UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Donna Korzick, professor of physiology and kinesiology in the College of Health and Human Development, is the 2016 recipient of the Graduate School Alumni Society Graduate Program Chair Leadership Award.
The award honors faculty members for exemplary leadership that benefits graduate students and faculty in an existing graduate program at the University.
Korzick was praised by her colleagues for improving the educational quality, resources and organization at Penn State while working with limited resources and a diverse group of faculty from 15 departments across five colleges. Her achievements include:
- Creating a unified candidacy exam that is conducted at University Park and Hershey campuses.
- Shepherding the creation and maintenance of successful cross-campus meetings.
- Organizing monthly student research core meetings between the two campuses.
Another notable accomplishment was Korzick’s securing of an NIH T32 Training Grant, which will benefit 25 students. The grants help students prepare for careers in a cutting-edge biomedical workforce. A supplemental award to establish an executive-style boot camp to provide hands-on training related to business-planning and entrepreneurship was also secured by Korzick.
“I cannot think of a better example of Donna’s commitment to graduate education than her efforts to secure these two grants,” said a colleague. “These grants will significantly enhance graduate education in physiology and in other graduate areas for the next several years and, hopefully, beyond.”