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UTHSC’s Cooper Recognized by AAMC for Distinguished Service

 

            Memphis, Tennessee (November 18, 2004) – Terrance G. Cooper, PhD, the Harriet S. Van Vleet Professor in the University of Tennessee’s Department of Molecular Sciences, was recently awarded the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges. The Distinguished Service Award recognizes individuals who have made significant leadership contributions to the AAMC.

            Dr. Cooper began serving in leadership positions for the AAMC in 1994 when he was president of the Association of Medical School Microbiology and Immunology Chairs and served as that organization’s representative to the AAMC for six years. He has served the AAMC Council of Academic Societies (CAS) in leadership positions for more than eight years, as well as in key leadership positions on the GREAT (Graduate Research, Education and Training) Group Steering Committee. He chaired the AAMC’s Council of Academic Societies Advisory Board in 2000, served as a member of the AAMC Executive Council for three years and was a member of its Executive Committee from 2000 to 2001.

            Dr. Cooper became affiliated with the UT Health Science Center in 1985, serving as chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology from 1985 to 2000. He currently serves as Secretary General for the International Conference on Yeast Genetics and Molecular Biology and as a member of the Board of Governors nominating committee for the American Academy of Microbiology. Dr. Cooper has published more than 200 scientific journal articles and one book, The Tools of Biochemistry. Also, he serves on three editorial boards and as an editor of the journal, FEMS Yeast Research.

The Association of American Medical Colleges is a nonprofit association that represents the 125 accredited U.S. medical schools, the 17 accredited Canadian medical schools, some 400 major teaching hospitals, and 94 academic and professional societies. The AAMC’s purpose is to improve the nation's health through the advancement of medical schools and teaching hospitals; and the organization works with its members to set a national agenda for medical education, biomedical research, and healthcare.

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