About 200 students and faculty
gathered in the W.E. Singleton Center
for the Performing Arts yesterday
afternoon to support four VCU faculty
members receiving awards for their
outstanding academic and scholastic
accomplishments.
The event, VCU’s 25th Convocation
award ceremony, also marked President
Eugene P. Trani’s return from a sixmonth
hiatus at Cambridge University to
write a book about U.S.-Chinese-Russian
relations.
“I cannot think of a better way to
start off an academic year than to honor
distinguished faculty,” Trani said.
Trani gave a detailed speech about
VCU before the faculty was introduced
and the awards presented.
“We are in very good shape,” Trani
said, referencing the $425 million of construction
underway, including the new
business and engineering building and
parking deck, as well as the completed
James Branch Cabell Library Starbucks,
the new School of Nursing facility and
Hunton Student Center.
Trani said VCU’s recent state budget
cuts from Gov. Timothy M. Kaine won’t
create setbacks.
“We intend to remain focused on
fulfilling our goals,” Trani said. “We
will not allow this to deter us from our
long-term vision.”
Trani individually recognized the
former faculty members who received
awards in past years. Trani said he found
it most interesting that three out of
four of this year’s recipients were born
internationally.
“(They are) the best and the brightest
from all over the world,” Trani
said. “(Here) to impart wisdom to our
students.”
Stephen D. Gottfredson, provost and
vice president for academic affairs, introduced
the first award, the Distinguished
Service Award, given to Aradhana A.
“Bela” Sood, professor and chair of the
Division of Child Psychiatry at VCU
Health System.
“Dr. Sood was named one of the
best doctors in Richmond,” Gottfredson
said.
He added that she has been noted as
one of the best doctors in America and
in 2006 was named one of Richmond’s
outstanding women by YWCA.
Gottfredson said Sood consistently
provides guidance for VCU and was
recently appointed by Kaine to be on
the Virginia Tech Review Panel.
“She will bring a calming influence
… but (an) almost regal presence,”
Goffredson said about her effect on the
council.
Sood said her work with children’s
mental health “gives me a passion and
a drive to try to change their lives and
the world.”
Sood said she was at first inspired
by her mother, who said that she could
achieve anything she wanted. Now, Sood
loves her work passionately.
“I wake up each morning and look
forward to going to work,” Sood said.
Sood encouraged attendees to move
forward in their lives and “above all
… give of yourself, back to your community.
“I thank you deeply for letting me
do what makes my heart sing – that is,
helping people,” she said.
Faye Belgrave, psychology professor
and director of the social psychology
program, received the Distinguished
Teacher Award.
Belgrave has spent 25 years teaching
and came to VCU in 1997. She recently
published a textbook, “African-American
Psychology: From African to America.”
She said that with VCU’s immense
diversity comes responsibility.
“I am most proud of the fact that VCU
is one of the most diverse schools in the
state, if not the nation,” Belgrave said.
Belgrave said she had been recently
contemplating her high school graduation
in 1959 and her college decisions
that followed.
“In order to look forward, you have
to look back,” Belgrave said.
Sarah Spiegel, who currently serves
as professor and chair for VCU’s departments
of biochemistry and molecular
biology, received the Distinguished
Scholar Award. Under her care, VCU’s
biochemistry department has flourished.
Before coming to VCU, Spiegel
worked for 15 years at Georgetown
University. She is best known for her
groundbreaking work in discovering
the role of sphingosine-1-phosphate
in regulating cells more than a decade
ago.
Spiegel laughed at the clip of the TV
series “The West Wing” that was played
before she was given her award. The clip
included a discussion in the White House
about sphingosine-1-phosphate.
“Science today is not an individual
achievement,” Spiegel said. “It is teamwork.”
Spiegel said she hopes to make many
more discoveries here at VCU in the
future.
Marcel H. Cornis-Pope, English
professor and director of the new interdisciplinary
Ph.D. program in Media, Art
and Text, was awarded the University
Award of Excellence.
Cornis-Pope has written more than
200 articles and book chapters and
translated and introduced eight volumes
of poetry and prose. Most recently,
Cornis-Pope has written a four-volume
history of literature titled, “History of
the Literary Cultures of East-Central
Europe.”
“I came to the United States 24 years
ago with two suitcases,” Cornis-Pope
said of his Romanian background. “I
left behind a library in several languages
… where I had been teaching English
for 15 years.”
He recognized the VCU staff that has
aided him in his accomplishments.
“A university award of excellence is a
collective achievement,” he said.
“These are the most prestigious
awards,” said Linda Zyzniewski, assistant
director and professor of psychology,
who attended the event to support
Belgrave. “It’s a tremendous honor.”