Council Member Bryant Named UC Irvine Medal Recipient

CCST Council Member Susan Bryant, former vice chancellor for research at UC Irvine (UCI), has been named as a recipient of UCI’s most prestigious honor. The UCI Medal, awarded annually, recognizes those who have made exceptional contributions to the university’s mission of teaching, research and public service over the course of their careers.

The honor recognizes Bryant for her longtime service as a teacher, researcher, administrator and leader. Most recently, in her four years as vice chancellor, her accomplishments include increases in research and scholarship support from both government and private sources. She also streamlined and reorganized the Office of Research to better meet the campus’s changing needs and guided initiatives designed to facilitate technology transfer.

“Susan Bryant has been an enormous asset both to UCI and to the research community in general,” said CCST Council Chair Charles F. Kennel. “We congratulate her on this well-deserved honor, and are privileged to have her participation as a member of the CCST Council.”

Bryant served as dean of biological sciences from 2000 to 2006. She has also held numerous other administrative positions at UCI, including interim dean of biological sciences, assistant vice chancellor for plans and programs, chair of developmental and cell biology, and program director of the National Science Foundation developmental biology program. Other honors include being an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and of the Association for Women in Science. In addition, she serves as a member of the Independent Citizens’ Oversight Committee for the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). Bryant was a member of the study group that produced the 2005 CCST report on building a policy framework for intellectual property derived from research at CIRM when it was instituted.

She is a leading expert in the study of limb regeneration. Her research has focused on the fundamental rules of regeneration, and may one day lead to new approaches and therapies for replacing and repairing parts of the human body.

Bryant, along with four other honorees, will be honored at an awards dinner on October 2.

“UCI’s ability to shape a bright future for our campus, our community and our world comes from the contributions of people deeply committed to this campus,” said Chancellor Michael Drake in a statement released by UCI. “This year’s Medal recipients exemplify this commitment, and their extraordinary loyalty, service and generosity to our university make them most deserving of this exceptional tribute,”