The University of Utah College of Health (COH) awarded several faculty, students, and staff members with awards for their outstanding contributions at the annual spring meeting. This year's winners:
Genevieve Olivier, PhD, Distinguished Teaching Award
Olivier is assistant professor (clinical) in the Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training. She earned her PhD in rehabilitation sciences from the University of Utah in 2020. As a doctoral student, she directed lab sessions for the department's course in motor control, before gaining opportunities to lecture. One of the most meaningful improvements she made to the course was adding reviews of contemporary literature to support the techniques used in care and assessment of the outcomes of that care. Students regularly express high evaluation marks for Dr. Olivier’s courses: “I felt that she is teaching me, even though I know it is the whole class she is teaching, and she is so approachable and available with her time.” "Neurological clinical care was never on my radar, she changed that through her enthusiasm and interactions with us.." “I was not looking forward to motor control class because of my experience with a similar class as an undergraduate student. Here in the DPT program, it ended up being my favorite class." As the current and former department chairs note: "We trust that her legacy in the classroom will be substantial and strong."
Nate Furman, PhD, Distinguished Teaching Award
Furman is the director of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism's UExplore Program, which offers two credit courses related to specific outdoor skills as well as environmental justice and sustainability. These are typically taught in a format where there is one classroom meeting and an extended weekend trip where students learn skills such as mountaineering, canyoneering, rock climbing,camping, backpacking, avalanche awareness, etc. In this role, Dr. Furman teaches some courses, oversees the hiring or additional instructors, manages all logistics and risk managements processes, engages in curriculum development, manages the budget, coordinates with other programs across campus, and runs experiences for groups such as the School of Business, the Honors College, and the School of Medicine. Dr. Furman’s primary teaching responsibilities are in field-based instruction where peer reviews have commented on his exceptional communication skills and knowledge base and are “blown away” by his level of professionalism. One of the most frequent courses he teaches is Avalanche Awareness where students are taken to the back country to learn the threats and strategies necessary in the science of avalanches. This is crucial information for individuals in our region who engage in outdoor activities during the winter and students thrive under his teaching style.Students themselves have commented on Dr. Furman’s teaching that he is reliable to learn from, experienced, knowledgeable, encouraging, responsive, and understandable.
Sihem Boudina, PhD, Senior Investigator Award
Boudina arrived to the University of Utah in 2002 after completing her PhD in Biological and Medical Sciences from the University of Victor Segalen Bordeaux, France. Following an extremely productive postdoctoral fellowship, she transitioned in 2008 into a research track assistant professor position and in 2010 into a tenure track assistant professor position in the Department of Medicine (Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism). In January of 2016, Dr.Boudina joined the newly formed Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology. In 2017, she was promoted to the rank of associate professor with tenure, and in 2023 was promoted to professor. As inaugural member of NUIP, she played an essential role establishing the research direction and expectations of the new program. Dr. Boudina’s research focuses on the links between adipose and cardiac metabolism and the susceptibility to cardiovascular disease. Her unique expertise in assessing cardiac function brings distinct and important skills to our department and the university. She has a strong record of research productivity, having acquired a number of NIH-R01 and other foundation (e.g. American Heart Association) grants, while publishing 72 peer-reviewed publications in excellent journals (e.g., Diabetes, Circulation, etc). She brings an uncompromising rigor in science, and sets the tone high in our departmental meetings, research faculty meetings, and at relevant seminars. As NUIP Department Chair Scott Summers, PhD, notes "faculty in my department, including myself, seek out her advice and opinion on their research ideas, papers, and grant applications."
Chris Depner, PhD, New Investigator Research Excellence Award
Depner joined the Department of Health & Kinesiology in Fall 2020 and immediately began significantly contributing to the research success of the department. He has received over $5 million in research funding, most notably with receipt of an R01 award in June 2023, with a second R01 anticipated to be fully funded. He increased his publications to a total of 43 (22 as first or senior author), and his h-index to 27. While the number of publications alone is commendable, the majority of are in leading journals including SLEEP and Journal of Physiology, and have received over 3,600 citations. Importantly, Dr. Depner’s R01 includes working with the Community and Collaboration Engagement Team to create new community partnerships to enhance enrollment of people from underrepresented backgrounds. Dr. Depner has also led efforts to develop a new Sleep and Circadian Research Laboratory, including installation of proper lighting, camera, and intercom systems. Along with Bradley King and Genevieve Albouy, he also obtained funding to purchase this lab's PSG system. Additionally, Dr. Depner played a major role in setting up and determining needs for the Wet Lab, Exercise Research Space, and Metabolic Kitchen.
