On behalf of UICOMP’s students and residents, thank you to the dedicated faculty members who educate tomorrow’s physicians. Your devotion, enthusiasm, and

expertise help the College of Medicine “Lead Collaboration to Improve Health.”

Faculty Appreciation Book2018

Faculty Award WinnersRobin Alley, MD Amy Christison, MD Jeffrey DeSanto, MDDavid Dominguese, PhDJonathan Fisher, PhDKen-ichiro Fukuchi, MD, PhDChristopher Gondi, PhD Jessica Hanks, MDAsim Jaffer, MDElsa Vazquez-Melendez, MD Zohra Moeenuddin, MDJames Nesselroad III, MDKrishna Veeravalli, PhDKiran Velpula, PhD

Teaching Excellence for M1 Courses Jeffrey Brown, PhDAmy Christison, MDJessica Hanks, MDGordon James, MDDouglas Kasper, MDNur-Ain Nadir, MDThomas Santoro, MDMichael Veeder, MD

CELEBRATION OF EXCELLENCE 2018 AWARDEES & HONOREES

Teaching Excellence for M2 CoursesAlexander Alonso, MDSarah Bach, MD Julius Bonello, MDMichael Cashman, MDDavid Charles, DOMark Getz, MDRoger W. Geiss, MDJames Graumlich, MDMatthew Jager, DOKishore Karamchandani, MDDouglas Kasper, MDRichard Luetkemeyer, MDBrian McIntyre, EdDDavid Pinson, PhD, DVMWatcoun-nchinda Pisoh, MDSara Rusch, MDRichard Tapping, PhDGregory Tudor, MDTeaching Excellence for Clerkships Amira Alfil, MDRobin Alley, MDKamilah Dixon-Shambley, MDEric Elwood, MDKeith Hanson, MD, PhDMatthew Jager, DOJ. Stephen Marshall, MDRahmat Na’ Allah, MDSidney Palmer Hill, MDPriyanka Patel, MD

Teaching Excellence for ResidentsLinda Agyapong, MDKari Bates, DOBrandon Bond, MDSakina Broachwala, MDShane Burke, MDJohn-Scott Carroll, MDRozana Dwyer, MDJoseph Esparaz, MDAbbie Massengill, MDPilar Rainey, DOShane Rainey, DOIsaac Tan, MDRachel Weberman, MDDustin Whelan, MDPromotionsSaurabh Bansal, MD Jacqueline Fischer, MDRamayya Gowda, MDMatthew Jager, DODivya-Devi Joshi, MDGhaly Kerolus, MDJeffrey Klopfenstein, MDMohannad Mannaa, MDPriti Patel, MDSarah Stewart de Ramirez, MDSandeep Tripathi, MDElsa Vazquez-Melendez, MDGolden AppleJolene Harris, MS (M1)Pushpa Joseph, MD (M2)Elsa Vazquez-Melendez, MD (M3)Elsa Vazquez-Melendez, MD (M4)

Outstanding Senior Scholar Martha Willi, MD

Community Health AwardsTim Miller, MDGoodwill Stand Down

Peoria M1 Course, Block and Theme LeadersYerko Berrocal, MD Michael Cashman, MDDavid Charles, DOAmy Christison, MDDavid Dominguese, PhD Jacqueline Fischer, MDJonathan Fisher, PhDJessica Hanks, MDMatthew Jager, DOGordon James, MDPushpa Joseph, MDKishore Karamchandani, MDDouglas Kasper, MDS. Brian McIntyre, EdDDavid McPheeters, PhDNur-Ain Nadir, MDDavid Pinson, PhD, DVMJenna Regan, PhDRichard Tapping, PhDGregory Tudor, MDElsa Vazquez-Melendez, MDMichael Veeder, MDRobert Wolford, MDAmy Zacharias, MD

M2 Course Directors Maqbool Ali, MD Valeria Benavides-Lopez, MDTimothy Bruce, PhDMichael Cashman, MD David Charles, DOJacqueline Fischer, MDBahareh Hassanzadeh, MDMatthew Jager, DOGordon James, MDPushpa Joseph, MDKishore Karamchandani, MDDouglas Kasper, MDStephen Lasley, PhDBrian McIntyre, EdDSara Rusch, MDMichael Veeder, MDKrishna Veeravalli, PhDAnu Vishwanath, MD

Clerkship DirectorsRichard Anderson, MD Saurabh Bansal, MDJames Barnett, MDTimothy Bruce, PhDCraig Griebel, MDJorge Kattah, MDThomas Lee, DOHeather McLauchlan, MDMatthew Mischler, MD

