A.J. Ladman AAA/Wiley Exemplary Service Award.

Abstract

The A.J. Ladman AAA/Wiley Exemplary Service Award is presented jointly by the American Association of Anatomists (AAA) and John Wiley and Sons, Inc., Publishers. This award is presented to a member of the AAA who has distinguished himself or herself in the field of anatomy, and has provided exemplary service to the association. The recipient of this award for 2004 is Dr. Robert O. Kelley, who is currently dean of the College of Health Sciences, and a professor in the division of Medical Education and Public Health at the University of Wyoming. Dr. Kelley spent his undergraduate years at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas, where he majored in biology and chemistry. He received his B.S. degree in 1965 and went on to graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley. There he studied zoology, and cell and developmental biology. He received his M.A. degree in 1966, and his Ph.D. degree in 1969. During his last year of graduate study, Dr. Kelley was acting assistant professor of zoology at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1969 Dr. Kelley started a long career at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. He began as an instructor of anatomy in 1969, and was promoted to assistant professor of anatomy in 1970, and to associate professor of anatomy in 1974. At that time he also became an associate professor of biology. In 1979 Dr. Kelley was promoted to professor of anatomy at New Mexico, and to professor of biology in the College of Arts and Sciences. In 1981 Dr. Kelley became chairman of the Department of Anatomy at New Mexico, and served in that position until 1997. He became a professor of biological sciences in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and professor of anatomy and cell biology in the College of Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1997, and served in that position until 1999. He was appointed as associate vice chancellor for research, and executive associate dean of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois. In recognition of his administrative expertise, Dr. Kelley was invited to become a professor of medical education and public health at the University of Wyoming, and dean of the School of Health Sciences in 1999. Over the years, Dr. Kelley's research has focused on the fundamental questions of cell and molecular biology, and has employed a variety of electron microscopic and biochemical techniques. While Dr. Kelley has addressed a wide range of cell biology questions in his 50 publications, in many papers he has focused on the development of the upper extremities in humans, developmental issues in Xenopus and chicks, and ultrastructural and cytochemical features in developing and cultured human fibroblasts. In these studies Dr. Kelley has provided new information on limb morphogenesis in humans, the differentiation and structure of cell junctions in the apical ridge in human limbs, and the characteristics of cell matrix differentiation during limb development. Dr. Kelley has participated in scholarly and academic pursuits internationally. He was a visiting research fellow at the Hubrecht Laboratory in Utrecht (1972–1973), an international exchange scholar for the National Science Foundation at the University of Poona in India (1982), and a visiting research professor in the Department of Developmental Biology at the National Institute for Basic Biology at Okazaki National Research Institute in Japan (1984–1985). In 1990 he was a visiting professor at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil. Dr. Kelley's service to his institutions has been exemplary over the years. In addition to his regular responsibilities at the University of New Mexico as a faculty member and chairman of the department, Dr. Kelley served on more than 20 committees. These included the Advisory Panel for Biomedical Research, the Space Allocation Committee, and the Regents' Scholars Program. Dr. Kelley continued this service activity at the University of Illinois, where he served on a variety of committees, including the Graduate College Executive Committee, the Governor's Biotechnique Advisory Council, and the Illinois-Indiana Sea-Grant Joint University Policy Committee. In addition to his responsibilities as dean of the College of Health Sciences at the University of Wyoming, Dr. Kelley continues his overall service to the university through committee assignments. Dr. Kelley's service efforts have also extended to national organizations in the United States. He has served as a director on the Director's Task Force of the NIH Strategic Plan Committee (1992–1993), a consultant for the National Center for Research Resources Advisory Council (1989–1996), and chairman of the Research Centers in Minority Institutions Study Section for the National Center for Research Resources (1992–1996). Dr. Kelley has also represented the field of anatomy through his activities on the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). He has served on the executive board of the NBME (1999–2003), and the Composite Committee (1998–2002), and as chairman of the Anatomy Test Committee (1994–1999). Dr. Kelley has also been an outstanding representative of the AAA in his activities with the American Association of Medical Colleges. In that organization he served as chair-elect and chairman of the Executive Committee, and on the Council of Academic Societies. Dr. Kelley's service to the AAA includes his membership on the Executive Committee (1988–1995) and the Executive Committee of the Association of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Neurobiology Chairpersons. In addition, he served as an associate editor of the Anatomical Record in 1971–1998. He has also served on the editorial board of Cell Tissue Research, and as an external referee for many journals, including the Journal of Cell Biology, Development, Developmental Dynamics, Teratology, Molecular Cell Biology, and Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry. Dr. Kelley has also served as co-chair of the National Caucus for Basic Biomedical Science Chairs, and on the Public Affairs Committee for FASEB. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Electron Microscopy Society of America. Over the years, Dr. Kelley has been successful in acquiring extramural grant support for his own research program and for major projects at universities in which he has served. He was a Research Career Development awardee from 1972 to 1977, received NIH grant support for his research efforts for a number of years, was co-principal investigator on a large grant for the Health Sciences Center Library while at the University of New Mexico, and is principal investigator on a large NIH grant for biomedical research infrastructure development at the University of Wyoming. Although heavily involved in research and service over the years, Dr. Kelley has also received a Distinguished Service Award from the AAMC, teaching awards at the University of Wyoming and the University of New Mexico, and a Kaiser Award for Excellence in Basic Science Instruction from the University of California. Dr. Kelley has been the research advisor for one M.A. student, co-advisor for three Ph.D. students, and supervisor for four postdoctoral fellows (including Dr. Gary C. Schoenwolf, a former president of the AAA). His other society affiliations include the American Society for Cell Biology, and the Society for Developmental Biology. Dr. Kelley's research publications have appeared in well-known peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Experimental Zoology, Anatomical Record, Journal of Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, Journal of Ultrastructural Research, Journal of Cell Science, American Journal of Anatomy, and Journal of Cellular Physiology. In addition to his 50 publications, Dr. Kelley is the author of 53 abstracts resulting from presentations at national and international meetings, and more than 20 book chapters, and is widely recognized as one of the authors of the textbook Histology. The AAA recognizes Dr. Robert Kelley for his many years of dedicated service to the field of anatomy and to our association. The AAA is pleased to honor Dr. Kelley as the 2004 recipient of the A.J. Ladman AAA/Wiley Exemplary Service Award.