The George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology hosted the 86th annual Kane King Dodek Obstetrical Honor Society reception, May 18, featuring Jenni Villavicencio, MD, MPP, OB-GYN and family planning specialist, as the 2023 Founders Lecture. The annual awards ceremony honors the year’s outstanding faculty, residents, and students with induction into the into the Kane King Dodek Obstetrical Honor Society.
Villavicencio serves as the lead for equity transformation with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a role tasked with collaborating with departments, programs, leaders, and individuals across the professional association to bring equity and inclusion to the forefront of all aspects of the organization. She completed a bachelor’s in neuroscience at the University of Miami and earned her medical degree from the University of Central Florida. She served her OB-GYN residency at Brown University and completed a Complex Family Planning Fellowship at the University of Michigan. She also holds a master’s in public policy from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan.
Nancy Gaba, MD ’93, RESD ’97, welcomed the crowd of GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) administrators and faculty members, residents, and a select group from the MD Program Class of 2023, who gathered virtually for the annual awards event.
“This is a society steeped in history,” Gaba said. “The society acknowledges the outstanding graduating medical students and residents in the field of OB-GYN, and it has evolved to also serve as the alumni society for those who received their residency training at SMHS.”
The society was founded in 1937 to reward the outstanding students and residents in the field of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS). It has evolved to also serve as the Alumni Society for anyone who has trained at GW SMHS.
Following the Founders Lecture, Gaba and department leaders presented this year’s awards and inducted the society’s newest members.
The 2023 Oscar I. Dodek Jr. Faculty Teaching Award is presented annually to a faculty member who demonstrates outstanding teaching of residents and medical students, as well as a commitment to excellence in medical education. This year’s honor went to Instructors Sara Rahman, MD, and Joseph Bahng, MD.
Farnaz Farhi, MD, MSc, assistant professor of OB-GYN, received the annual Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics Excellence in Teaching Award. The award is voted on by the OB-GYN faculty to honor a colleague who has been instrumental in the education of residents and medical students.
Finally, the Class of 2023 student and resident inductees were announced. Honorees were selected based on their academic performance in the OB-GYN rotation, contribution to scholarly work and research, and commitment to service.
Kane-King Dodek Obstetrical Honor Society
- Lauryn Brown
- Katherine Bryan
- Graciela Caraballo
- Colleen Corrado
- Margaret Duval
- Andrea Neira Gesteira
- Christina Kallik
- Emma Keegan
- Sophia Khan
- Rebecca Kolodner
- Rachel Pelsang
- Maya Rao
- Alexandra Sjaarda
- Julie Thomasian
- Christopher Wend
- Elizabeth Wood