Patrick Tracy, MDManajyoti Yadav, MDAmy Zacharias, MD

Subinternship Directors Richard Anderson, MDHarleena Kendhari, MDJ. Stephen Marshall, MD Matthew Mischler, MDSteven Tsoraides, MDAmy Zacharias, MD

Special RecognitionAllan Campbell, MDPushpa Joseph, MD

Maqbool Ali, MD

M2 Course Director for Reproductive

“Dr. Ali worked through her set of learning objectives in an organized and efficient manner.”“Dr. Ali had great handouts!”– M2 Students

Amira Alfil, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the Pediatrics M3 Clerkship

“Dr. Alfil’s contributions to the newborn rotation have been immense and we sincerely appreciate her efforts. She is a skillful and enthusiastic educator.”– Heather McLauchlan, MD

Robin Alley, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Teaching AwardTeaching Excellence Award for the

Surgery M3 Clerkship“Since joining faculty in 2013, Dr. Alley has become a favorite teacher among both students and residents. She has created new lectures for the surgery clerkship based on her real life cases and these teaching introductions turned out to be very popular with the third year medical students. Feedback from students indicates that Dr. Alley is not intimidating and encourages critical thinking and observation.”– Colleague

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Renal-Urinary Course

“Organized; interesting material.”“Concise and well organized. Made clear the clinical implications and what you would expect to see in the hospital and on exam questions.”“Lectures/powerpoints were clear and well organized. He made it clear what he wanted us to know.”“He made things clear cut. He was focused and engaging.”– M2 Students Alexander Alonso, MD

Surgery Clerkship Director Surgery M4 Subinternship Director

“Involving students in what is going on and making us feel welcome. This helps us to learn from what is going on more effectively. He sets a very positive tone for his OR. If I were going to be a surgeon, this is how I would want to be.”– Student

Richard Anderson, MD

Sarah Bach, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Neurology Course

“Beyond Amazing! Definitely one of those inspiring teachers that you will never forget!”“Easily one of the best instructors at UICOMP. Very kind and engaging and provides exceptional pathologyimages.”– M2 Students

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine

Department of MedicineAssistant Clerkship Director

Internal Medicine

“Dr. Bansal provides the best learning environment possible for students. Very enthusiastic teacher while being hospitable at the same time. Encourages discussion, critical thinking and individual research in a seemingly low stress environment.” – Student Saurabh Bansal, MD

RSPP Program Director

“Dr. Barnett cares deeply about each student and does an excellent job of ensuring each student’s success. I am very grateful for everything he has done for me, particularly in returning to the curriculum.”– Kelvin Wynn, MD

James Barnett, MD

M2 Co-Course Director for Endocrine

“Dr. Benavides outlined and included all the relevant diseases with the appropriate classifications in a logical manner.”“Dr. Benavides had a great delivery of lectures!”– M2 Students

Valeria Benavides-Lopez, MD

Yerko Berrocal, MD

M1 Block 4: Circulation & Respiration

Course Director“I think that Dr. Berrocal gives the best TBL’s and really engages the class. When I have a question he is quick to answer it.”“I thought that the lectures he gave on obstructive and restrictive disease were GREAT.”– M1 Students

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Gastrointestinal Course

“I really enjoyed this lecture. He was lighthearted and it made the lecture more interesting.”“Hilarious and very entertaining.”– M2 Students

Julius Bonello, MD

M1 Teaching Excellence Award for Block 1: Body Systems & Homeostasis I“Dr. Brown was energetic and engaging.”“Dr. Brown did a wonderful job of introducing neuroscience to our class. The material was well organized and just made sense.”“Dr. Brown was very passionate about his topics, was very friendly, approachable and overall a great lecturer.”– M1 Students

Jeffrey Brown, PhD

Psychiatry Clerkship DirectorM2 Course Director for Psychiatry

and Behavioral Medicine “Dr. Bruce is a learning resource! I would rank him #1 on the list for the psychiatry block, but he is not an option.”“Loved how he broke down all the disorders we needed to know in our small group discussion! Made my studying way more efficient. Awesome guy!!”– M2 StudentsTimothy Bruce, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Gastrointestinal Course

M2 Course Director for GastrointestinalM1 Block 5: Digestion & Homeostasis

II Course Director “Dr. Cashman’s handouts are highly detailed and well organized. They were a great resource to supplement the powerpoint material.”“Dr. Cashman has many intriguing clinical vignettes and good concepts.”“Dr. Cashman is very invested in students and feedback.”– M2 Students

