SOD faculty, student make HEADWAE; UMMC neurologist, neurosurgeon earn 'hero' distinction, two neurology faculty garner editorial positions

Published on Saturday, January 16, 2021

Dental faculty, student make HEADWAE with award selection

Dr. Jennifer Bain, assistant dean for curriculum and innovation teaching methods in the School of Dentistry, and Jared Akers, a fourth-year dental student, will be honored in March by the Mississippi State Institutions of Higher Learning during the 33rd annual Higher Education Appreciation Day – Working for Academic Excellence program.

Each year for the HEADWAE event, the Mississippi Association of Colleges and Universities asks its member institutions, including UMMC, to name a student who has excelled in the classroom and a faculty member who has made outstanding contributions to higher education.

HEADWAE is sponsored by the Mississippi Legislature and coordinated by the Office of Academic and Student Affairs in the Mississippi IHL. This year's programs are scheduled for 2 p.m. Monday, March 2 in room 216 at the Mississippi State Capitol. 

Bain, a Canton resident, earned her undergraduate degree from Belhaven College (now Belhaven University) before graduating from the School of Dentistry in 2009 and finishing her Master of Science in Public Health in clinical research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health. At UAB, she also obtained a Ph.D. in pathobiology and molecular medicine and did her residency training in periodontology.

Among Bain’s many achievements and honors are the Clinical Sciences Professor of the Year Award from the John Hembree Honor Society; the Mississippi Chapter of the American College of Dentists Outstanding Teacher Award; the Regions TEACH (Toward Educational Advancement in Care and Health) Prize; and induction into the Nelson Order for Excellence in Teaching at UMMC.

Akers, a University of Mississippi graduate who majored in biochemistry, is a recipient of several academic scholarships and awards, including the Dental Physiology Award, recognition from the Hembree Honor Society and induction into Phi Kappa Phi.

His involvement and many leadership roles include president of the Student Professionalism and Ethics Association, student alumni representative in the Office of Alumni Affairs, and student liaison for the UMMC Interprofessional Education Advisory Council. Akers has done community service work through the Jackson Free Clinic, the UMMC School of Dentistry Mission Week, Give Kids a Smile Day and Homeless Ministries.

Epilepsy Foundation calls UMMC neurologist, neurosurgeon, alum ‘heroes’

A UMMC neurologist, a UMMC neurosurgeon and one UMMC alumna will be recognized as 2020 “Heroes Among Us” at the A Night of HOPE Gala benefitting the Epilepsy Foundation of Mississippi on Feb. 8 at the Westin-Jackson.

Dr. Colette Parker, division chief for pediatric neurology; Dr. James Shiflett, associate professor of neurosurgery; and Dr. Tiffany Scarff, a Jackson neurologist and School of Medicine alumna, will be honored during the ceremony.

For more information about the event, visit https://one.bidpal.net/anightofhopegala/welcome.

Scientific journals tap neurology faculty for editorial posts

A pair of neurology faculty have accepted top roles on editorial teams for scientific journals.

Dr. Paula Warrington, assistant professor of neurology, has been named coeditor-in-chief for the Journal of Neuroscience Research.

Dr. Alissa Willis, professor and chair of neurology, has been named associate editor for the International Journal for MS Care.