BIRMINGHAM, AL — University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) psychology student Paula Chandler-Laney, 31, of Meadowbrook, has received the 2005 Samuel B. Barker Award for Excellence in Graduate Studies.

Chandler-Laney, a native of New Zealand, is a fifth-year doctoral student in the behavioral neuroscience program. She has focused her research on dieting, eating disorders and the brain. She has co-authored several papers, which have appeared in prestigious journals such as Nature and The International Journal of Physiology.

In addition to the Barker prize, she was named as the 2004-2005 Outstanding Graduate Student in Psychology. She also received the 2005 Dean’s Award in Social and Behavioral Sciences.