Michael Cashman, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Cardiovascular Course

M2 Course Director for Cardiovascular

M1 Block 4: Circulation & Respiration Course Director

“Dr. Charles was very interactive and gave us a great clinical perspective.”“ECGs were great.”“The EKG reading sessions and the small group sessions were especially helpful. They allowed us to integrate the information we were learning in class toward real-life cases.”– Students

David Charles, DO

UICOMP Outstanding Research AwardM1 Teaching Excellence Award for

Longitudinal EducatorM1 Medical Colloquia

Co-Course DirectorUICOM Theme Leader

Health Care Systems“Dr. Christison has purposely changed the focus of her abundant energy to clinical outcomes research in the areas of prevention and management of childhood obesity. She has collaborated with a group of pediatric residents to develop and study Promoting Healthy Eating Active Play, for which they successfully secured grant support and won a national award from the Academy of Pediatrics.”– Colleague

Amy Christison, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Teaching and Service Award for Community Based Faculty

“Dr. DeSanto teaches multiple lectures to the Radiology residents weekly and has won numerous teaching awards. He has also fostered interdisciplinary education with participation in the Neuropathology conference. His enthusiasm in teaching and services in radiology and interdisciplinary interactions provide an excellent role model for all of us.”– Colleague

Jeffrey DeSanto, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the Obstetrics and Gynecology M3 Clerkship“Doctor Dixon-Shambley treats students with respect. She offers as many learning opportunities as possible for her students. Doctor Dixon-Shambley is a great teacher. She practices patient centered care. I really appreciated all the learning experiences I had with doctor Dixon-Shambley.”“Dr. Dixon-Shambley has been one of my most memorable educators during medical shcool.”– Student

Kamilah Dixon-Shambley, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Clinical, Technological or Scholarly Achievements

Applied to Medical ResearchM1 Block 3: Skin, Muscle, & Movement

Course Director“Dr. Dominguese has demonstrated an outstanding ability to modify emerging technologies to deliver a new and innovative medical education environment in anatomy through 3D learning. He guides the students in both hands-on learning as well as hands-off skills that guide them toward intellectual and professional independence.”– Colleague

David Dominguese, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for the SurgeryM4 Clerkship

“Wealth of knowledge and lots of variety of topics to discuss. I wish that I would have had some more time to work with Dr. Elwood during the rotation.”“Keeps students engaged throughout the rotation, both in clinic and in the OR.”– M3 Students

Eric Elwood, MD

Promotion to Professor of Clinical Medicine

Department of MedicineM2 Course Director for Skeletal,

Connective Tissue, and SkinM1 Block 3: Skin, Muscle, & Movement

Course Director

“Clear. Organized. Slides had just the right amount of content and were straight to the point. Excellent example of what we should have as a professor.” “I appreciated the review session was a rapid-fire question session covering many important topics.” – M2 Students

Jacqueline Fischer, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Teaching Award UICOM Block I Leader

M1 Block 1: Body Systems & Homeostasis I Course Director

“As Course Director for Block 1, Dr. Fisher has shouldered the responsibility of integrating cell biology and histology into all blocks within the new curriculum. He has also volunteered to develop a system of evaluation and review for “micro-lecture” video content. He is the only UIC faculty member that has written, recorded, and edited more than 20 of these videos for the M1 curriculum. the new integrated curriculum.”– Colleague

Jonathan Fisher, PhD

UICOMP Outstanding Research Award“Dr. Fukuchi has secured a total of approximately $6.4 million in grants and awards. His research contributions have furthered the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the development of Alzheimer’s Disease and he is a pioneer in immune-gene therapy for the disease. His research accomplishments in this disease led to the Zenith Award from the Alzheimer’s Association, an award that is only given to investigators who contribute significantly to Alzheimer’s research.”– Colleague

Ken-ichiro Fukuchi, MD, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Hematopoietic & Reticuloendothelial

Course“I appreciate his expertise and sense of humor.”Dr. Geiss’s powerpoints were clear, to the point, and organized.They were a strength in the Pathology course.”“Dr. Geiss is a fair instructor and has good lecture slides.”– M2 Students

Roger W. Geiss, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Research Award

“Dr. Gondi’s lab focuses on finding ways to suppress cancer therapy resistance, whether it is pediatric or adult cancers. He has 112 peer-reviewed research publications and abstracts in the field of cancer. He is also recognized by peers as an accomplished research expert and serves as a reviewer for 18 various scientific journals.”– Colleague

