Community awards received by current Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Dental Medicine faculty, postdocs, staff, and students can also be found, categorized by calendar year, on the HMS Office of the Dean webpage.
Joint Committee on the Status of Women (JCSW) Dean’s Awards
Since 1998, the JCSW has honored faculty and staff at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Dental Medicine for their contributions to advancing women's careers. These awards, initiated by Dr. Joseph B. Martin, recognize leadership in recruiting, retaining, and promoting women. Over the years, new awards have been introduced, including the Shirley Driscoll Dean's Leadership Award for the Enhancement of Women's Careers and the Nancy J. Tarbell Dean's Award for Emerging Leaders in Women's Careers, celebrating individuals at different stages of their efforts to support gender equity in academia.
This year’s awards were presented at the JCSW Dean's Awards ceremony on June 4 in the Gordon Hall Waterhouse Room.
Joseph B. Martin Dean’s Leadership Award for the Advancement of Women Faculty
- Marcia Haigis, professor of cell biology, Harvard Medical School
Joseph B. Martin Dean’s Leadership Award for the Advancement of Women Staff
- Hardeep Ranu, project manager-research, Harvard Catalyst, Harvard Medical School
- Kate Rezendes, chief of staff, Dean’s Office, Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Shirley Driscoll Dean’s Leadership Award for the Enhancement of Women’s Careers
- Sharon Dekel, HMS associate professor of psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital
Nancy J. Tarbell Dean’s Leadership Award for an Emerging Leader in Women’s Careers
- Ashwini Nadkarni, HMS assistant professor of psychiatry at Brigham and Women's Hospital
President’s Innovation Challenge
The President’s Innovation Challenge is an annual competition for Harvard students across all 13 Harvard schools as well as select alumni and affiliates pursuing ventures that address the world’s most pressing problems.
To learn more about the finalists and winners and watch a recording of the May 7 awards ceremony, visit the Harvard Innovation Labs website.
HMS winners are:
$75,000 award
- PeriPeach: Designing a medical device to prevent severe tears from childbirth. Represented by HMS student Tess Kim.
- Regatta Bio: Developing cellular therapies to restore immune tolerance and prevent immune system-related diseases. Represented by Leslie Kean, the HMS Robert A. Stranahan Professor of Pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital.
$25,000 award
- Radiate Biosciences: Creating a new colorectal cancer screening method with a blood test that delivers colonoscopy-level performance. Represented by HMS student Joseph Sedlak.
Excellence in Mentoring Awards
The Excellence in Mentoring Awards were established at HMS to recognize the value of quality mentoring relationships and the impact they have on professional development and career advancement in basic and clinical medicine, research, teaching, and administration.
This year’s awards will be presented at the Excellence in Mentoring Awards Ceremony on June 3, 2025.
Recipients are:
William Silen Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award
This award was established in 1997 as the Lifetime Excellence in Mentoring Award and renamed in 2001 to the William Silen Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award to honor and acknowledge the lifetime commitment Silen made to mentoring students, residents, and faculty.
- Gail Adler, HMS professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Helen Christou, the HMS Mary Ellen Avery Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Field of Newborn Medicine at Brigham and Women’s
- Thomas Michel, HMS professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s
A. Clifford Barger Excellence in Mentoring Award
This award was established in 1995 as the Excellence in Mentoring Award and in 1997 was renamed to honor the memory of A. Clifford Barger, who, among other things, devoted his career to bringing out the best in those who studied, trained, and worked at HMS.
- Karen Costenbader, HMS professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Eugene D’Angelo, HMS associate professor of psychology at Boston Children’s Hospital
- Finnian Mc Causland, HMS associate professor of medicine atBrigham and Women’s
- Tamara Rozental, HMS professor of orthopedic surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Tracy Young-Pearse, HMS associate professor of neurology at Brigham and Women’s
Young Mentor Award
This award was established in 2005 to recognize faculty who are still in the early stages of their career but are devoting their time to providing mentoring for others.
- Lisa Bebell, HMS associate professor of medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital
- Margaret Chapman, HMS instructor in medicine at Mass General
- Meghan Shea, HMS assistant professor of medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Kyle Staller, HMS associate professor of medicine at Mass General
- Chi-Fu Jeffrey Yang, HMS associate professor of surgery at Mass General
HMS Scholars in Medicine Excellence in Student Mentoring Award
This award was established in 2017 to recognize faculty who have carefully and skillfully guided medical students in their scholarly projects and as they train in their professions. Each year, graduating HMS students are invited to nominate their mentors. Faculty from the Scholars in Medicine Program select the finalists.
- John Barbieri, HMS assistant professor of dermatology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Bryan Choi, HMS associate professor of neurosurgery at Massachusetts General Hospital
- Jennifer Potter, HMS professor of medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Harvard Heroes
The Harvard Heroes Recognition Program celebrates the accomplishments of Harvard staff whose work supports the university’s mission at the highest levels of contribution, impact, and excellence.
This year’s Harvard Heroes awards ceremony, hosted by Harvard University President Alan Garber, will be held on June 12 in the Sanders Theatre of Memorial Hall, Cambridge, MA.
Harvard Medical School
- Safiya Bobb, associate director of program operations in the Office of External Education
- Susanne Churchill, executive director of the Department of Biomedical Informatics
- Mindy Dellert, academic appointments manager in the Office of Faculty Affairs
- Christina Kennedy, strategic projects manager in the Office of Research Administration
- Veronica Leo, program manager for academic advancement in the Office of Faculty Affairs
- Livia Rizzo, senior associate director of HMS MEDscience
- Jennifer Puccetti, executive director of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine
Harvard School of Dental Medicine
- Adrien Doherty, senior DMD program director
- Carrie Sylven, director of student affairs
