The Department of Cell Biology and Physiology held its annual holiday party on December 10, 2025.
Students, faculty, and staff from the Department of Cell Biology and Physiology gathered on December 10 to show appreciation for each other and celebrate another successful year of research and collaboration. The event included an array of food and desserts as well as Summer Orr’s Christmas Bingo, featuring secret fun facts from CBP members. Fun facts included: a staff member who got a full-ride basketball scholarship to attend college (Tonya Murrell), a faculty member who was competitive trampolinist (Heather McCauley, PhD), a faculty member who memorizes lyrics to rap songs to write scientific song parodies (Katie Baldwin, PhD), and more!
At the beginning of the event, Dr. Kathleen Caron, the CBP Chair, announced the annual departmental awards. These awards are presented to faculty, trainees, and staff members nominated by their peers in recognition of their excellence throughout the year. The CBP Community is a success because of the countless contributions of many who generously apply their time and talents to fulfill the department’s mission of leading the way in education, research, and service. Read the names of this year’s award winners below.
2024 CBP Departmental Award Winners
Faculty Mentoring Award – Matt Judson, PhD
Recognition of outstanding mentoring to any of the following groups: junior faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and/or undergraduate students
Innovation in Teaching Award – Kristen Scherrer, PhD
Recognition of new and innovative teaching techniques proven to be useful in achieving the department’s teaching mission
Publication of the Year Award – The labs of Jessica Thaxton, PhD, MsCR and Eva Anton, PhD
Recognition of best scientific publication, showing a high degree of innovation, publicity, conceptual advancement, and prestige
Jessica Thaxton’s Immunity paper identified a conserved stress-sensing pathway in tumor-infiltrating T cells that, when chronically active, induces an exhausted cell state.
Eva Anton’s Nature paper identified how the tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), a collection of proteins that regulate cell metabolism, shapes the architecture of the developing human brain.
Extra Mile for CBP Graduate Students – Pierre N’Guetta (O’Brien Lab)
Recognition of outstanding research endeavors, outstanding leadership abilities, and/or outstanding service to fellow students and curriculum
Extra Mile for CBP Postdocs and EHRA non-faculty – Maria Clara Zanellati (Cohen Lab)
Recognition of outstanding research endeavors, outstanding leadership abilities, and/or outstanding service to lab and department
Staff Excellence Award – Calvin Dempsey (Business Services Coordinator) and Adrienne (Ace) Lane (Grégory Scherrer Lab)
Recognition of outstanding work performance and customer service skills; demonstrating dedication, cooperation, and a positive attitude
CBP Service Award – Zach Williamson, PhD (Student Services Manager)
Recognition of exceptional service to the CBP department or curriculum, to the university, and/or to the surrounding community
The Chair’s Award – Jay Brenman, PhD
Recognition of outstanding accomplishments and/or service to the cell biology and physiology department and community
A special thank you to the members of the CBP Administrative Staff – Summer Orr; Zachary Williamson; Calvin Dempsey; Tiffany Garbutt; and Vicki Morgan – as well as the Student Executive Committee – Jocelyn Alvarado; Jackson Bennett; Leo Blondel; Shenice Harrison; Trevor Henley; Katie Holmes; Nicole Hondrogiannis; Ashlyn Laidman; Michelle Marchan; Kayla Mason; Pierre N’Guetta; Alex Powers; Jake Roetcisoender; Samantha Ryken; Matheus Sadovsky; and Christina So – who generously volunteered with set-up and clean-up. Your time and effort behind the scenes were essential to the celebration’s success and very much appreciated.