Christopher Gondi, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Skeletal, Connective Tissue, and Skin

Course“His presentation exceeded my expectations. It was evident that he is passionate about both his field of medicine as well as teaching. His powerpoint was detailed enough and was easy to read and follow. He is also very enthusiastic which helped retain my attention during class.”“Loved the vasculitis lecture, very good as a teacher and a mentor.”– M2 StudentsMark Getz, MD

Assistant Director for RSPP

“Dr. Griebel is a positive role model for students. He creates a supportive and positive learning environment.” – Student

“RSPP provided a great opportunity to work autonomously, see a lot of patients, and learn from great mentors.”– Student

Craig Griebel, MD

Promotion to Clinical Associate ProfessorDepartment of Surgery

“Dr. Gowda is the reason I choose to pursue surgery as my career. In the operating theatre, he is a masterful teacher of human anatomy and a wide range of surgical techniques.”– Resident

Ramayya Gowda, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Pharmacology Course

“Dr. Graumlich’s powerpoints are extremely helpful in focusing on the main material that we need to know.”“Dr. Graumlich is one of the professors who were definitely the highlight of the Pharmacology course.”

– M2 Students

James Graumlich, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Service AwardM1 Teaching Excellence Award for

Longitudinal EducatorUICOM Phase I Synthesis Course

Director M1 Synthesis Co-Course Director

“Not only does Dr. Hanks serve as the Chair of the Peoria Committee on Instruction and Appraisal, but she serves on multiple UICOMP and Hospital committees as well. She also provides service through patient care while she supervises residents in an ambulatory setting. Dr. Hanks is actively engaged in her community and her belief for equitable and fair access to education is clearly evident in her work.” – Colleague

Jessica Hanks, MD

M1 Golden Apple Award

“I think Jolene Harris deserves some recognition for all the work she has put in for this year. She’s an amazing lecturer and wonderful anatomy instructor. I hate to think about all the things I wouldn’t know if it weren’t for her!”– Student

Jolene Harris, MS

Teaching Excellence Award for the Pediatrics M4 Subinternship

“Dr. Hanson provided a very positive learning environment on rounds. I really appreciated the chance to present my patients and then to hear his thoughts regarding their manage-ment plan. He also demonstrated compassion while interacting with families and patients.”– Student

Keith Hanson, MD, PhD

M2 Course Directorfor Neurology

“Dr. Hassanzadeh was helpful when any questions arose and wanted to make sure everyone understood the material.”“Dr. Hassanzadeh has a lot of energy and enthusiasm.”– M2 Students

Bahareh Hassanzadeh, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Service Award“Dr. Jaffer has worked tirelessly on health care reform on a state level as evident by his lobbying to state representatives in Springfield annually, his testifying at the State Congressional Hearing for Medicaid Managed Care Organizations, and recently hosting a meeting with State Representative Darrin LaHood. His current efforts for the University, sponsoring hospital, and the community embodies the spirit for outstanding service.”– ColleagueAsim Jaffer, MD

Gordon James, MD

M1 Teaching Excellence Award for Block 5: Digestion & Homeostasis

M2 Course Director for Renal-Urinary M1 Block 5: Digestion & Homeostasis

II Course Director“Dr. James is enthusiastic and interactive. I appreciate his teaching style and his ability to relate to us. He understands our questions and explains things in a way we can understand.” “He was incredibly knowledgeable.”“He always kept the lectures very interesting and helpful.”– M2 Students

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine and Associate Professor of Clinical

PediatricsDepartments of Medicine and Pediatrics

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Introduction to Clinical Medicine Course

Teaching Excellence Award for the Internal Medicine M3 ClerkshipM2 Course Director for

Introduction to Clinical MedicineM1 Longitudinal Course DoCS (Doctoring &

Clinical Skills) Course Director“Truly a gifted instructor. I value all of the time I get to spend working with him. After working extensively with him last year, I feel comfortable asking questions and seeking feedback.”– M2 Student

Matthew Jager, DO

Appointment to Clinical Associate Professor

Department of Pediatrics

“Since Dr. Joshi’s arrival to OSF Healthcare, she has transformed the Children’s Service Line into a quality driven service line. She has the highest moral and ethical standards and is respected by fellow colleagues.”– Peer

