Dr. Gerald Mandell (right) receives the Medical College's Alumni Award of Distinction, presented by Dr. Paul Miskovitz, '75, president of the Cornell University Weill Medical College Alumni Association.
At Commencement Ceremonies, Weill Medical College presented its Alumni Award of Distinction to Dr. Gerald Mandell, who received his M.D. degree in 1962. Weill Graduate School of Medical Sciences presented its Alumni Award of Distinction to Dr. Bonnie Mathieson, who received her Ph.D. degree in 1975.
Gerald Mandell, M.D. (Class of 1962)
Dr. Mandell, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell University and an Alpha Omega Alpha graduate of Cornell University Medical College, is the Owen R. Cheatham Professor of the Sciences at the University of Virginia Health Center, where he heads the Infectious Diseases Program.
Dr. Mandell is co-author of one of the leading textbooks in infectious diseases: "Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett's Principles of Infectious Diseases."
His research focus has been on the biology of phagocytic cells, for which he received the NIH's prestigious MERIT Award. In 1994, the University of Virginia named him "Inventor of the Year" for the discovery of pharmacologic inhibition of TNF activity on neutrophils. In recognition of his accomplishments and contributions to U.Va., the university established a chair bearing his name, the Gerald L. Mandell/Bayer Chair in Internal Medicine.
Bonnie Mathieson, Ph.D. (Class of 1975)
Dr. Bonnie Mathieson (right) receives the Graduate School's Alumni Award of Distinction, presented by Dr. Kathleen Scotto, '83, chairperson of the school's Alumni Committee.
Dr. Mathieson is chair and health science administrator in the Office of AIDS Research at the National Institutes of Health. She also chairs the Interagency HIV Vaccine Collaborative Group.
She has achieved national and international recognition for her achievements in the field of vaccine development, with a special focus on the discovery and development of vaccines for HIV/AIDS. She is the author of more than 100 original research articles describing regulation of immune responses to infection and cancer.
For her exceptional service to medical science and national health, Dr. Mathieson has been honored with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases' Special Achievement Award in Basic Research, and the Office of Aids Research's Recognition and Appreciation of Special Achievement Award.
Dr. Mathieson did her graduate thesis in the Graduate School's Sloan-Kettering division.