For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni.

Recent appointments, presentations, publications and honors in the College of Health Sciences include the following:

Honors

Faculty from the Department of Physical Therapy in the College of Health Sciences were recognized at the 2025 American Physical Therapy Association Awards. Professor Anjana Bhat was named a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association. The fellowship is the highest honor in the PT profession and serves as inspiration for all physical therapists to attain professional excellence. Professor and Department Chair Darcy Reisman received the Helen Hislop Award for Outstanding Contributions to Professional Literature. The award acknowledges a physical therapist who has made significant contributions to literature in physical therapy or healthcare disciplines in the areas of theory, practice, foundational or clinical research, education and administration. Distinguished Professor of Health Sciences Gregory Hicks, associate vice president for clinical and translation research, received the Marian Williams Award for Research in Physical Therapy. The award acknowledges an individual who has made significant contributions to physical therapy through excellence in research. Jeffrey Miller, associate director of clinical education and a physical therapist in UD’s Physical Therapy Clinic, received the Signe Brunnström Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching. This award acknowledges an individual who has made significant contributions to physical therapy clinical education through excellence in clinical teaching. Doctor of physical therapy (DPT) alumnus Jacob Capin, who is now an assistant professor at Marquette University, received the Eugene Michels New Investigator Award. The recipient of this award is an outstanding new investigator who has demonstrated a commitment to physical therapy research. Capin also received his doctorate in biomechanics and movement science (BIOMS) from UD. DPT alumna Jennifer Stevens-Lapsley, who is now a professor of rehabilitation sciences and Ph.D. program director at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, received the Jules M. Rothstein Golden Pen Award for Scientific Writing. This award recognizes superior writing skills in one or more articles published in Physical Therapy, and someone who has collaborated with or encouraged others to make similar contributions to PTJ: Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Journal. Stevens-Lapsley, who also received her doctorate in BIOMS from UD, also received the Lucy Blair Service Award for her contributions of exceptional value and impact to the association at both the national and component levels.

UD’s Athletic Training Program has been accepted as an academic institutional member for the World Federation of Athletic Training and Therapy (WFATT). Acceptance into this organization connects the UD program with some 50 other academic institutions from six other countries to promote and provide leadership, cultivate collaboration and champion the athletic training and therapy profession globally and contribute to a healthier world. 

Grants

Alexandra Wynn, a postdoctoral researcher in the Epidemiology Department, received a Health Disparities Research Loan Repayment Program award from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. Over two years, Wynn will investigate and address the intersectional and unique needs of Black college students, including their model of care choices, health engagement and practices, and social determinants of health-related gaps in Delaware's current health systems serving this population.

“I was that college student who didn't feel heard and was almost too afraid to leap because I didn’t see myself reflected in the spaces I was in. I served as a resident assistant to other students who avoided medical care due to discrimination at the local hospital. I have witnessed friends delay needed healthcare because of cost or lack of insurance access," said Wynn. "As a young Black scientist, my passion for understanding the lived experiences of Black emerging adults within the healthcare system is not just professional but personal. Black emerging adults are often under-researched or overlooked, and this work is more important than ever to continue advancing health equity by amplifying our communities’ voices.”

Presentations

Jennifer Graber, professor and associate dean of academic affairs and practice initiatives, and Jennifer Saylor, professor and associate dean of faculty and student affairs in the School of Nursing, presided over the opening and closing plenary sessions at the 36th International Nursing Research Congress in Seattle, Washington, in July. The Beta Xi at-Large chapter members led five podium presentations on: “Combating Bullying and Incivility in Nursing Education Amid Global Faculty Shortages”; “Advancing RN Preparedness: The Role of Clinical-Academic Partnerships in Building a Thriving Global Healthcare System”; “Examining Risk-Taking Behavior in Emerging Young Adult Men with Shared Minority Identifications”; “Building Inclusive Nursing Futures: Innovative Leadership for Success Among BIPOC and First-Generation Students”; and “The Role of Burnout in Shaping Nursing Department Performance in Academia.” Graber also presided over the Chapter Leader Breakfast, connecting with fellow nursing leaders from around the globe.

Appointments

Jamie Pottman, who earned her bachelor’s in applied molecular biology and biotechnology (AMBB) in May, has accepted a position as a postbaccalaureate Intramural Research Training Fellow at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Pottman will be working in Thomas Redmond’s Laboratory of Retinal Cell and Molecular Biology within the National Eye Institute (NEI). Pottman’s research will focus on age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of vision loss, to uncover the molecular and biochemical changes that drive its progression and identify biomarkers that could enable earlier diagnosis and more targeted treatments to slow or prevent blindness.

“UD’s AMBB program gave me extensive hands-on exposure to molecular biology and techniques, which developed my confidence in the lab,” Pottman said. “The supportive environment showed me how exciting and impactful biomedical research can be, and that encouragement ultimately helped lead me to this opportunity at NIH.”