Divya-Devi Joshi, MD

M2 Golden Apple AwardM2 Course Director for General

PathologyM1 Block 2: Pathogenesis Course

Director“Dr. Joseph is amazing! I love her enthusiasm and willingness to help. I also love how she goes above and beyond for students in her explanations. She’s a great communicator and makes things easy to understand. The snacks she provides in lab are also super, super appreciated.”– M2 Student

Pushpa Joseph, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Infection & Immunity and Endocrine

& Reproductive CoursesM1 Teaching Excellence Award for

Longitudinal EducatorM2 Course Director

for Infection & ImmunityM1 Block 2: Pathogenesis Course Director“I love how Dr. Kasper breaks everything down into the most crucial to know points and explains them concisely. I also really appreciate that he emphasizes clinical relevance in addition to textbook/Step 1 relevance. Review sessions before exams were really helpful for summarizing and hitting the important points. His in-class anecdotes are funny, too, and his laidback personality is refreshing.”– M2 Student

Douglas Kasper, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Respiratory Course

M2 Course Director for Respiratory

M1 Block 4: Circulation & Respiration Course Director

“Dr. Karamchandani is GREAT! I loved how he focused on practice questions. We needed that! Overall was very organized and put a lot of effort into his presentation.” “Small groups and labs held by Dr. Karamchandani were really useful for integrating and solidifying information.” – M2 Students

Kishore Karamchandani, MD

Neurology Clerkship Director

“Dr. Kattah’s teaching is excellent. This was a great experience and an extremely valuable exposure to neurology.”– Student

Jorge Kattah, MD

Pediatrics M4 Subinternship Director“Dr Kendhari maintains the highest commitment to education of all learner levels. Her innovative methods and continuous evaluation and improvement of the curriculum allow ongoing excellence in education. Mentoring students is simply a natural extension of her caring nature and love for her job.”– Colleague

Harleena Kendhari, MD

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine

Department of Medicine“Dr. Kerolus is OUTSTANDING. Excellent teacher-clinical and medical knowledge is outstanding-LOVES to teach. Always treats me with respect and takes me seriously. The most important thing is he continues to learn and keeps up-to-date on new studies. He learns new things and shares them with residents and students. He is an excellent role model for medical students and residents.” – Student

Ghaly Kerolus, MD

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Neurosurgery and Associate Professor of Clinical Cancer Biology

and PharmacologyDepartments of Neurosurgery and Cancer Biology and Pharmacology

“It can be difficult for a supervising attending to allow autonomy to a physician in training in the operating room, particularly when working with the delicate vasculature of the brain. However, Dr. Klopfenstein is exceptional at evaluating the skills of the trainee, identifying the skills yet to be mastered and pushes the trainee to improve his surgical skill set.” – Resident

Jeffrey Klopfenstein, MD

Thomas Lee, DO

Obstetrics and Gynecology Clerkship Director

“Very enthusiastic with teaching. I appreciated that he tried to get students as involved as possible with patient care.”– Student

M2 Co-Course Director for Pharmacology

“Dr. Lasley’s powerpoints were concise and well organized and he was sure to walk through some of the more important details.”– M2 Student

Stephen Lasley, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for theM2 Pharmacology Course

“Dr. Leutkemeyer was very clear and thorough.” – M2 Student

Richard Luetkemeyer, MD

Mohannad Mannaa, MD

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics

Department of Pediatrics

“Dr. Mannaa’s passion for teaching shows through on this rotation. He has incredible knowledge on topics inside and outside of respiratory medicine and does an excellent job of making connections between different medical pathologies. He really takes students under his wing. I learned so much about medicine in the week that I spent with him.” – Student

Teaching Excellence Award for the Surgery M4 Subinternship

Surgery M4 Subinternship Director

“Dr. Marshall was a phenomenal preceptor this rotation. He was inclusive and allowed me the opportunity to treat as though I was an actual intern.”“Dr. Marshall is very knowledgeable and a great teacher, a consummate surgeon role model.”– M3 Students

J. Stephen Marshall, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine

CourseM2 Course Director for EthicsM1 Block 1: Body Systems &

Homeostasis I Co-Course Director“Great lectures! It was a lot of information, but Dr. McIntyre stayed engaged/engaging across the four hour series.”“Dr. McIntyre’s lectures were very clear and organized.”– M2 Students

S. Brian McIntyre, EdD

Pediatrics Clerkship Director“Loved this preceptor! Great mentor and attending, I learned so much through working with Dr. McLauchlan.”– Student

