University News

Accolades: Two from UVA, one from Wise earn Virginia’s top faculty honors

Two professors from the University of Virginia and one from UVA’s College at Wise are among the 2026 recipients of the state’s top faculty awards.

UVA’s Scott Doney, an environmental scientist, and Kazlin Mason, a professor of speech pathology who specializes in imaging technology, joined UVA Wise music professor Donald W. Sorah Jr. among the 12 recipients of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia’s Outstanding Faculty Awards. Each will receive $7,500 at a March 3 ceremony in Richmond.

Since 1987, the Outstanding Faculty Awards have recognized faculty at Virginia’s institutions of higher learning who exemplify the highest standards of teaching, scholarship and service. Institutions select the nominees before a panel of peers reviews the applications. A committee of leaders from the public and private sectors selects the final recipients. This year, the program received 81 nominations. This group was narrowed to a field of 21 finalists and then to the 12 recipients.

Doney is the inaugural Joe D. and Helen J. Kington Professor in Environmental Change in the Department of Environmental Sciences. His research spans oceanography, climate science and biogeochemistry. He combines field data, satellite remote sensing and numerical models to address how the global carbon cycle and marine ecosystems respond to natural and human-driven climate change.

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Doney served as the assistant director for ocean climate science and policy in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. He is the author of numerous peer-reviewed research publications and co-author of a graduate-level textbook, “Modeling Methods for Marine Science.”

Mason – whom SCHEV designated a “rising star” for her early career achievements – is an assistant professor and director of the Imaging and Communication Outcomes Lab. Her research focuses on integrating imaging technology, 3D computer visualization and predictive analytics to improve outcomes for children with cleft and craniofacial differences.

Supported by the National Institutes of Health and foundation funding, Mason leads interdisciplinary collaborations with engineers, surgeons and clinical teams to advance diagnostics, predict surgical outcomes and enhance care delivery.

She also teaches graduate courses in communication sciences and disorders.

Sorah, a music professor, integrates music, technology and innovative pedagogy to expand access and transform learning. He has advanced alternative assessments and grading while writing multiple open-access textbooks. A dedicated composer and conductor, Sorah’s creative work reflects Appalachian heritage while engaging national and international audiences.

He founded and conducts the Winds of the Mountain Empire and directs the UVA Wise Jazz Ensemble, leading outreach that brings live music to underserved audiences and enriches the cultural life of the region.

Professor ranks among most-cited legal scholars

UVA School of Law professor Danielle Citron is America’s No. 5 most-cited legal scholar over the past five years.

Five professional headshots displayed side by side. Law professor Danielle Citron (top left), Lawrence B. Solum (top right), (bottom row, from left) Mitu Gulati, Saikrishna Prakash and professor emeritus Douglas Laycock.

Law professor Danielle Citron, top left, is the nation’s No. 5 most-cited law professor over the past five years. She is joined in the top 100 by School of Law colleagues Lawrence B. Solum, top right, and (bottom row, from left) Mitu Gulati, Saikrishna Prakash and professor emeritus Douglas Laycock. (Contributed photos)

HeinOnline’s Scholarly Impact Rankings of American Bar Association-approved law schools tallied Citron’s citations at 2,475 over the past five years.

Citron, a co-director of the Law School’s LawTech Center, is the Jefferson Scholars Foundation Schenck Distinguished Professor of Law and the Martha Lubin Karsh and Bruce A. Karsh Bicentennial Professor of Law.

Professor Lawrence B. Solum ranked No. 13 among the top 100 most-cited legal scholars, with professors Mitu Gulati and Saikrishna Prakash and professor emeritus Douglas Laycock also appearing in the top 100.

HeinOnline also tallies impact by an author’s institutional affiliation, and UVA ranked No. 7. The Virginia Law Review came in at No. 8 for most-cited flagship law journals.

Historian’s book takes another prestigious prize

History associate professor Justene Hill Edwards has been awarded the 27th annual Frederick Douglass Book Prize for “Savings and Trust: The Rise and Betrayal of the Freedman’s Bank.” The prize is one of the most acclaimed awards for global studies of slavery, opposition to it, and the experiences and resistance of enslaved people.

Portrait of History professor Justene Hill Edwards.

History professor Justene Hill Edwards is drawing acclaim for her latest book, “Savings and Trust: The Rise and Betrayal of the Freedman’s Bank.” (Photo by Erin Edgerton, University Communications)

The $25,000 award, jointly sponsored by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in New York City and the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at Yale University, recognizes “an outstanding nonfiction book in English published on the subject of slavery, resistance and/or abolition.”

