Prestigious Honors
Airhenbuwa honored for international work
Collins O. Airhihenbuwa, professor of biobehavioral health, received the W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Award for faculty at a ceremony on March 20.
Established in 1995, the W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Award recognizes a member of the Penn State faculty who has contributed significantly to the advancement of the international mission of the University. It is named for the retired deputy vice president for international programs.
photo by Gene Maylock
Collins O. Airhihenbuwa, professor of biobehavioral health, received the W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Award
For more than two decades at Penn State, Airhihenbuwa has dedicated an “unending amount of effort” toward international work in research, teaching and service to “facilitate and improve relations among people from different regions of the world, especially Africa,” nominations stated.
Airhihenbuwa's international research and international outreach agendas focus on one of the most severe challenges the world has known—that of HIV/AIDS. He has been at the forefront in developing HIV/AIDS education programs that recognize and incorporate local cultural values and his work has been recognized and supported by several international agencies, including the United Nations and the World Health Organization.
“His professional colleagues have long recognized his expertise in linking culture and health,"” said one of his nominators. “Throughout these efforts, he has thoughtfully and warmly engaged faculty, students, and staff from both the United Sates and other parts of the global community.”
Raised in Nigeria, Airhihenbuwa’s commitment to internationalization has been personal as well as professional. He has held several professional international positions and has been part of numerous collaborations throughout the years, from ongoing work with the United Nations to current collaborations with many individuals and agencies in Africa.
“Collins conducts his work with humor, humility, and a deep understanding of the need to be culturally sensitive and intellectually demanding,” said his nominators. “It is important to note, however, that the list of international collaborations that he maintains does not simply mean he is a member; Collins is a leader and active player in these partnerships.”
Airhihenbuwa has actively shared his passion for international engagement with both colleagues and students through his formal roles as former head of the Department of Health Education at Penn State, faculty adviser to the African Student Association and president of the forum on Black Affairs.
He brings his profound insights and influence to bear in the classroom, as well, and his students’ impressive knowledge base and their ability “to think beyond Central Pennsylvania and to open their perspectives to worldly concerns” are noted by his nominators.
Airhihenbuwa’s engagement with students from Penn State and from the international sphere further emphasizes his dedication to international education. His advocacy of undergraduate students has inspired many of his students to go on to earn post-baccalaureate degrees in international public health. In addition, he has mentored many undergraduate and graduate students in international settings, as well as facilitated the enhancement of research and teaching in traditionally under-resourced universities in South Africa.
Airhihenbuwa earned his Ph.D. in public health education and his master’s and bachelor’s degrees in health planning and administration from the University of Tennessee. He is a prolific researcher with more than 60 peer-reviewed scholarly articles published and three books. In addition, he has presented his research at locations across the globe.
Crouter Receives Faculty Scholar Medal
photo by Gene Maylock
Ann C. Crouter was one of only five Penn State faculty members to receive the 2006 Faculty Scholar Medal for Outstanding Achievement
Ann C. Crouter, professor of human development, was one of five Penn State professors selected to receive the 2006 Faculty Scholar Medal for Outstanding Achievement. Established in 1980, the award recognizes scholarly or creative excellence represented by a single contribution or a series of contributions around a coherent theme.
Crouter, who received the social and behavioral sciences medal, was honored for her work focused on family processes in dual-earner families raising children and adolescents. Her work has broken new ground measuring family time and parents’ acquisition of knowledge about their children's facilitating and constraining these processes. Her work significantly advances understanding and improving adolescent development and well-being and family life, especially for families where both parents work.
She received her B.A. in psychology and English from Stanford University in 1976 and her Ph.D. in human development and family studies from Cornell in 1982. Crouter joined Penn State in 1981 as assistant professor of human development, became an associate professor in 1987 and professor in 1993. She is the director of Penn State's Center for Work and Family Research. In 1999 she received the President's Award for Excellence in Academic Integration of Research, Teaching and Service from Penn State. Crouter also received the 2004 Evan G. and Helen G. Pattishall Outstanding Research Achievement Award from the College of Health and Human Development.