Heather McLauchlan, MD

David McPheeters, PhD

M1 Block 5: Digestion & Homeostasis II Course Director

“I really enjoyed how flexible Dr. McPheeters is in tailoring his lecture to the time available and making sure we have the resources we need from his slides. I feel very thankful that all the instructors seem to care a lot about our education sessions. Everyone is always prepared and welcomes discussion, questions, and constructive feedback.”– Student

Matthew Mischler, MD

Internal Medicine Clerkship DirectorMedicine M4 Subinternship

Course Director“Can’t say enough about Dr. Mischler. He is truly a doctor I will strive and aspire to be like throughout my career. Amazing teacher and mentor, approachable to everyone around him, a role model for continuous learning and patient care.”– Student

Zohra Moeenuddin, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Teaching and Service Award for Community-Based Faculty

“Dr. Moeenuddin has dedicated her efforts as a faculty member in providing outstanding educational ambulatory experiences for our pediatric residents. She currently serves as Medical Director for the Heartland Armstrong Clinic where she is committed to providing improved quality of care to underserved populations in the Peoria community.”– Colleague

Teaching Excellence Award for the Family Medicine M3 Clerkship

“Dr. Rahmat Na’Allah is a wonderful teacher to learn from and work with. She is approachable, engaging, and inspiring to all whom she encounters.”– Colleague“She is very enthusiastic with students residents and patients. I appreciate how positive she is and how much she makes us feel welcome and advocates for us to be involved in patients’ care. She also pushes for us to sharpen our communication and our medical knowledge.”– Student

Rahmat Na’ Allah, MD

M1 Teaching Excellence Award for Block 4: Circulation & Respiration

UICOM Subtheme Leader Doctoring & Clinical Skills

“Dr. Nadir was very organized, was a great presenter, and finished her material early!”“Dr. Nadir kept core case sessions moving at a good pace and an-nounced answers during the core cases so that everyone was more or less on the same page.”– Students

Nur-Ain Nadir, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Teaching and Service Award for Community Based Faculty

“Dr. Nesselroad has participated in the Rural Student Physician Program since its inaugural year in 1997. He has coordinated the experiences for the students for the integrated clerkship and he interacts with the various specialties the student needs to work with while at OSF St. Mary’s in Galesburg. Dr. Nesselroad has shown himself to be a faithful community teacher demonstrating outstanding leadership, mentorship, patient care, and teaching.”– Colleague

James Nesselroad III, MD

Sidney Palmer Hill, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the Internal Medicine M4 Subinternship

“Dr. Palmer-Hill always took the time to teach us during and after rounds. She explained concepts to us, and was very open to having us share findings of our research with the team. She created a positive learning environment and a great team atmosphere. She also demonstrated how to be efficient, compassionate and competent in the care of our patients’ and their families.”– Students

Priti Patel, MD

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics

Department of Pediatrics

“Dr. Patel is an absolutely amazing physician and teacher. I had the good fortune of working with her multiple times in the cath lab and clinic. I cannot explain how much I learned from working with her. During every procedure and with every patient, she would always take the time to explain what she was doing, why she was doing it and what we should expect.”– Resident

Priyanka Patel, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the Psychiatry M3 Clerkship

“Dr. Patel has been one of the top-rated attendings in our clerkship, and is known for her open and supportive mentorship style.”– Timothy Bruce, Clerkship Director

“Dr. Patel was a fantastic attending. She was always willing to stop and answer questions I had during morning staffing. She also had a very approachable and non-judgemental demeanor which fostered learning. – Student

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 General Pathology, Hematopoietic &

Reticuloendothelial, and Renal-Urinary Courses

M1 Longitudinal Course: Synthesis Co-Course Director

“He is THE MAN! Highlights all the high yield points in his lectures in a well organized/easy to follow manner. His notes are a gold-mine.”“Great lecturer. Explains concepts very well. Powerpoints and notes are easy to read and follow.”“Knowledgeable, personable, condensed notes from Robbins were very helpful!”– M2 Students

David Pinson, DVM, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Gastrointestinal Course

“Very helpful and engaged students in discussion”“Excellent examples, great job.”“Dr. Pisoh had very good explanations and his calm demeanor was nice.”– M2 Students

Watcoun-nchinda Pisoh, MD

M1 Block 5: Digestion & Homeostasis II Course Director

“Dr. Regan is a great teacher! The sessions she taught were great!!The muscle conduction and contraction lecture was very interactive and informative. It was a nice change of pace from the traditional lecture format.”– M1 Student

Jenna Regan, PhD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Epidemiology Course

