A&S Faculty Among Those Honored at UVA's Annual Research Achievement Awards Event

The University of Virginia honored faculty members for their outstanding research and scholarship Wednesday at the sixth annual Research Achievement Awards event held at the Ballroom at the Boar’s Head Resort.

“Your research, your life’s work, is important to the UVA community. And it is important to the world beyond this place,” Executive Vice President and Provost Ian Baucom told researchers being honored at the event. 

“Your work enriches and improves lives in countless ways. It may have taken years to reach your big breakthrough, but it is time well-spent.” “Each year, I am astounded by the amount of research talent we have here at UVA. Focused on everything from vascular diseases to how oceans impact the environment, UVA’s faculty has a strong focus on creating a brighter future,” President Jim Ryan 

Lori L. McMahon, vice president for research, applauded the researchers for their tremendous growth in 2024. 

“In 2024, UVA research reached an outstanding $549 million in funding, and we’ve continued to grow ever since. I’m excited to celebrate all these researchers for their groundbreaking research at my first Research Achievement Awards,” McMahon said.

Apart from the almost 200 researchers who were honored for their achievements in research and scholarship, the following members of the A&S faculty were presented with Research Achievement Awards. 

Distinguished Research Award

Steven Boker, Professor of Psychology

Steven Boker is internationally recognized for his expertise in longitudinal data modeling and dynamical systems analysis. He was one of the original developers of the OpenMx statistical software which has been downloaded over 1.5 million times. Boker focuses on a multivariate study of behavior exploring topics such as symmetry in social interactions. He served as the president of the Society of Multivariate Experimental Psychology and received the Sells Award for Lifetime Achievement in Multivariate Psychology. His contributions to the creation of the School of Data Science led to his courtesy appointment as a Professor of Data Science.

"Steve Boker’s research on the dynamics of interpersonal coordination during social interaction is absolutely outstanding and probably the best in the world,” said Ulman Lindenberger, Director for the Center for Lifespan Psychology and Co-Director for the Max Planck UCL Center for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Max Planck Institute for Human Development.

Scott Doney, Joe D. and Helen J. Kington Professor in Environmental Change

Scott Doney has influenced many national and international policies with his pioneering work on how oceans affect climate change. His interdisciplinary approach and willingness to be out in the field has made him a leading researcher in his area of studies. Doney was the Assistant Director for Ocean Climate Science and Policy in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from 2022-2024 and has been cited over 91,000 times, leading him to receive a Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researcher Award in 2024. He is currently the chair of the NSF-NASA-NOAA Ocean Carbon and Biogeochemistry Program.

“Professor Doney has consistently demonstrated research excellence, producing groundbreaking work that has had a transformative impact on the field of marine science and climate change,” said Matthew Reidenbach, Professor and Department Chair of Environmental Sciences.

Research Excellence Award

Hudson Golino, Associate Professor of Quantitative Methods, Psychology

Hudson Golino’s research blends computer science, multivariate statistics, machine learning and dynamic systems to uncover patterns in data. He is also one of the first to use systematic approaches combining AI with psychometric theory. His development of the Misinformation Susceptibility Test is the first scientifically validated tool for measuring fake news detection ability and his work with misinformation has led him to be featured in magazines such as Forbes, Scientific American and Science Magazine. Golino’s methodology has been used to analyze longitudinal data in the 2016 election, demonstrating the applicability of his research. In his 10 years since finishing his Ph.D., Dr. Golino ranks as the 31st most impactful researcher in his field.

“Dr. Golino is one of the most innovative and productive young researchers working in quantitative psychology today. I expect that Dr. Golino will be one of the most influential quantitative psychologists of his generation,” said Steven Boker, Professor of Psychology, College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.

Award for Excellence in the Arts & Humanities

Anna Brickhouse, Linden Kent Memorial Professor of English and American Studies

In her new book, Earthquake and the Invention of America: The Making of Elsewhere Catastrophe, Anna Brickhouse explores the role earthquakes have in shaping timeframes and geographies in American literary history, as well as the emergence of a cultural syndrome leading people to believe catastrophe is somehow “un-American.” This book follows her 2014 book The Unsettlement of America: Translation, Interpretation, and the Story of Don Luis de Velasco, 1560-1945, which won the MLA’s James Russell Lowell Prize and co-won the Early American Literature Book Prize. Brickhouse received a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship and an American Council of Learned Societies Faculty Fellowship. 

“Anna Brickhouse is at the top of her field, a leader in early American and nineteenth-century US literature in the context of the wider Americas," said Andrew Stauffer, Professor and Department Chair of English, College of Arts & Sciences.

Federico Cuatlacuatl, Assistant Professor of Studio Art, Art

Federico Cuatlacuatl explores the complex relationship between indigenous people and immigration, specifically in the context of the Nahua population and contemporary era. He has been both nationally and internationally recognized, having had his work screened at prestigious venues such as the KINDL Center for Contemporary Art in Berlin, the Arte Laguna Prize exhibition in Venice, and the BFI London Film festival. His projects, including Timekeepers of the Anthropocene video series and Tiaxcas Interfalacticxs, use Indigenous traditions and storytelling to explore themes of colonization and displacement. In 2016, Cuatlacuatl founded the Rasquache Artist Residency in Puebla, Mexico, In 2021, he co-founded the Undoc+ Collective, a national solidarity group with artists who identify with the experiences of undocumented immigrants.

“Through his unparalleled originality, exceptional quality, and commitment to addressing vital societal issues, Federico Cuatlacuatl exemplifies the mission of this award. His innovative contributions to contemporary art continue to set a global benchmark for excellence in the arts,” said Josh Thorud, Associate Librarian of Multimedia Teaching and Learning.

Other Honored A&S Researchers

T. Brent Gunnoe, interim associate dean for graduate education and Commonwealth Professor of Chemistry was also recognized as one of 25 researchers who received the highest amount of funding at UVA in 2024.

Additionally, the University recognized a number of faculty members for achieving notable recognition and acclaim in their respective fields at a national level. The criteria for inclusion in this category typically involve either winning a prestigious national award, being elected or named to a distinguished academy, receiving an award from a society/academy or receiving recognition for excellence from sources external to the University.  A&S faculty members included 

• Max Castorani
• Jonathan Colmer
• John D'earth
• Nicole Mitchell Gantt
• Thomas M. Koberda
• Fotini Kondyli
• Kyrill Kunakhovich
• Tracy Larson
• Charles Machan
• David A.  Nichols
• Emily Ogden
• Cole Rizki
• Paul Torrey
• Elizabeth Varon
• Huiyuan Zhu

The following A&S researchers were also nominated by Christa Acampora, Buckner W. Clay Professor of Philosophy and Dean, College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, to be recognized for having gone above and beyond in their research endeavors. This could involve making substantial contributions to their field of study, influencing the academic community or having a positive impact on society through their work. This is a way of highlighting and celebrating the exceptional contributions of these individuals to their respective fields during the specified year.

• Jennifer L. Bair
• Ilse Cleeves
• Fiona Greenland
• Justene Hill Edwards
• Zachary C. Irving
• Carmen E. Lamas
• Noel Lobley
• Marcos Pires