Network Amherst: The Lehrer Report

By Phyllis Lehrer

Published on September 28, 2007

David Kroodsma, of Amherst, completed his cross country Ride for Climate in San Francisco last week, where he and the Marin County Bike Coalition rode across the Golden Gate Bridge. During the 5,088-mile trek, he gave more than 45 public talks at schools, churches and community centers, met with town and energy officials and had more than 50 radio, television and newspaper interviews in the quest to educate the public about global warming.

"This has been an incredible amount of work and an amazingly worthwhile experience. We want to thank our volunteers, supporters and sponsors. This was a team effort," he wrote on the Web site RideforClimate.com.

* * *

Natasha Wanninger, of Germany, the granddaughter of Nina and Jim Scott, of Amherst, was an intern at the Dickinson Museum this summer. She is enrolled at the University of Munich.

* * *

Qingling Zhang, of Amherst, was initiated into Phi Kappa Phi at the University of Massachusetts, where he is doing his Ph.D. in the polymer science and engineering department. Phi Kappa Phi is the nation's oldest, largest and most selective all-discipline honor society.

* * *

University of Massachusetts microbiology professor Dr. Elizabeth Stuart was honored as a Woman of Distinction by the Girl Scouts of Montachusett Council Inc. She was nominated by students and faculty in her department for her exceptional dedication to her profession, exceeding the expectations of her position, being an inspiration to her co-workers and students, and making contributions to her community.

She was one of 27 selected by the council for personifying the qualities of the Girl Scout experience: having strong values, social conscience and conviction about the potential and self-worth of every girl.

She is director of chlamydia research and vaccine development at the university. Her numerous scientific achievements in infectious disease research includes her pioneering work on a chlamydia vaccine candidate and five patents on novel technology. She has published in leading scientific journals and is establishing important correlations between chlamydia infections and chronic human disease such as atherosclerosis and asthma. Throughout her career, she has enjoyed mentoring many young women in their pursuit of scientific careers. She attributes her success to advice and mentoring she received from other women scientists when she began her studies at Wellesley College.

* * *

Charri Boykin-East, of Amherst, reported that her daughters are both doing well. Renee is the assistant director of Goodwill Industries for Connecticut. She is in charge of residential housing for the state. Ravan is a paraprofessional at the Rebecca Johnson School in Springfield and on her way to becoming a teacher. Both are UMass grads.

Karen Smith, who works for Dr. Katherine Atkinson in Amherst, passed the American Association of Medical Assistant's certified medical assistant certification recertification exam. She is a graduate of Sanford Brown Institute in Springfield.