UAMS Presents Marvin, Scheving Awards to Medical Students

By Holland Doran


Shep Russell (center), received the 2014 Horace N. Marvin Award. He stands with (from left) G. Richard Smith, M.D., dean of the UAMS College of Medicine, Robert Burns, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Neurobiology & Developmental Sciences, Jan Shorey, M.D., associate dean for Continuing Medical Education and Faculty Affairs, Helen Beneš, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Neurobiology & Developmental Sciences, Mohsin Syed, Ph.D., assistant professor, Tad Marvin, DVM, son of the late Horace N. Marvin, and David Davies, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Neurobiology & Developmental Sciences.

May 13, 2014 | Two UAMS medical students have received the Lawrence E. Scheving Award and the Dr. Horace N. Marvin Award recognizing their academic achievements.

James “Jimmy” Dornhoffer, a first-year medical student, received the Lawrence E. Scheving Award for achieving the highest score in the human structure course, and James “Shep” Russell IV, a third-year medical student, received the Dr. Horace N. Marvin Award for achieving the highest score on the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step 1, an exam more commonly known as “The Boards.”

Russell is the inaugural recipient of the Marvin Award based on the USMLE Step 1 score. In the past, the Department of Neurobiology and Developmental has given the Marvin Award annually to the medical student with the highest grade in its microscopic anatomy course.

Russell and wife, Amanda Russell, a UAMS audiologist, received a framed certificate and $500 honorarium presented by G. Richard Smith, M.D., dean of the UAMS College of Medicine and Tad Marvin, son of the late Horace N. Marvin, during a ceremony by Marvin’s memorial bust in the UAMS Library.

Russell, who is also the recipient of the 2012 Scheving Award, also had his name added to the memorial plaque adjacent to Marvin’s bust.

“I am honored to be recognized and I want to thank UAMS and my professors,” Russell said. “It’s great that the department takes the time to value how hard students are working to become the best doctors that they can be.”

Dornhoffer, son of John Dornhoffer, M.D., professor of otolaryngology at UAMS, and Mary Dornhoffer, received the Scheving Award. He was given a framed certificate and monetary honorarium from David Davies, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences in the UAMS College of Medicine, during a ceremony in the Chancellor’s Garden. His name was also added to the Scheving Award memorial plaque.

“I just want to say thank you for this honor,” Dornhoffer said. “Coming into medical school is always a little stressful especially with learning the new curriculum. My first year has actually been a lot of fun and I have had some great experiences.”

The Marvin award was established with anonymous donations in 1985, the year Marvin retired. He was course director of Medical Microscopic Anatomy and was chair of the Department of Anatomy from 1958-1967, after which he served as associate dean for Academic Affairs.

The Scheving award was established on behalf of the late Lawrence E. Scheving, Ph.D., the first Rebsamen professor of anatomical science. He served as director of the gross anatomy course for 15 years and was a UAMS College of Medicine faculty member for 20 years until his retirement in 1990. Friends and colleagues who established the award in 2004 described Scheving as an outstanding teacher and researcher with an international reputation.