May 7, 2013 | May 7, 2013 | Morris Cranmer, Ph.D., professor in the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, was named the Graduate School “Faculty Member of the Year” in an awards reception on April 4.

“I was totally surprised,” Cranmer said. “I was not expecting it and couldn’t have been more pleased.”

Faculty members are nominated for the award by their students and peers, and the recipient is selected by the UAMS Graduate School.

Cranmer was instrumental in starting the Graduate Certificate in Regulatory Science program at UAMS. The program, which started last fall, consists of four three-credit hour courses in Federal Drug Administration (FDA) regulations, risk assessment, clinical trials and good regulatory practice regulations. In its first year, the program had 22 students with 10 graduating this fall. The program is a collaborative effort between the National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR) and the UAMS College of Public Health.

At the reception, Robert McGehee, Ph.D., dean of the UAMS Graduate School, recognized Cranmer for his work ethic.

“This was a brand-new program that started last fall largely through his tireless efforts,” McGehee said. “He was critical in the course formulation process and ushered all of the courses and curriculum through the Graduate Council and the Arkansas Department of Higher Education in record time. He also recruited the first 20 students into the program and was able to leverage financial support for many of these students through partnering with the National Center for Toxicological Research.”

Cranmer said the Regulatory Science Training Program at UAMS has many partners.

“It would not have been implemented without the collaboration with NCTR, the commitment of the UAMS chancellor and dean and staff of the Graduate School, and the leadership of Dr. Jay Gandy and the administration of the College of Public Health,” Cranmer said. “It is the dedicated faculty and students that have made the program successful.”

Cranmer is no stranger to high accolades having received an Award of Merit from the FDA and the Achievement Award from the Society of Toxicology. He also was awarded with the Distinguished Service Award from the U.S. Department of Health Education and Welfare, that organization’s highest award for a civilian. In addition he has a predoctoral student award named for him by the International Neurotoxicology Conference Series.

While the awards are nice, Cranmer said it’s the students that matter most to him.

“The most rewarding parts of my job is the interaction with students both in the classroom and having the opportunity to act as a mentor,” Cranmer said.

Cranmer’s affiliation with UAMS began in 1972. He has received adjunct professor appointments in the UAMS College of Medicine in biochemistry, pediatrics and toxicology/pharmacology. Cranmer has also held adjunct professor positions in epidemiology at the University of Miami and in health physics at the University of Michigan. In 2003 he became a professor in the UAMS College of Public Health.

Cranmer previously worked for the FDA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). He was the first director of the NCTR. He managed his own consulting company for 20 years.