College of Arts and Sciences Dean Robert Palazzo hands the 2015 winner of the Ireland Award for Scholarly Distinction to Dr. Trygve Tollefsbol.
Professor Trygve Tollefsbol in the Department of Biology was honored on April 30 as the 2015 winner of the Ireland Award for Scholarly Distinction. Endowed by a gift from the late Charles P. Ireland and his wife Caroline Ireland, the Ireland Award recognizes faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences whose scholarship makes a significant impact in their respective fields. At each annual dinner, which is traditionally held at The Club in Birmingham, honorees give a lecture on their scholarship and research to their colleagues and special guests.
This year, Dr. Tollefsbol highlighted his work in the field of epigenetics, which is the study of how genes can be altered by diet to prevent cancer and slow the aging process. Attendees included Dr. Tollefsbol's wife and longtime collaborator Dr. Lucy Andrews, as well as his students and many current and former members of his lab. Guests were welcomed by President Ray Watts; Dean Robert Palazzo followed with a formal introduction of Dr. Tollefsbol and the presentation of the award.
Several former Ireland winners were in attendance, including Dr. Jim McClintock and Dr. Stephen Watts (both from the Department of Biology), Dr. Kieran Quinlan (English), Dr. Colin Davis (History), Dr. William Cockerham (Sociology), Dr. David Schwebel (Psychology), Dr. Sergey Mirov (Physics), Dr. Yogesh Vohra (Physics), Dr. Yakov Kasman (Music), and Dr. William Clark (retired).
Other special guests included Dr. Sai Dong, widow of former Ireland winner Dr. Ray Mohl (History) and Dr. Richard Marchase, Vice President of Research for UAB.