M2 Course Director for Epidemiology

“Dr. Rusch is a great lecturer because her lectures are interactive and she is enthusiastic about the topic. She presents it in a way that is easy to follow but also fast paced and detailed enough to challenge us and make us think.” “Dr. Rusch’s Orange Pumpkin Disease session was very good at highlighting what I did and did not know.”– M2 Students Sara Rusch, MD

Thomas Santoro, MD

M1 Teaching Excellence Award for Block 3: Skin, Muscle, & Movement

“Dr. Santoro facilitated TBLs extremely well. He paced the session extremely well and engaged the class as a whole. His expectations were clear and helped me make sense of the disease processes.” “Dr. Santoro is a great instructor for the arthritic diseases. He is very easy to talk to for clarification.”– M1 Students

Appointment to Associate Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine

Department of Emergency Medicine“Dr. Stewart de Ramirez is able to engage residents in the core content of emergency medicine as well as large and diverse groups of emergency medicine practitioners in the foundations of emergency department operation and improvement of quality care delivery.”– Resident

Sarah Stewart de Ramirez, MD

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Hematopoietic &

Reticuloendothelial CourseM1 Block 1: Body Systems &

Homeostasis I Co-Course Director“Dr. Tapping is an engaging educator and is deeply invested in medical student education.”– Colleague

Richard Tapping, PhD

Neurosurgery Clerkship Director

“Dr. Pat Tracy is one of the most talented neurosurgeons I know. I am not sure if I can find any other neurosurgeon in the world today who can close a myelomeningocele, place a deep brain stimulator, clip an MCA aneurysm , and perform microvascular decompression on the same week. He can do all these and still keeps his wits.” – Julian Lin, MD

Patrick Tracy, MD

Promotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics

Department of Pediatrics

“Dr. Tripathi provides excellent white board teaching and lectures along with clinical teaching during rounds in the PICU. He always makes sure to assure that all residents understand what we are doing and makes sure we understand the clinical decisions behind what we are doing.” – Resident

Sandeep Tripathi, MD

Steven Tsoraides, MD

Surgery M4 Subinternship Director

“Great role model, intelligent, compassionate, hard working.” “High expectations, takes his time to teach on rounds, asks tough but relevant questions. Honest.”– Students

Teaching Excellence Award for the M2 Ethics Course

UICOM: Professional Identity Formation Subtheme Leader

“One of the most thought-provoking talks I’ve heard on professionalism. Dr. Tudor drew on real-life scenarios to challenge our notions of professionalism and develop our clinical judgement. We need more folks like him helping form our student body.”“Very thorough and explained concepts very well.”– M2 Students

Gregory Tudor, MD

UICOMP Faculty of the Year AwardM3 and M4 Golden Apple AwardsPromotion to Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine and Associate

Professor of Clinical PediatricsDepartments of Medicine and PediatricsUICOM Theme Leader Health, Illness,

and SocietyM1 Medical Colloquia

Co-Course Director“Dr. Melendez is very patient and thoughtful on rounds. She always listens fully to the presentations and asked questions only after I was done. She is kind in critiquing my assessments and plans as well as making teaching points out of each patient encounter.”– Student

Elsa Vazquez-Melendez, MD

M1 Teaching Excellence Award for Block 2: Pathogenesis

M2 Course Director for Hematopoietic & Reticuloendothelial

M1 Block 2: Pathogenesis Course Director

“Dr. Veeder is very knowledgeable and a great resource for learning hematology. The lab portion really helped clarify topics.”“Dr. Veeder understands how to put together a comprehensive clinical scenario with good teaching points. The labs then served as a great review and synthesis of material.”– M2 Students

Michael Veeder, MD

UICOMP Outstanding Teaching AwardM2 Co-Course Director

for Pharmacology

“Dr. Veeravalli is one of two professors who were definitely the highlight of the Pharmacology course.” “Dr. Veeravalli’s lectures and recordings are amazing.”– M2 Students

Krishna Veeravalli, PhD

Kiran Velpula, PhD

UICOMP Outstanding Service Award“Dr. Velpula’s dedication to service can be seen in his commitment to improving the UICOMP community where he serves on many committees such as James Scholars and the Institutional Review Board. His extended commitment to the Peoria area has led to receiving several community service awards and engaging heavily in local policy making. Even to the national scientific community, Dr. Velpula serves as a reviewer for the NIH-which points to his growing national recognition.”– Colleague

