April 26, 1996
Contact: Kelly C. Lockhart, (615) 322-2706

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Vanderbilt University Chancellor Joe B. Wyatt announced today the winners of four faculty awards presented annually for excellence and outstanding achievement.

During a luncheon at Branscomb South Dining Room for members of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust, Wyatt named Professor of Classics Susan Wiltshire this year's Alexander Heard Distinguished Service Professor for "distinctive contributions to the understanding of contemporary social problems." Professor of Pathology Robert D. Collins was named the Harvie Branscomb Distinguished Professor in recognition of his "distinguished accomplishment in furthering the aims of Vanderbilt University."

The Madison Sarratt Prize for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching was awarded to Gerald Stubbs, professor of molecular biology. Sean O'Rourke, assistant professor of communication studies, received the Ellen Gregg Ingalls Award for Excellence in Classroom Teaching.

Wiltshire and Collins will hold the title of distinguished professor for one year and received an engraved silver tray and $2,500. Stubbs and O'Rourke each received $2,500 and an engraved pewter cup as winners, respectively, of the Sarratt and Ingalls awards. As the Sarratt Prize winner, Stubbs name will also be included on a permanent plaque in the Sarratt Student Center.

Following is a brief listing of each of the winner's professional accomplishments as they relate to their particular award:

Susan Wiltshire, Alexander Heard Distinguished Service Professor -- In 1986, Wiltshire saw that the lives of Vanderbilt students lacked a public dimension outside the university, while the poorer community were crying for needs unmet. She came up with a solution that addressed both problems -- Alternative Spring Break. Soon after coming to Vanderbilt in 1971 she worked to create a Women's Studies program at Vanderbilt and co-founded Women for Equity at Vanderbilt in 1981.

Beyond Vanderbilt, Wiltshire has served on the board of Family and Children's Services, has been active in the Belmont-Hillsboro Neighborhood Association and until recently was a member of the AIDS Vaccine Community Advisory Board.

Wiltshire is perhaps best known for her book, "Seasons of Grief and Grace: A Sister's Story of AIDS" (Vanderbilt Press, 1994), which she wrote after her younger brother John died of AIDS.

Robert Collins, Harvie Branscomb Distinguished Professor -- Doyle Graham, professor of pathology and chair of the department, described Collins as a "distinguished and treasured member of the faculty of the School of Medicine" noting that his contributions to teaching, training, research and clinical service have had "a great impact on generations of Vanderbilt medical students and residents."

Collins received his undergraduate and professional education from Vanderbilt, earning a medical degree in 1951. He has been on the Vanderbilt faculty continuously since 1959. During his tenure, he has won several teaching awards including the 1964, 1979 and 1995 Shovel Award, given to the best Vanderbilt School of Medicine lecturer.

Additionally, Collins is a widely published researcher, with more than 121 publications, 80 abstracts, six book chapters and one book to his credit. Lymphoma is his most recent research interest.

Gerald Stubbs, winner of the Madison Sarratt Prize for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching -- It's typical for Stubbs' courses to be rated very highly by students in intellectual challenge, while at the same time being rated very favorably as an instructor, noted James V. Staros, professor of molecular biology and chair of the department, in his recommendation letter for Stubbs.

The student comments reiterate their numerical assessment of Stubbs: "I thought the course was the hardest I have taken here, but I have learned more than I have in any other course." "I have often felt intimidated by MBIO teachers, but I can speak to him with ease. I feel privileged to have been in his class."

On a more individual level, Stubbs has mentored students carrying out independent studies in molecular biology, most notably Monicia Elrod and Scott Floyd. Elrod, who graduated in 1991, is presently working on her doctorate degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Floyd, a 1994 graduate, is in the second year of the combined M.D.-Ph.D. program at Yale University.

Sean O'Rourke, winner of the Ellen Gregg Ingalls Award for Excellence in Classroom Teaching -- During his four years with Vanderbilt, O'Rourke consistently rates between a 4.6 and a 4.9 out a possible 5 on the student evaluation form question concerning the overall evaluation of the instructor, while at the same time students indicate that the grading is hard and the standards are difficult.

Most typically described as "interesting and challenging," students maintain he demands a high quality of work but is available and accessible to aid in the achievement of that quality, said Kassian Kovalcheck, associate professor of communication studies and chair of the Department of Communication Studies and Theatre, in his recommendation of O'Rourke for the award.

O'Rourke has a long-standing record of teaching excellence. He won a college- wide, faculty-administered undergraduate teaching award at Oregon State University in 1991; a university-wide, student-administered teaching award at Oregon State in 1989; and the Graduate Teaching Fellow Award for "Outstanding Teaching" in 1984 at University of Oregon.