Faculty Assembly Announces Awardees
The LSU Health Sciences Center School of Medicine Faculty Assembly, in conjunction with Stephanie N. Taylor, MD and Maria Reinoso, MD, announced the winners of the 2026 Faculty Assembly Awards at the Spring General Faculty Meeting.
The awards recognize faculty contributions to the school’s mission in four areas: outstanding service to the institution, outstanding service to the community, outstanding junior faculty member, and outstanding mentor.
"The Faculty Assembly Awards recognize the vital contributions of our faculty and reflect the dedication and excellence acknowledged by their peers. We extend our sincere thanks to all nominees, to the nomination committee and the administration for their commitment to honoring outstanding faculty achievements," said Dr. Maria Reinoso, president of the Faculty Assembly.
SOM faculty nominate awardees. Recipients receive a plaque and an educational grant sponsored by the dean. The 2026 winners are:
Outstanding service to Institution: Suresh Alhari, PhD - Department of Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Experimental Therapeutics (also
nominated: Omeed Moaven, MD and James Riopelle, MD)
This award recognizes individuals who have made major, enduring contributions to the development of the SOM and who have advanced its mission. The award honors a faculty member who has demonstrated service to other members of the faculty for the common good of the institution.
Dr. Alahari currently serves on 12 different committees, including Faculty Senate, SOM Promotions and Tenure, Chancellor’s Excellence Awards, Institutional IRB, and Institutional IACUC. He served as both Secretary and President of the Faculty Senate, as well as President of the SOM Faculty Assembly. He has an extensive history of teaching at LSUHSC.
“Dr. Alahari has dedicated a significant amount of his time and effort to helping our institution be a better place for other faculty members.”
Outstanding junior faculty: Shelby MacRae, MD - Department of Medicine/Pulmonary and Critical Care (also nominated: Rachel Fiore, PhD; Sarah Garner, PT, PhD; Sara Karnes, MD; Friederike Klempin, PhD; and Rajani Maiya, PhD)
This award acknowledges the vitally important contributions of instructors and assistant professors within the first three years of their appointment and seeks to provide early recognition of significant contributions by an individual junior faculty member.
Dr. MacRae carries a full clinical workload and does so with a smile. She teaches extensively and won the 2026 Aesculapian Award for Teaching Excellence. Dr. MacRae won site designation for LSUHSC/UMC as a national Comprehensive Care Center for Bronchiectasis and Nontuberculous mycobacterial disease (Care Center Director) and is PI on multiple clinical trials. She was chosen to deliver the Clinical Year in Review lecture for bronchiectasis at the 2026 American Thoracic Society International Conference.
“Dr. MacRae is succeeding in her triple threat quest by providing high quality patient care, excellent teaching methods, and good research progress for her career start. Her professionalism is an inspiring example for learners at all levels, as well as her co-faculty. She truly represents the next generation of clinician-educator-clinical trialist at LSUHSC.”
Outstanding service to community: Scott Edwards, PhD - Department of Physiology (also nominated: Neeraj Jain, MD)
This award acknowledges selfless acts by an individual faculty member for the benefit of others served by either the SOM community and/or humanity in general. One of the primary missions of the SOM is to serve as a model of excellence in public and private medical care and in community-oriented programs. Because faculty are often the face of the SOM in these various venues for health care, this award seeks to recognize a faculty member who has enhanced the school’s reputation within the community through acts of generosity with their time and talent. These acts can include their participation in community service activities within or outside of their profession, or any other activities that promote the school’s mission within the community.
Dr. Edwards is Assistant Director for Training & Dissemination in the Alcohol & Drug Abuse Center of Excellence and is Director of the Information Dissemination Core in the NIH P60-funded Comprehensive Alcohol Research Center. He has incorporated alcohol use disorder (AUD)- and HIV-related cases into the annual Team Up curriculum and LSUHSC courses. Dr. Edwards contributes to education of youth on the risks of alcohol misuse, has worked to increase awareness among parents of the risks involved in underage drinking, and exposes high school students to research labs aimed at investigating the neurobiological and biological consequences of AUD.
“Dr. Edwards’ engagement with the community has contributed to establishing recognition and appreciation for the research conducted at LSUHSC. Dr. Edwards is universally regarded as a first-class citizen of the LSUHSC campus, SOM and School of Graduate Studies. He is a highly collaborative team player and is an invaluable contributor and citizen of the LSUHSC enterprise.”
Outstanding Mentor: Ludmila Belayev, MD - Professor of Neurosurgery, Neuroscience, and Neurology
This award honors individual faculty members who have helped build a supportive academic environment, providing a vital resource for student and faculty growth and success, and enhancing excellence in the SOM. Mentorship frequently determines success in the basic sciences or medicine, yet the special talents and skills of a mentor are rarely rewarded despite being essential for the progression and development of young students and faculty.
Dr. Belayev is an exceptional scientist, educator, and role model whose mentorship has profoundly shaped trainees across neurosurgery, neurology, and neuroscience. She leads a laboratory integrating behavioral neuroscience, imaging, lipidomics, and advanced stroke and brain injury models, providing trainees with broad, rigorous scientific training. Dr. Belayev has mentored 90 individuals, including PhD students, post-doctoral fellows, medical students, neurology and neurosurgery residents, clinical fellows, junior faculty (including K12 and K01 mentor and one early career R01 applicant), undergraduate students, and high school students.
“Dr. Belayev’s sustained mentoring efforts strengthen LSUHSC’s mission by building trust, improving understanding of disease and potential therapeutics, and commitment to inclusive, community‑responsive health sciences.”