James G. Basker, president of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, described “Savings and Trust” as one of the most important books ever to win the Frederick Douglass Book Prize. “Rigorously researched and beautifully written,” Basker wrote, “the book tells a little-remembered but deeply tragic story about a financial disaster that set Black people back for generations and compounded the wealth gap that still haunts our country today. It is a must-read for everyone who cares about economic history and racial equality.”

Edwards will be honored Feb. 12 at an award ceremony at Trinity Church Wall Street in New York.

“Savings and Trust” also recently won one of seven Virginia Literary Awards from the Library of Virginia.

Lananna honored with annual Robert Giegengack Award

Vin Lananna, UVA’s director of track and field and cross country and associate athletics director for administration, received USA Track and Field’s annual Robert Giegengack Award for contributing to the excellence and high standards of the sport of athletics.

Portrait of Vic Lanana, left, UVA’s director of track and field and cross country and associate athletics director for administration.

Vic Lanana, left, UVA’s director of track and field and cross country and associate athletics director for administration, is the recipient of USA Track and Field’s annual Robert Giegengack Award for his contributions to the sport. (Photo by Jen Dietrich, UVA Athletics)

“I am thrilled, honored, flattered and happy,” Lanana said in a video message played at the Dec. 5 ceremony. “I know how much Bob meant to the sport. I accept this award on behalf of all of you – those of you who work on meets, those of you who organize our meets, those of you who compete in our meets, those of you who made the Olympic team, those who tried to make the World Championships, those who walk, jump, throw, hurdle, sprint, run distances, take care of our youth and continue to compete as masters. You are a special group. I thank you very much.”

Lananna has long been recognized as one of the most influential and visionary leaders in American track and field. Over a career spanning more than four decades, he has shaped the sport at every level – from collegiate excellence, to hosting global championships, to leadership on the international stage.

Society recognizes engineering professor’s ‘selfless service’

James H. Lambert, the Janet Scott Hamilton and John Downman Hamilton Professor in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, received the Society for Risk Analysis’s 2025 Richard J. Burk Outstanding Service Award Dec. 9 at the society’s annual meeting in Washington.

Portrait of Engineering professor James H. Lambert.

Engineering professor James H. Lambert is internationally known for analyzing and managing risk in complex systems, working on projects ranging from energy infrastructure to Olympics planning. (Photo by Tom Daly)

The society – a multidisciplinary, global organization dedicated to advancing the science and practice of risk analysis – cited Lambert “for his selfless service to the society and decades-long contributions to risk analysis.”

Lambert is known internationally for analysis and management of risk in complex systems. He has worked on projects ranging from energy infrastructure to Olympics planning.

A professor of systems and information engineering and of civil and environmental engineering, Lambert directs UVA’s Center for Risk Management. As past chair of the UVA Faculty Senate, he is the faculty representative to the Board of Visitors.

Engineer, medical researcher, astronomer earn prestigious fellowships

• UVA School of Engineering professor Mircea Stan is among 169 newly elected fellows of the National Academy of Inventors, announced Dec. 11. Stan, the Virginia Microelectronics Consortium Professor, directs the computer engineering program in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Three professional headshots displayed side by side. From left, engineer Mircea Stan (National Academy of Inventors), pharmacologist Jeffrey R. Martens (American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Council) and astronomer Steven Majewski (American Astronomical Society).

Three members of UVA’s faculty are newly minted fellows in national academies and societies: from left, engineer Mircea Stan (National Academy of Inventors), pharmacologist Jeffrey R. Martens (American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Council) and astronomer Steven Majewski (American Astronomical Society). (Contributed photos)

He has dedicated his career to improving the power efficiency of computers and electronic systems without compromising their functionality or performance. Without his innovations and the U.S. patents arising from them, everything from smartphones to cloud servers would devour considerably more energy and cost more to use. A low-power technology he co-invented is referenced in dozens of patents around the world and has been adopted as part of industrywide standards used in electronic systems we use every day.

•The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Council recently elected pharmacology professor Jeffrey R. Martens to its 2025 class of fellows, “recognized for their meritorious efforts to advance pharmacology through their scientific achievements, mentorship, and service to the Society.”

An educator, internationally recognized pharmacology researcher and the senior associate dean for research, Martens is a key contributor in the transformation of the School of Medicine and UVA Health medical research program.

• The American Astronomical Society elected Steven Majewski, W.H. Vanderbilt Professor of Astronomy and chair of the Department of Astronomy, to its 23-member class of AAS Fellows “for impactful contributions to our understanding of the structure and formation of the Milky Way; for innovative leadership in near-infrared instrumentation and large-scale astronomical surveys; and for persistent commitment to training of the next generation of astronomers.”