First-year medical student Tessa Fabiniak received the top honor in anatomical sciences at the George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), earning the 17th Annual Marilyn J. Koering Award after achieving a 98.5% in anatomy.
The award is named for Marilyn J. Koering, PhD, Professor Emerita of Anatomy and Cell Biology, whose legacy of teaching and resilience continues to shape the institution. It is presented each year to the first-year medical student with the highest overall grade in the anatomical sciences.
“Thank you to everyone here, my family, friends, classmates, and the anatomy department at GW,” Fabiniak said. “It’s just an honor having my name said in the same sentence as Dr. Koering’s. I look forward to continuing to build upon this strong foundation of knowledge as I move through my training and my career to give the best care possible to my patients and the community.”
Reflecting on her approach to learning, Fabiniak emphasized the interconnected nature of medicine.
“It’s so interesting how everything connects and just the human body is such a complex system that is always in harmony … . I think you really need to know all aspects of the body, like anatomy, histology, the pharmacology, physiology to really get that full picture.”
The ceremony was led by Kenna Peusner, PhD, and included remarks from Mary Ann Stepp, PhD, professor of anatomy and cell biology; Susan Koering; and Andrew Artenstein, MD, interim vice president for health affairs and dean of SMHS.
“This is the award for excellence in anatomy,” Peusner said, highlighting both Koering’s academic contributions and her perseverance in the face of illness.
Artenstein underscored the importance of foundational coursework in shaping future physicians.
“Medical school is full of challenging and rewarding moments — so it is imperative to remember that a medical student’s journey is a marathon, not a sprint, and at these little moments we should take time to celebrate,” he said.
In courses like anatomy, he added, students are laying the groundwork for their careers, and “building the foundation to the rest of your career. ”
“Academic excellence,” he added, “helps you on the path to every single step forward from your residency programs, graduation residency programs to understanding the field you've chosen and being able to help people, patients, families, your community because that's really what we're doing. That's at the heart of everything we do.”
The award pays tribute to Koering’s decades-long impact at the university. She joined the GW faculty in 1969 after earning her graduate degrees from the University of Wisconsin and went on to teach more than 5,000 students over a 34-year career. In 1996, she received the university’s Distinguished Teaching Award.
Diagnosed with malignant melanoma in 1986, Koering participated in an experimental treatment program at the Mayo Clinic. She was one of just 30 patients and ultimately the longest survivor, living with the disease for 21 years. Throughout that time, she continued teaching and often incorporated her personal experience into her lectures, offering students a rare perspective on illness and care.
Stepp, who worked closely with Koering, reflected on her influence as an educator.
“She was very dedicated and a very exciting person,’ she recalled. “Good teachers have a huge impact on the people they teach, and it was a real honor for me to have been both a student and a co-worker of Marilyn.”
“Marilyn taught me early on that the study of these histological slides was an opportunity to develop skills in differential diagnosis safely,” she said. “If you got it wrong, you just messed up the slide or messed up your quiz, but you learned how to recognize different things in these tissue structures.”
Koering’s teaching methods left a lasting impression. One lesson in particular stuck with Stepp. It a simple but powerful technique that exemplified her anatomy mentor’s ability to make complex material accessible. Koering encouraged students examining microscopic slides to first orient themselves by identifying red blood cells, using them as a consistent reference point, a “histologist’s ruler.” The cells, she explained were typically 7 to 8 microns in diameter, a reference point allowing students to gauge the size everything else in image.
Each year, Susan Koering travels from Minneapolis to present the award and connect her sister’s legacy with new generations of students. She also recently published a book, “Anatomy of a Role Model,” about Marilyn Koering’s life and career.
“I congratulate you on being here and taking this step in your medical education,” she said. “I encourage you to learn more about Marilyn’s journey — how she became an anatomist, came to GW, and lived with metastatic melanoma for 21 years.”
