Assistant Professor Earns American Heart Association Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Recognition Award
The Department's Co-chair for Diversity Equity Inclusion has Won a National Award with a Special Focus on Student Training
The Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology of the American Health Association has presented Mete Civelek with the 2020 ATVB/AHA Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Recognition Award. Civelek is an assistant professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Virginia with a passion for creating a more diverse and equitable environment for students and faculty alike.
This award recognizes those who have made an impactful contribution in promoting diversity and inclusion. Successful candidates must have a strong track record of training students, scientists from diverse background, and underrepresented groups.
Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering Mete Civelek uses big data analytics to understand the molecular pathways of disease and develops personalized medicine approaches to cardiovascular and metabolic disorders.
Excerpted from BME Chair Fred Epstein’s Nomination Letter for the ATVB/AHA Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Recognition Award:
“Dr. Civelek is the co-chair of our department’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. This is an unusual assignment as we typically do not ask assistant professors to lead committees; however, Dr. Civelek’s passion and commitment to create a welcoming and equitable environment in our department compelled me to appoint him to this position.
“In addition to mentoring students who are underrepresented in biomedical engineering, he has worked hard towards making structural changes in our department. As you can imagine, this is not a short-term project and requires strategic planning, long term commitment, and building alliances with various stakeholders in the department and beyond. I am proud to say that despite his being a member of our department for less than five years, he has made an impact on creating a more diverse and equitable environment for students and faculty alike.
"Overall, Dr. Civelek has worked tirelessly to implement systemic changes to make our department a more welcoming place where every individual is heard and has ownership of the department."
With the help of three new grants, Mete Civelek is employing the tools of biomedical data science to connect the dots between genes and cardiometabolic disease.
Intensive instruction in the ethics governing biomedical big data
A teaching fellowship is helping Mete Civelek bring intensive ethics instruction to undergraduates in the data science elective he teaches each spring.