M2 Co-Course Director for Endocrine

“Dr. Vishwanath was very clear and thorough.”-M2 Student

Anu Vishwanath, MD

Outstanding Senior Scholar“Martha J. Willi, M.D. has been chosen as the 2018 Senior Scholar at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria for her long and faithful participation in that servicegroup, supporting medical education.”- Allan Campbell, MD

Martha Willi, MD

Robert Wolford, MD

UICOM Subtheme Leader: Health Care Systems

“Dr. Wolford is dedicated to the education of medical students across the college.” – Colleague

Internal Medicine Assistant Clerkship Director

“Dr. Yadav was an excellent preceptor. He took the time to ask questions and teach during patient rounds. He explained significant physical exam findings, imaging, and EKGs. If I did not know the answer to a question, he was patient and took the time to explain a topic or asked me to research the question on my own. I greatly appreciated having Dr. Yadav as a leader and mentor.”– Student

Manajyoti Yadav, MD

Family Medicine Clerkship Director Family Medicine M4 Subinternship

DirectorM1 Course: DoCS Co-Director

“Fantastic lecture. Very informative on healthy eating habits and nutritional information--great content we can share with our patients and even adopt into our lifestyles. Dr. Zacharias clarified common misconceptions and offered evidence based information on how patients can lose weight and maintain it.” – Student

Amy Zacharias, MD

2018 Community Health Award

“For your lifelong work that has led to saving hundreds of premature infants but also your tireless efforts and advocacy to expand and improve the residency programs, which has had a significant impact on our community and the level of care provided in central Illinois.” – Community Health Award Committee

2018 Community Health Award

“The much needed resources and support provided annually by this program to homeless veterans was deemed to be awe-inspiring. As a program that aspires to make our community a better place for all, and especially for those in our community who have served our country and fallen on tough times, thank you!” – Community Health Award Committee

The Community Health Award honors an individual and an organization who promotes community health in central Illinois.

Tim Miller, MD

Teaching Excellence Awards for Residents:Society of Teachers of Family Medicine Resident Teacher Award

John-Scott Carroll, MD

Internal Medicine Intern Student Teaching AwardLinda Agyapong, MD

Sakina Broachwala, MDDustin Whelan, MD

Internal Medicine Senior Resident Student Teaching AwardIsaac Tan, MD

Rachel Weberman, MD

Outstanding Resident of the Year Class of 2018Brandon Bond, MD, Neurology

Obstetrics & Gynecology Excellence in Medical Student Education Kari Bates, DO

Abbie Massengill, MD Pilar Rainey, DO

Pediatric Resident Teaching Excellence AwardShane Rainey, DO

Psychiatry Medical Student Teaching Award Shane Burke, MD

Lorin D. Whittaker, Sr. Surgery Resident Teacher of the Year Award 2018Rozana Dwyer, MDJoseph Esparaz, MD

James Adams, MDAnita Agarwal, MDCatherine Beratio, MDSusan Caldecott-Johnson, MDWade Carlson, MDDennis Carroll, MDJason Chamberlin, MDKristen Chambers-Damm, MDMalini Chavali, MDDeb Collins, PA-CAnnevay Conlee, MDAndrew Cusack, DOValerie Flacco, MDTom Golemon, MDThomas Halperin, MDRay Harrigan, MDMary Harvey, MDTy Hasselmann, MDJeffrey Hershkowitz, MDJeffrey Hill, MDJustin Holschbach, MDJeffrey Hoschek, MDJani Jaydev, MDResham Kaur, MDPoonam Kaza, MDNizar Kherallah, MDSabrina Kimrey, MDTinoy Kizhakekuttu, MDSarah Koscica, MDAneta Kowalska, MD

ELI2TE Program PreceptorsAcademic Year 2017-2018

Jalayne Lapke, MDTimothy Lawless, MDGreg Link, DOYan Liu, MDBob Lizer, MDCassidy Long, MDMohannad Mannaa, MDErin Martin, MDMark Meeker, MDJames Morse, MDJamie Muller, APNChristopher Nau, MDShawn Piers, MDLucas Pogue, MDTrent Proehl, MDPatrick Renick, MDDavid Rodenberg, MDHenry SanGerman, MDKay Saving, MDStephan Shane, DODoug Sloan, MDSamuel Steffen, MDMatthew Stetter, DOCarl Strauch, MDAdam Sturdavant, MDUdit Verma, MDBonnie Williams, MDTimothy Williams, MDKelvin Wynn, MD

Special Recognition to

Dr. Allan Campbelland

Dr. Pushpa Josephfor your many years of outstanding

contributions to and support of medical student education