International Programs Award names first recipients The Office of International Programs named the first recipients of the International Programs Award. The 2005 International Programs Award seeks to recognize faculty and students of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston who are actively engaged in international collaboration. A total of six people, three faculty and three students, were awarded for their research and work in programs and projects that will foster international collaboration between UTHSC-H and academic institutions of higher learning outside of the United States. The finalists are: Anil D. Kulkarni, PhD, Sheryl A. McCurdy, PhD, Amy Ridall, DDS, PhD, Anh Duc Ngo, Yaojen Chang, and Erin Michelle Koers. The Office of International Programs was able to establish the award after an anonymous donor provided the funds. As a result, the goal of the award is to provide seed money for projects that not only benefit the work conducted by the awardees, but also helps build UTHSC-H as a university with a wide-ranging international scope. The selection of the awardees was conducted by a diverse committee of faculty from various schools. The committee, each member with a unique view on what UTHSC-H should support, ranked the applications according to criteria such as rationale for the project, the perceived benefits for the applicant and UTHSC-H, and the overall importance of the work. Although the caliber of the applications received by the office was high, a limited availability of funds required a thorough evaluation and ranking of the applications. The winners will utilize the awarded funds towards wide-ranging projects like combating HIV/AIDS pandemic in developing countries, assessing various influences on the health of immigrant populations, researching interpersonal violence and substance use in refugee camps, forming inter-university exchange programs or conducting research on the correlation of hepatitis B and liver cancer. The awarded projects cover five countries in three continents of the world. Click on the following links for detailed information on the recipients and their projects:
	Yaojen Chang DPH student, School of Public Health The cost-effectiveness of hepatocellular carcinoma screening in Taiwan
	Erin Michelle Koers MPH student, School of Public Health Social and cultural determinants of immigrant health in the context of a developing country
	Anil D. Kulkarni, PhD professor of surgery, Medical School UT and TU Exchange Program: The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and Tokushima University, Japan
	Sheryl A. McCurdy, PhD assistant professor behavioral sciences, School of Public Health Interpersonal and gender-based violence, substance use and HIV/AIDS risk among Burundian refugees
	Anh Duc Ngo DPH student, School of Public Health Exchange workshop on research and training between the University of Texas School of Public Health and Thai Nguyen Medical University, Vietnam
	Amy Ridall, DDS, PhD clinical assistant professor Department of Prosthodontics, Dental Branch director of Asian Student Exchange Program director of Undergraduate Implant Program Student Exchange Program: UT Dental Branch and the University of Tokushima Dental School, Japan