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Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals

NIH Researchers Recognized for Service to America

Posted on by Dr. Francis Collins

Steve Rosenberg

Caption: Steve Rosenberg receiving his Sammie as 2015 Federal Employee of the Year.
Credit: Aaron Clamage/clamagephoto.com

It was a pleasure for me last night to attend the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals, also known as “the Sammies.” This Washington, D.C. event, now in its 12th year as the “Oscars of American government service,” was a big night for NIH. Steven Rosenberg, a highly regarded physician-scientist at NIH’s National Cancer Institute (NCI), took home the evening’s highest honor as the 2015 Federal Employee of the Year.

Also hearing their names called were NCI’s Jean Claude Zenklusen and Carolyn Hutter of NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). They received the inaugural People’s Choice Award. It marks the highest vote-getter from the general public, which was invited to choose from among this year’s 30 finalists in eight award categories.

Jean Claude Zenklusen and Carolyn Hutter

Caption: Francis Collins presenting 2015 People’s Choice Award medals to Jean Claude Zenklusen and Carolyn Hutter.
Credit: Aaron Clamage/clamagephoto.com