Erik Blackwood, PhD, Young Investigator Award
Blackwood's work is centered on two critical areas of cardiovascular research: (1) understanding the role of the unfolded protein response (UPR) in maintaining proteostatic balance within the heart in the context of chronic heart failure and (2) translating these findings into novel therapeutics that can be evaluated in preclinical models. His research integrates cutting-edge techniques, including the human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) model and small and large animal studies, to bridge the gap between basic and translational cardiovascular science. At his career stage, he has already secured two NIH R01 grants totaling $7,370,000 in addition to his current R56 grant. In addition, he has published 26 peer reviewed manuscripts in high impact journals including Circulation, Circulation Research and Nature Communication, which is considered outstanding for his career stage. Finally, Dr. Blackwood has presented his work at several national and international meetings and has been recognized by numerous awards. Now leading a research team at NUIP and the Nora Eccles Harrison Cardiovascular Research and Training Institute, Dr. Blackwood continues to excel as an independent investigator, actively translating basic discoveries into clinical applications.
Peter Fino, PhD, Distinguished Mentoring Award
By the numbers, Dr. Fino has been an extremely successful mentor over the last seven years—he has mentored six postdocs (five as primary or co-primary mentor; two current), six PhD students (three current), six MS students, 22 undergraduate students, and he has served as a committee member for another 15 PhD students and three MS students. Combined, his primary mentees have published 21 first-author publications (with 5 additional manuscripts in review), and he frequently publishes with students he co-mentors as a committee member. His students have won numerous prestigious awards, and gone on to careers the specifically suited their career goals. His commitment to rigorous scholarship is reflected in the high caliber of research produced by his mentees, with 30 peer-reviewed publications by mentored (21) or co-mentored (9) first authors, several award-winning abstracts and presentations, three awards won by his postdocs, 9 honors or fellowships earned by graduate mentees, and 11 Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) awarded to his mentees. Dr. Fino holds regular one-on-one meetings with his mentees, often starting with the question, “What can I do for you?”—emphasizing his investment in each mentee’s success beyond research projects. This approach highlights his interest in the mentee, beyond their work, and often turn into, professional development discussions, and informal checkins.
Rebekah Nicholson, MS, RD, CD, Outstanding Graduate Student Researcher Award
Bekah joined the Summers Lab in 2018 as part of the Coordinated Master’s Degree Program (CMP) in dietetics. This program is academically rigorous, with substantial internship requirements, and an independent thesis is not mandatory. However, from her very first week, it was clear that Bekah was different. She took the initiative to meet with faculty across our department to seek out research opportunities. Her intellectual curiosity, resilience, and analytical abilities were remarkable—well beyond what is typically expected of a CMP student. Given her strong passion for research, she transitioned into the NUIP PhD program after her graduation from the CMP in 2020. Inspired by her firsthand experience working with dialysis patients during her dietetic internship, she focused her dissertation on kidney disease, making significant contributions to our understanding of the role of ceramides in renal pathology. Her relentless work ethic and deep commitment to improving patient outcomes set her apart as a researcher. Her work has paved the way for a new therapy to treat kidney pathologies—one that is entering clinical trials in the next few months. Bekah has actively served in leadership roles within the Diabetes & Metabolism Research Center, the Division of Nephrology, the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science, and the Diversity in Science Lecture Series.
