From the Society for Neuroscience News…
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) will award Erik Herzog, PhD, professor of biology at Washington University and director of the St. Louis Neuroscience Pipeline Program, and Gönül Peker, PhD, professor emeritus at Ege University, Turkey, this year’s Award for Education in Neuroscience. The honor recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to neuroscience education and training and will be presented in San Diego at Neuroscience 2018, SfN’s annual meeting and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health.
“The Society is proud to present Dr. Herzog and Dr. Peker with this year’s award,” said SfN President Richard Huganir. “Dr. Herzog is a gifted teacher and science communicator who is committed to increasing diversity through mentoring, while Dr. Peker has been instrumental in demonstrating the benefits of international educational experiences and research collaborations.”
Herzog’s research on circadian rhythms has earned him more than 90 publications in top journals. For the past 18 years at Washington University, he has shared his passion for this area of research and neuroscience in general with his students, developing a selective and popular undergraduate neuroscience track for upper-level undergraduates majoring in biology, and his efforts to help students go far beyond the classroom. He holds or has held leadership positions with several organizations, including as president of the St. Louis SfN Chapter, chair of Neuroscience Outreach at Washington University in St. Louis, codirector of the university’s neuroscience PhD program, and president of the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms. In these positions he has worked to increase the numbers of women and people of color in the neuroscience workforce, and he gives additional time to mentor, recruit, and teach high school students — especially those from St. Louis’ inner city — through outreach efforts such as his local Brain Bee, NeuroDay, and the Young Scientist Program at Washington University in St. Louis.