Honors and Awards

Carl Djerassi, professor emeritus of chemistry, has received the ERASMUS Medal from the Academia Europaea, a nongovernmental association of about 2,000 scientists and scholars from 35 European countries and eight non-European countries. At its annual meeting Sept. 11 in Graz, Austria, the academy lauded Djerassi "in recognition of his long and distinguished career in science and scholarship." Djerassi, an organic chemist, patron of the arts, author and playwright, was the first non-European citizen to receive this highest award of the Academia.  

Tobias Wolff, the Ward W. and Priscilla B. Woods Professor in the Department of English, was awarded the Fall for the Book Festival's inaugural Fairfax Prize on Sept. 20 at George Mason University-Fairfax. The $10,000 award honors a contemporary writer for lifetime achievement. Wolff, who teaches creative writing, has earned numerous literary awards, including a PEN/Faulkner Award for fiction for his novella The Barracks Thief and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for biography for his memoir This Boy's Life. He is a three-time winner of the O. Henry Award for short fiction. His forthcoming novel, Old School, is scheduled to be released in November.

Jennifer Granick, executive director of the Law School's Center for Internet and Society, was named this month in Information Security magazine's list of "20 Women Luminaries." The article described Granick as one of cyberlaw's leading attorneys: "Count on the provocative Granick to help us continually redefine the fine line between national security and civil rights."

Paul Brest, law professor emeritus and former Law School dean, was mentioned last month in this year's "Power and Influence Top 50" list created by Nonprofit Times, a business publication for nonprofit management. Brest, president of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, was commended for "sparking the debate about nonprofit infrastructure costs and the notion that they are legitimate expenses." According to Brest, funders need to recognize this in order to move foundations "from good intentions to actual impact."

Miguel Mendez, the Adelbert H. Sweet Professor of Law, was recognized Sept. 25 by Public Advocates Inc. as one of its "voices of conscience" in honor of his more than 10 years of service to the organization as its board chair. Public Advocates, based in San Francisco, is one of the oldest public interest law firms in the nation.