2024 Award Winners

Junior Award: Steven H. Liang, PhD

Steven H. Liang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences who also holds multiple leadership positions within the Emory Center for Systems Imaging core. These positions include an endowed directorship of Radiochemistry, Cyclotron Facility and Radiopharmacy services, as well as head of the Positron Emission Tomography Imaging Center.

Dr. Liang’s research focuses on drug development and radiochemistry for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging. His group has pioneered methods for the selective incorporation the radioactive fluorine atoms into neurodegeneration-related drug molecules to allow PET imaging of these compounds in the brain. A recent breakthrough was their development of a new PET drug that enables real-time observation of cholesterol breakdown in the brain. Given that altered cholesterol metabolism in the brain is associated with neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, this discovery is expected to greatly advance clinical neuroimaging.

Dr. Liang’s outstanding work has been recognized by numerous awards including the Berson-Yalow Award from the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging. His group’s work is supported by numerous NIH grants as well as industry contracts. You can read more about Dr. Liang’s research in a recent Emory News article here.

Senior Award: Kathryn M. Yount, PhD

Dr. Kathryn M. Yount holds the Asa Griggs Candler Professorship of Global Health and is a Professor in the Social, Behavioral, and Health Education Sciences in the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. She is also a Professor of Sociology in Emory’s College of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. Kathryn Yount’s research has a global reach, spanning diverse regions including Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the United States. Her work seamlessly integrates sociology, public health, and gender studies, with a primary focus on women's empowerment and its impacts on health outcomes. She utilizes cross-cultural measures to illustrate the positive correlation between enhanced women’s empowerment and improved mental and nutritional health, increased child immunization rates, and reduced mortality rates among girls. A hallmark of her work, GlobalConsent, is a pioneering web-based program aimed at curbing sexually violent behavior among male undergraduates in Vietnam. Notably, it is the first program proven effective in middle-income countries and is now being scaled nationally with the support of the National Institute of Mental Health in partnership with six Vietnamese universities. The program's potential for wider adoption is currently being evaluated by UKAI for expansion into other Southeast Asian countries. Additionally, Dr. Yount directs the CONVERGE initiative, a consortium dedicated to combating gender-based violence and fostering leadership through specialized training programs at leading medical universities in Vietnam. Her comprehensive efforts have significantly contributed to the prevention of gender-based violence and the enhancement of health outcomes across diverse global regions.

Dr. Yount's research has garnered significant recognition, with her work extensively published in top journals in the social sciences and public health. Through bibliometric reviews, she is acknowledged as a leading scholar globally. Her work is particularly noted for its empirical rigor, broad impact, and practical applications that enhance public health and promote gender equity. Her contributions have notably elevated Emory University's global standing in these research areas and highlighted the transformative power of interdisciplinary research in tackling complex global challenges.