The Dean's Office announced today that Matthew D. Weitzman, PhD, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, is the recipient of this year’s Arthur K. Asbury Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award. Dr. Weitzman has made wide-ranging contributions foundational to the fields of virology and DNA repair and has produced a number of highly successful trainees. One of his most significant contributions to the professional development of other faculty members has been his initiation of the Grant Proposal Success (GPS) groups. He began the first group in 2013 in The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Pathology department, and in subsequent years expanded this model throughout CHOP and PSOM. The GPS approach creates a flexible, community-based learning experience to teach participants effective grant-writing skills through peer review and cascading mentorship, applying structure and best practices. To date, over 250 trainees and Penn faculty have been involved in these groups, including the Richards Society for GPS, begun in 2017 for tenure-track junior faculty from PSOM. Assistant professors from various departments across PSOM attend these weekly meetings, and members credit Dr. Weitzman’s guidance and mentorship with the funding of previously unsuccessful grant proposals. As one member of the Richards GPS said, "Beyond his commitment to reviewing each of our grants individually and attending weekly meetings, Dr. Weitzman has set a tone for providing and receiving critical feedback, sharing innovative ideas, and setting ambitious research goals. He has also instilled in each of us how to be strategic in our grant development, how to push each other as colleagues, and to focus on the passion for science that has drawn each of us to Penn."

The Arthur K. Asbury Mentoring Award recognizes a faculty member who has fostered the professional development of other faculty members by providing inspiring and effective counsel and opportunities for achievement. The outstanding mentor establishes a supportive and nurturing relationship with other faculty members and helps them to negotiate the complex demands of academic life, improve their skills and opportunities, and reconcile the competing claims of work and home life. The Award is named after Dr. Arthur K. Asbury, the Van Meter Professor of Neurology Emeritus, who spent most of his career at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he was a clinician, educator, researcher, and administrator, including Acting Dean and Executive Vice President.