Faculty honored with Chancellor awards for mentorship

This month, UC Davis Chancellor Gary May honored excellence in undergraduate research and also recognized the excellence in mentorship by faculty that helps empower young researchers. Included in the honorees were two UC Davis School of Medicine faculty, John Richards and Luis Carvajal-Carmona. 

The annual awards were instituted in 1994 as a way to emphasize the importance and visibility of faculty contributions to excellence in mentoring and advocacy for undergraduate research and creative activities. 

Richards lauded for supporting undergraduates

Richards, a professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine, was nominated for the award by colleague Erik Laurin, who noted that it is “extremely rare for clinical faculty in the School of Medicine to work directly with undergraduates.” But Richards, said Laurin, “is the one faculty member who most often welcomes interested undergraduates to his research team."

Chancellor May called attention to Richards' research interests, which include the treatment of alcohol, cannabis, and stimulant toxicity and addiction. May said that Richards’ work as one of the founders of the Emergency Medicine Research Associate Program enables undergraduates to gain important experience by being able to identify and recruit patients for clinical trials in the emergency department.

Richards has long encouraged students to shadow him as part of mentoring. It enables students to “see the patients our research would hopefully impact in the future,” said one student. “When Dr. Richards took me on to help with his research,” said the student, “I had no experience or valuable skills. Every step of the way, Dr. Richards was there to support and guide me through the rigors of clinical research manuscript preparation.”

Carvajal-Carmona advances next generation of scientists

May noted that Carvajal-Carmona, an associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, “has tirelessly dedicated his research and time to understanding cancer health disparities in minority and underserved populations.” 

The Chancellor added that Carvajal-Carmona’s leadership was instrumental in implementing the Latinos United for Cancer Health Advancement (LUCHA) initiative at the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center. LUCHA’s goal is to understand and eliminate cancer health disparities in Latino populations through community-based outreach. 

Carvajal-Carmona was nominated for the award by members of his research team, who said “his actions show that the success of others is equally important to him.” And that he had “made a positive impact not only in the field of cancer research, but in the lives of his mentees, and training the next generation of scientists.”

Recipients of the Chancellor’s faculty honors receive a special plaque and $500 award.