Edwin Miranda, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow Research Award
After earning his PhD at the University of Michigan, Dr. Miranda joined Dr. Katsu Funai’s lab in the summer of 2022. Even before relocating to Utah, he distinguished himself as an invited speaker at the University of Utah’s Rising Star Symposium, a prestigious three-day event showcasing top doctoral candidates from across the country. His selection for this honor stemmed from an impressive presentation he delivered at an international conference, where Funai recognized his exceptional potential. The Rising Star Symposium ultimately served as a successful recruitment opportunity, bringing him to the University of Utah. Funai noted, "The last few years he has been in my lab, he has been more like a chemist. He is always talking about stuff that is way over my head and I have to go back and read things to understand what he is trying to do. He is also a programmer. He has been working on a Python script for the last year or so trying to figure out how to best interpret mass spectrometry data he has acquired on his chemistry. He is built to solve the next most important problem." Miranda's vision: in a not distant future, the advent of deep resolution omics and AI will allow us to test mechanistic hypotheses in silico. In such an era, the ability to wield genes in model organisms might be more obsolete, and the ability to acquire data directly from human subjects is going to give him an edge.
Liz Southwell, Staff and Advising Excellence Award
Southwell joined the Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training in May 2019, in an executive secretary role that was then shared with another department. She was both extremely effective at managing the demands of two busy departments and delightful to work with. During the critical early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Liz facilitated swift and frequent communication with both employees and students. Despite the intense pressure and the challenges presented by the rapidly changing workplace environment during the peak of the crisis, she remained unflappable. In July 2021, with COVID restrictions still largely in place in health care education, Liz transitioned to the position of Admissions Advisor (Graduate Coordinator II) in PTAT. Her warm demeanor, familiarity with the DPT program and University, dependability, and attention to detail made her ideally suited to this role. For the 2022-2023 admissions cycle, she onboarded the largest class of DPT students in the history of the department by herself. The department now has three admissions counselors and Liz has been a superb leader: training the new staff and creating a fun and collegial work team. She also leads the department's admissions committee, setting the meeting agendas and helping the committee navigate challenging admissions policies and procedures with a focus on the student experience. Every individual who interacts with Liz comments on her positive demeanor and vast knowledge. She makes every student feel important—not just as applicants or students, but as valued individuals and friends.
Johnny Rivera, Staff and Advising Excellence Award
As an advisor, Rivera thoroughly investigates all possible opportunities for his students, giving them as many resources as possible as well as supporting the information with his own experiences. He is a first-generation scholar and has completed his undergraduate education on his own. As an undergraduate student, he participated in many extracurricular programs such as community involvement through the Bennion Center, academic assistance in TRIO, programming at the Student Life Center, a peer advisor, and researcher. Johnny uses these experiences to relate to and encourage students. Students recognize and appreciate Johnny’s thoughtfulness and thorough knowledge of university policies and procedures coupled with his reflections and advice from his own recent experiences in our Kinesiology program. As examples, past student quotes include, “Johnny was fantastic in all regards, fully helped and reduced my stress about the upcoming semester after I didn’t perform very well the one before- thanks Johnny,” and “This is the only advisor I have met with and felt truly listened to,” plus “Johnny is always very kind and has helped me a lot regarding registration and scholarships.” As a summary of his success with advising students, one simply said, “Johnny is a great advisor and person!” He has taken on the College of Health website, completing training and access requirements so that he could redesign the advisor and resource information pages in to be more student friendly. He has also organized advising information to be easily accessed on a mobile app after discovering 70% of students access the website on their cell phones.
Lauren Bade, BS, CTRS, Graduate Teaching Award
Bade has demonstrated exceptional dedication to both her academic pursuits and contributions to the Recreational Therapy (RT) program. In her role as a teaching assistant, Lauren has effectively supported students in their clinical experiences, ensuring smooth coordination and meaningful engagement with assigned facilities. Additionally, she has played a key role in enhancing outreach, engagement, and visibility of the RT program. Through her commitment to both her studies and departmental contributions, Lauren has made a significant impact on the RT program while excelling in her graduate studies. One of Lauren’s key strengths is her ability to make learning accessible for all students. For instance, she suggested and implemented classroom adaptations for students with autism, such as providing noise-canceling headphones and using media with accessible font sizes to ensure a more inclusive learning experience. She consistently reaches out to students to assess their needs and provides tailored support to enhance their educational experience. Her impact is reflected in student testimonials. One student from a teaching evaluation stated, "The TA helps me feel like part of the class regardless of my disabilities, always considering my personal needs."