Stanford
Office of Faculty Development, Diversity and Engagement

Faculty Women's Forum Awards

The Faculty Women's Forum recognizes outstanding contributions to promoting greater faculty equity, inclusion, and success by honoring individuals in six categories. Read about the 2023 award recipients.

Inspiring Early Academic Career Award

This award recognizes an assistant professor who creates a culture of inclusion and belonging for students and trainees at all levels.

  • Patricia Alessandrini, assistant professor of music, School of Humanities and Sciences
  • Rabia Belt, associate professor of law, associate professor, by courtesy, of history
  • Usha Iyer, assistant professor of art and art history, School of Humanities and Sciences
  • Irene Lo, assistant professor of management science and engineering, School of Engineering
  • Lisa Goldman Rosas, assistant professor of epidemiology and population health, of medicine, and, by courtesy, of pediatrics, School of Medicine
  • Ashley Elizabeth Martin, associate professor of organizational behavior, Graduate School of Business
  • Petra Persson, assistant professor of economics, School of Humanities and Sciences
  • Molly Schumer, assistant professor of biology, School of Humanities and Sciences
  • Gabrielle Wong-Parodi, assistant professor of Earth systems science, Doerr School of Sustainability

Outstanding Leader Award

Recognizes a faculty member who leads a Stanford department, school, or independent laboratory, center, or institute, who has an outstanding record of developing a culture of inclusion and promotion of women faculty.

  • Melissa Bondy, Stanford Medicine Discovery Professor, professor of epidemiology and population health and, by courtesy, of pediatrics, School of Medicine
  • Risa Wechsler, director, Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC) and professor of physics and of particle physics and astrophysics, School of Humanities & Sciences
  • Joseph Woo, Norman E. Shumway Professor, professor of cardiothoracic surgery and, by courtesy, of bioengineering, School of Medicine

Outstanding Mentor Award

This award recognizes a faculty member with a strong track record of promoting and sponsoring women faculty members and/or faculty from groups historically underrepresented at Stanford.

  • Arden Morris, professor of surgery (general surgery) and, by courtesy, of health policy surgery, School of Medicine
  • Upinder “Upi” Singh, Stanford Medicine Professor of Infectious Disease and professor of medicine (infectious diseases & geographic medicine) and of microbiology and immunology, School of Medicine
  • Shirin Sinnar, William W. and Gertrude H. Sunders Professor of Law, School of Law

Carol Muller Award

Named after retired executive director of Stanford WISE Ventures, this award recognizes a staff person who has made significant contributions in service to gender equity at Stanford.

  • Cathy Garzio, vice chair and director of Finance and Administration, School of Medicine

Deborah Rhode Lifetime Achievement Award

Named after an amazing and fierce advocate for gender equity in the academy, this award honors Professor Rhode’s legacy by recognizing individuals who have dedicated their careers and used their influence to advance the status of academic women at Stanford.

  • Persis Drell, provost, James and Anna Marie Spilker Professor and Professor in the School of Engineering, professor of materials science and engineering and of physics
  • Kathryn “Kam” Moler, vice provost and dean of research, Marvin Chodorow Professor and Professor of Applied Physics, of physics and of energy science engineering, School of Humanities & Sciences

Read about the 2022 award recipients.

FWF Inspiring Early Academic Career Award

This award honors a pre-tenure faculty member or academic staff member (e.g., assistant professor, associate professor not yet tenured, lecturer, instructor, research associate) who creates a culture of inclusion and belonging for students and trainees at all levels. 

2022 Recipients

  • Grace Gao
  • Danielle Mai
  • Lauren O'Connell
  • Celina Yong

2021 Recipients

  • Marci Kwon
  • Sonia Tikoo-Schantz
  • Lauren Tompkins

FWF Allyship Award

This award recognizes a faculty member with a strong track record of advancing an academic culture that supports equity and inclusion at Stanford, with particular positive impact for women faculty members and/or those from groups historically underrepresented at Stanford University. Past recipients were recognized for their actions in support of others to promote inclusive academic cultures through mentoring, advising, and advocacy.

2022 Recipients

  • Allison Okamura
  • Holly Tabor
  • Nancy Ewen Wang

2021 Recipients

  • Cybele Renault
  • Joy Wu

FWF Outstanding Sponsor Award

This award is for a faculty member who has consistently created opportunities for the academic advancement of women at Stanford. In contrast to the FWF Outstanding Leader Award, the FWF Outstanding Sponsor Award recognizes an individual without an explicit positional leadership role at Stanford who promotes and sponsors Stanford women students, postdoctoral fellows, research staff, and/or faculty for opportunities and advancement. Past recipients were recognized for their advocacy for diversity and inclusion and their demonstrated commitment to expanding opportunities and supporting the career advancement of others.

2022 Recipients

  • Glenn Chertow
  • Gretchen Daily

2021 Recipients

  • Maya Rossin-Slater
  • Sheri Sheppard

2020 Recipient

  • Rebecca Aslakson

FWF Outstanding Leader Award

This award recognizes a faculty member who leads a Stanford department, school or independent laboratory, center, or institute with an outstanding record of developing a culture of inclusion and promotion of women faculty. Past recipients were recognized for engaging from a position of formal leadership in actions that advanced gender equity, including changes to policies and practices, in their department/school and across the university.

2022 Recipients

  • Martha Cyert
  • Jennifer Cochran

2021 Recipients

  • Shelley Correll
  • Sarah Soule

2020 Recipient

  • Jisha Menon

FWF Deborah Rhode Lifetime Achievement Award

The Faculty Women's Forum, Stanford University and the academic community lost an outstanding and fierce advocate for gender equity in the academy in early 2021. The FWF honors Professor Rhode's legacy with a Lifetime Achievement Award to recognize individuals who have dedicated their careers and used their influence to advance the status of academic women at Stanford University. 

2022 Recipients

  • Margot Gerritsen 
  • Sheri Sheppard
  • Sylvia Yanagisako

2021 Recipients

  • Iris Litt
  • Hazel Markus
  • Pamela Matson
  • Cecilia Ridgeway
  • Myra Strober
  • Hannah Valantine

FWF Carol Muller Outstanding Service Award

Named after the retired executive director of Stanford WISE Ventures, this award honors an individual who has made significant contributions in service to gender equity at Stanford University.

2022 Recipient

  • Magali Fassiotto

2021 Recipient

  • Carol Muller

History of the Faculty Women's Forum Awards

The FWF Steering Committee launched its inaugural awards program in 2020, recognizing two faculty members with the FWF Outstanding Sponsor Award and the FWF Outstanding Leader Award in a virtual celebration in early June 2020. Read more about the inaugural awards.

In 2021, the Steering Committee added four more awards; the winners were announced on June 10, followed by a virtual celebration on June 14.