contemporary Europe, as well as to inspire and empower local Black communities, and Hennefeld’s project is dedicated to programming international archival films at cultural venues across the Twin Cities.

The Imagine Fund Arts, Design, and Humanities Chair Award is an initiative of the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost awarding $100,000 over a two-year term to create a collaborative program of activities for the University community and the community at large.

Harvey Charles has been named as the University’s next vice provost for international programs and senior international officer, effective July 31. As the U of M’s vice provost for international programs, Charles will lead the Global Programs and Strategy Alliance and continue to advance the University as a global leader in international teaching, research, and outreach. Charles is an experienced leader of international programs in higher education and a scholar in the field of international education. He currently serves as professor of international education and co-director of the International Education Management Leadership Program at the University of Albany, State University of New York. He has previously served as the dean of international education and vice provost for global strategy at Albany and the vice provost for international education at Northern Arizona University. He earned his PhD in higher education and student affairs from The Ohio State University.

Prasad Boradkar has been named as the next dean of the College of Design, effective Sept. 5. Boradkar is an educator, researcher, and designer with several years of experience leading design and research teams in both academia and industry. Most recently he served as UX Research and Sustainability Lead at Google’s Advanced Technology & Projects division. Prior to his work at Google, Boradkar was professor of industrial design at Arizona State University, where he also served as co-director of the Biomimicry Center and director of the InnovationSpace transdisciplinary research and education lab. Boradkar holds a PhD in Sociocultural Anthropology from University College London; an MA in Industrial Design from The Ohio State University; an MDes in Industrial Design from the Industrial Design Centre, Bombay; and a Bachelor of Engineering from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara, India.

Shane Stennes, Jessica Hellmann, and Beth Mercer-Taylor are quoted in a Minnesota Daily story about progress towards furthering sustainability education on-campus; Michael Garwood is quoted in the Star Tribune story “An MRI capable of house calls?”; Lee Frelich is interviewed in a KSTP story about how to keep Minnesota trees alive in the midst of drought and disease; C Terrence Anderson is quoted in a Star Tribune story about North Minneapolis businesses growing concerned about the potential impact of the Blue Line LRT; Joanne Donnelly is quoted in a Politico story about whether hospitals can turn into climate change fighting machines; Carrie Henning-Smith is quoted in a Minnpost story about a U of M study showing that a lack of family support adds to rural transgender adults’ health risks; Paul Tuite is interviewed for the Minnesota Public Radio story, “Finding hope and strength while living with Parkinson’s disease”; Brad Holschuh and ​​Linsey Griffin are interviewed in a TPT story about how  robotic textiles are revolutionizing our clothing sizes; Michaelle DiMaggio-Potter is interviewed in a WCCO story about a new approach to treating depression in adolescents; Peter Neff is quoted in the USA Today story, “No, it is not illegal to travel to Antarctica."

The Office of the Vice President for Research has announced the recipients of the 2023 Research Animal Resources (RAR) Patrick J. Manning award, given in honor of Patrick J. Manning, who served as director of RAR from 1974 to 1994. The award is given to U of M employees or graduate students who work with research animals and who have shown special efforts on behalf of research animals and consequently on behalf of science.

Heidi Roop is quoted in The Hill story, “Do humans cause climate change? Even now, only half of Americans say yes”; Jon Trappe is quoted in The Wall Street Journal story, “My Secret Lawn: Confessions of a Drought-Conscious Gardener”; Jeffrey Kwang is quoted in Phys Org about how to extend US breadbasket fertility for centuries; Michael Osterholm is quoted in Science Magazine about how the COVID-19 virus mutated to outsmart key antibody treatments–but better ones are coming; Aaron Kelly is quoted in The Atlantic story, “Ozempic in Teens Is a Mess”; Keith Piotrowski is interviewed in a KARE 11 feature about the U of M soil testing lab; Paul Vaaler is interviewed at CBS Minnesota about inflation's current impact on our finances; Abigail Krentz is interviewed and Don Wyse is quoted in a West Central Tribune story about Minnesota's alt-meat revolution; Vera Krischik is interviewed in a CBS News story about science-backed tricks to keep mosquitoes out of your yard; Kathleen Vohs is quoted in The Wall Street Journal story, “Returning to the Office Is Killing My Budget”; Yingling Fan is quoted in a MinnPost story about Metro Transit crime on the rise.

University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering Professor Boris I. Shklovskii has been elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) for his excellence in original scientific research. Membership in the NAS is one of the highest honors given to a scientist or engineer. Shklovskii is one of only 120 researchers nationwide to be elected to the Academy this year. Shklovskii, a world-renowned expert in theoretical physics, is a professor in the University of Minnesota School of Physics and Astronomy. He currently holds the A.S. Fine Chair of Theoretical Physics.

Associate Professor Faith Miller and Professor Amanda Sullivan recently received a $5.3 million grant over five years from the U.S. Department of Education Mental Health Service Provider Demonstration Grant Competition. The grant is for “Project LIME: Leading Improvements in Mental-health and Equity.” The goal of the project is to increase the number and diversity of school psychologists who can significantly expand the capacity of high-need districts through enhanced implementation of multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) to support youth mental health.