2020 Award Winners

The CAP Foundation recognizes and rewards current and future leaders in pathology. For 2020, the Foundation is proud to acknowledge the contributions of an outstanding group of award recipients for their work in advancing pathology and promoting our shared values.

Gene And Jean Herbek Humanitarian Award

The Gene and Jean Herbek Humanitarian Award, introduced in 2011, is named in honor of Gene N. Herbek, MD, FCAP, a past president of the CAP who brought the first See, Test & Treat program to Native American women in South Dakota, as well as for his wife, Jean, who continues his commitment. The award honors a pathologist leader who has made innovative and unique contributions to advance the See, Test & Treat program.

2020 Gene And Jean Herbek Humanitarian Award Recipient

See, Test & Treat Outstanding Partner Award

The See, Test & Treat Outstanding Partner Award, established in 2019, compliments the Herbek award by recognizing and honoring a non-pathologist partner for their contribution and service in support of the See, Test & Treat program. Award recipients are selected based on several factors, including the impact the individual has had on See, Test & Treat within their institution and community in addition to their utilization of innovative and sustainable approaches benefiting the program’s patients.

2020 See, Test & Treat Outstanding Partner Award Recipient

Leadership Development Award

Among the CAP Foundation’s most enduring programs, the Leadership Development Award introduces young pathologists to the specialty’s issues and leadership opportunities. The award enhances each recipient’s education and experience as they become immersed in the issues that confront the specialty. This immersion illustrates the necessity of maintaining a patient-centered practice.

With COVID-19 necessitating the shift from an in-person to virtual annual meeting, the CAP Foundation is providing virtual alternatives to the standard award experience. This includes virtual attendance at CAP20 and access to the virtual mentorship program. The Foundation is also covering travel expenses for awardees to spend a day shadowing a mentor/CAP member leader.

2020 Leadership Development Award Recipients

Albert Alhatem, MD
Rutgers NJMS
Newark, NJ

Deepak Donthi, MD, MBBS, MPH
East Carolina University/Vidant Medical Center
Greenville, NC

Samreen Fathima, MD, MBBS
Baylor University Medical Center
Dallas, TX

Lianna Goetz, MD
Penn State Health, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Hershey, PA

Gagandeep Kaur, MD
Danbury Hospital
Danbury, CT

Karleen Meiklejohn, MD

University of Arizona/Banner University Medical Center
Tucson, AZ

Informatics Award

The field of pathology has experienced dramatic growth in the areas of informatics, clinical applications, standardized reporting and laboratory test utilization, electronic health records, workflow, and patient safety. Experts attribute the growth to external financial and health care pressures.

With COVID-19 necessitating the shift from an in-person to virtual annual meeting, the CAP Foundation is providing virtual alternatives to the standard award experience. This includes virtual attendance at CAP20 and a choice of several courses presented by informatics experts, as well as access to the virtual mentorship program. The Foundation is also covering travel expenses for awardees to spend a day shadowing a mentor/CAP member leader.

2020 Informatics Award Recipients

Evi Abada, MD
Wayne State University/Detroit Medical Center
Sterling Heights, MI

Iny Jhun, MD, SCD
Stanford Health Care
Palo Alto, CA

Richard Xiang, MD, PhD
Mackenzie Building, QEII Health Sciences Centre
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Melissa Zhao, MD
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Boston, MA

Medical Student Travel Award

The Medical Student Travel Award is intended to encourage and support medical students showing a strong interest in the specialty of pathology as a career choice. With COVID-19 necessitating the shift from an in-person to virtual annual meeting, the CAP Foundation is providing virtual alternatives to the standard award experience. This includes virtual attendance at CAP20 and access to the virtual mentorship program. The Foundation is also covering travel expenses for awardees to spend a day shadowing a mentor/CAP member leader.

2020 Medical Student Travel Award Recipients

Michelle Alterman
University of Texas Medical Branch
Galveston, TX

Quinlan Carlson
University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson
Tucson, AZ

Henrietta Fasanya
University of Florida College of Medicine
Gainesville, FL

Anh Huynh
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX

Jacob Jerome
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Pittsburgh, PA

Cullen Lilley
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine
Maywood, IL

Adam Lyle
Touro University California
Vallejo, CA

Marc Rodriguez
University of Illinois – Chicago
Chicago, IL

Jamie Shah
Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences
Kansas City, MO

Tyler Wildes
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL

Shuchi Zinzuwadia
Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine
Maywood, IL

John H. Rippey Grant for Expedited Research

This grant honors the memory of John H. Rippey, MD, an advocate of the CAP who was devoted to improving laboratory quality assurance. The CAP Foundation has repositioned the grant to provide funding for investigation of the impact of COVID-19-related tests, principally nucleic acid amplification and serologic methods, on patient outcomes, including studies related to test accuracy, timeliness, and result communication. Applicants must demonstrate how their projects support quality assurance, quality and/or process improvements in pathology, or patient safety, with the result of improved patient care.

2020 John H. Rippey Grant Recipients

Ji Dong Bai, MSc, MD
Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY

Brad S. Karon, MD, PhD, FCAP
Mayo Clinic
Rochester, MN

Alexander Maris, MD
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Nashville, TN

Wade L. Schulz, MD, PhD, FCAP
Yale University
New Haven, CT

Christopher Tormey, MD, FCAP
Yale-New Haven Hospital/Yale School of Medicine
New Haven, CT

Translational Diagnostics Advanced Training Grant

This grant offers CAP Junior Members hands-on exposure to ways in which novel histopathology-based diagnostic assays are developed. Under the direction of Ventana’s Chief Medical Officer, Eric E. Walk, MD, FCAP, recipients tailor their experience to explore R&D innovation, scientific and clinical affairs, digital pathology and whole slide imaging, platform and instrumentation development, and/or tissue sample management.

2020 Translational Diagnostics Grant Recipients

Kelly Olson, MD
University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics
Madison, WI

Joseph Rohr, MD, PhD
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, NE

CAP20 Virtual Global Pathology Education Award

In an effort to improve global health by increasing the exchange of information on the science of pathology, the CAP Foundation has developed the Global Pathology Education Award. This award provides international pathologists practicing in medically under-resourced areas with complimentary registration to attend the CAP20 virtual annual meeting. Awardees gain access to outstanding continuing education in all pathology specialties taught by world-class experts.

2020 Global Pathology Education Award Recipients

Fahad Alam, MD
National Medical College, Nepal

Shaimaa Abdelmalik Hassan Pessar, MD
Ain Shams University, Egypt

Chuong Tran, MD
Bach Mai Hospital, Vietnam

More information about the CAP Foundation’s grants and awards, as well as the application process, is available here.