Sally Moody, PhD, Professor Emerita of Anatomy and Cell Biology at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, was among 10 prominent scientists from across the country to be elected to the Society for Developmental Biology Academy recently. Moody and her fellow awardees were selected based on their sustained contributions to developmental biology through excellence in professional activities including research, mentoring, teaching, and training, coupled with a record of engagement with and/or service to the Society.
For more than 90 years the Society for Developmental Biology has worked to advance the study of developmental biology and related disciplines, fostering, supporting, and offering a forum for investigators as they advance the public’s understanding of developmental biology and related disciplines.
This fall, Moody received the 2023 David Bixler Distinguished Scientist Award from the Society for Craniofacial Genetics and Developmental Biology (SCGDB), for her extensive contributions to the field of craniofacial development, as well as her service to the society. This award, named in honor of the first SCGDB president, is the society’s highest scientific honor and was created to recognize long-term distinguished leadership and meritorious contributions to the craniofacial sciences by a senior-level member.
She served as the society’s vice president (2016-18), president (2018-20), and immediate past president (2020-22), leading the organization through the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuring the continuation of the society’s 43rd and 44th annual meetings by a virtual format.
Moody received her award and delivered a plenary lecture at the 46th Annual SCGDB Meeting at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in October 2023.
Moody also earned the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Xenopus Board (IXB) at the International Xenopus Conference held in Cambridge MD in August 2023. Since 1984 the board, which was formally incorporated in 2015, has hosted biennial forum for investigators using Xenopus, a species of aquatic frogs native to sub-Saharan Africa, for biomedical research primarily in the areas of molecular biology, developmental biology, cell signaling, neurobiology, cell cycle and understanding the molecular basis of human disease. Moody was honored for her scientific contributions as well as leadership as Director of the “Cell and Developmental Biology of Xenopus” advanced course at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Treasurer of the IXB (2015-2023), chair of numerous Xenopus special review and scientific advisory panels, chair of the External advisory committee of the National Xenopus Resource, editor of several special issues focused on Xenopus research and co-editor of the 2022 book: “Xenopus, From Basic Biology to Disease Models in the Genomic Era.”
