Last Friday, President Ron Daniels and Provost Lloyd Minor announced the appointment of the Gilman Scholars. The award is a distinction that was bestowed upon 17 professors who were chosen for their outstanding qualities that exemplified what the university stands and strives for. This is the first year that the Gilman Scholar distinctions were given out.
“Provost Minor and I are delighted that the University is able to bestow such distinctions on our colleagues who embody the very best of the Johns Hopkins spirit,” Daniels wrote in an e-mail to The News-Letter.
“[The designation] recognizes individuals who exemplify the university’s highest ideals as demonstrated through their distinguished research and scholarship, artistic and creative activity, teaching, mentoring and service,” he wrote. “We are pleased to be able to recognize them and offer support as they continue their work to advance their respective fields.” The professors were chosen by Daniels and Minor.
“The 17 individuals, regarded as leading faculty or practitioners within their divisions, were confirmed by me upon recommendation from the provost [Minor] and nomination by their deans or directors,” Daniels wrote in the same e-mail to The News-Letter. “The University’s Board of Trustees approved the nominations last week.”
Those designated were John Sommerer of the Applied Physics Laboratory; Charles Bennett, Adam Riess and Gabrielle Spiegel of the Krieger school of Arts and Sciences; Peter Agre, Diane Griffin and Alfred Sommer of the Bloomberg school of Public Health;
Lisa Cooper, Andrew Feinberg, Carol Greider, Bert Vogelstein and Solomon Snyder of the School of Medicine; Jacquelyn Campbell of the School of Nursing; Andrew Talle of Peabody Institute; David Lampton of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies; and Michael Miller and Joseph Katz of the Whiting School of Engineering.
The recipients of the distinction, which will remain with them until their retirement or as long as they are affiliated with Hopkins, were delighted.
Miller in particular felt that it was rewarding because of the sense of recognition he was getting from the Hopkins community.
“To be given such an award is a great honor,” Miller wrote in an e-mail to The News-Letter. “So many of us work on things in our research lives that very few of our colleagues here necessarily follow. To have our colleagues here at home appreciating us is a great honor.”
He went on to write that because of his nomination as a Gilman Scholar, his relationship with Hopkins changed greatly.
“[My nomination] put me in touch with the great history of [Hopkins],” Miller wrote. “To think that I am part of that tradition in a meaningful way makes me feel so special.”
But he by no means felt that he was unique in deserving the honor.
“I am blown away by the other Gilman scholars — they all deserve it,” Miller wrote.
Talle, another recipient, was also very delighted. “I feel very flattered and honored to be named a Gilman Scholar,” he wrote in an e-mail to The News-Letter. “The award was unexpected.”
For Talle, the honor of being named a Gilman Scholar meant something special. “It has been wonderful to receive so many congratulatory e-mails from friends, students and acquaintances. Hopkins and Peabody provide a supportive environment, which I appreciate very much,” he wrote.
His relationship with Hopkins changed positively too. “I look forward to meeting the other Gilman Scholars and to seeing President Daniels more often,” he wrote. “The idea of bringing the many divisions together in this way is wonderful and entirely welcome.”
The selected group of professors will help the board of trustees to select up to five new members every year, but the number of Gilman scholars will remain limited.
