May 28, 2008

SIU Med School Announces Three Research Awards

Three awards have been announced by the Department of Pharmacology at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in Springfield.

The Satu M. Somani Memorial Award was presented to Dr. Jenneé A. Rommel, a 2008 graduate from Quincy.  The award is presented to a senior medical student for outstanding performance in pharmacology and therapeutics. Rommel is the daughter of Pamela Rommel of Quincy.  She earned her bachelor’s degree at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (2004). The Somani award was established in memory of Satu M. Somani, Ph.D., who was an SIU professor of pharmacology and toxicology from 1974 until his death in 2002.

The Barbara L. Armour Memorial Award was presented to Christine A. Bosgraaf, a certified veterinary technician in SIU’s pharmacology department, who has been on the staff since 1993. The award is presented to recognize excellence, dedication and contributions to science research.  She is the daughter of Roy and Anna Bosgraaf of Clermont, Fla.  Bosgraff is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Springfield (2006) and Parkland Community College (1987).  The Armour award was established to commemorate Barbara Lawhorn Armour, a pharmacology researcher, who died in 1995.

The Hemal Vakharia Memorial Award was presented to Angela Qian, a junior at Glenwood High School in Chatham, for her summer work in the laboratory of Louis Premkumar, Ph.D., associate professor of pharmacology.  Qian is the daughter of Lynne Ling and Hong Qian of Chatham.  The award is presented to a high school or college student who has provided significant assistance to faculty research.  It was established in memory of Hemal Vakharia, a summer help student who died in an automobile accident in 1992.

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