STC V.E. Henderson Award

STC awards

BACKGROUND

The Henderson Award is given in the name of Dr. Velyien E. Henderson, a former Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Toronto. This award was inaugurated by Dr. John D. McColl, one of the six founding members of the Canadian Association for Research on Drugs (CARD). The Henderson award was originally given by Dr. McColl and his wife Pat, who was a niece of Dr. Henderson, but the Society now sponsors the Henderson Award.

PURPOSE

The award is designed to honour an individual who has made a significant contribution to the discipline of toxicology in Canada.

SELECTION

The suitability of each nominated candidate will be reviewed by the Awards Committee consisting of the Past President (Chair), one Councillor and other ordinary members of the Society nominated by the Past President as required. To ensure that the contribution of each candidate to the discipline of toxicology is appropriately assessed, at least one member of the Selection Committee must have a working knowledge of the area of toxicology in which the candidate is working. When, in the opinion of the Selection Committee, two or more candidates are equally qualified, consideration of their involvement with STC activities might be considered. The decision of the Selection Committee shall be final. Usually, only one award is made annually, but there have been two awards in a single year. However, there is no obligation or duty to make the award when, in the opinion of the Selection Committee, there is no qualified nominee. Once the Selection Committee has completed their deliberations, the Chairperson will report to the Board, who will in turn notify the successful nominee as appropriate. The Awardee will be asked to present a summary of his/her research during the Annual Symposium.

The Award takes the form of an engraved plaque plus a cheque for $500. The award will be presented at the President’s reception. The nominating member of the Society will be invited to introduce the recipient and announce the award. The President will present the award.

The nominating member will be asked to submit the text of the introduction to the Newsletter for publication.

ELIGIBILITY

  1. the candidate must be a Canadian citizen;
  2. the candidate must have less than 15 years experience since obtaining his/her highest degree as of July 1st of the year in which the award will be given;
  3. demonstrate their significant contributions to the field of toxicology;

NOMINATION PROCESS

Nominations must be made by one regular member of STC (i.e. the Sponsor), in good standing, but no member may nominate more than one candidate during any one year. Nominations must be accompanied by:

  1. A summary, not to exceed two pages, describing the nominee’s contribution to the science of toxicology. The summary should include specific examples and aspects that may not be evident from the CV. The summary should also highlight the nominee’s mentoring activities, formal or informal, such as supervision of undergraduate, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows; administrative and/or management responsibilities; support for new colleagues (including informal mentorship), involvement in outreach programs, etc.;
  2. Copies of no more than five manuscripts and other documents considered by the Sponsor to be pertinent to the award. Other documents could include policy briefs, technical reports, patents, proprietary submissions, subcontract reviews, etc. It is acknowledged that it may not be possible for the Sponsor to provide copies of proprietary information;
  3. The nominee’s CV and a brief biographical sketch suitable for press release.

Applications should be mailed to the STC mailing address by July 1st.

V.E. Henderson Award Winners

Marc-André Verner

Marc-André Verner, PhD

Université de Montréal

Marc-André Verner received his PhD from the Université du Québec à Montréal where he worked on physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling under the supervision of Sami Haddad. He pursued his studies at the postdoctoral level at the Karolinska Institutet under the supvervision of Gunnar Johanson, and subsequently at the Harvard Medical School under the supervision of Susan Korrick. His unique background in both toxicology and epidemiology led him to develop novel approaches to assess the health effects of chemicals in humans, namely through the use of PBPK models in longitudinal birth cohorts. As an Associate Professor at the Université de Montréal, he focuses on gestational and developmental exposures to environmental chemicals. He has several ongoing projects that touch on many aspects of developmental toxicology, namely environmental and biological monitoring of gestational exposure to contaminants, in vitro – in vivo extrapolation in the context of human health risk assessment, and environmental epidemiology.

In the past few years, he has been heavily involved in exposure assessment and determination of guidelines with regards to human exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). His expertise has been solicited by multiple agencies, including Health Canada, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). He was the only non-US member serving on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine committee on Guidance on PFAS Testing and Health Outcomes, which released its report in the Summer of 2022. Marc-André has been an active member of STC since 2007: to date, he and his students have given 4 talks and presented 14 posters at annual meetings.

2022

Marc André Verner
Université de Montréal

2021

Tara Barton McLaren
Health Canada

2020

Isabelle Plante
Centre Armand Frappier Santé Biotechnologie

2017-2019

No awardees

2016

Elaine Leslie
University of Alberta

2010-2015

No awardees

2011

Jason Matthews
University of Toronto

2010

Jayadev Raju
Health Canada, Ottawa

2008-2009

No awardees

2007

Louise Winn
Queen’s University

2005-2006

No awardees

2004

Daniel Cyr
INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier

2002-2003

No awardees

2001

David S. Riddick
University of Toronto

2000

Kannan Krishnan
Université de Montréal

1999

Gordon Kirby
University of Guelph

1998

Malle Jurima-Romet
Health Protection Branch, Ottawa

1997

Michel Charbonneau
INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier

1996

P. David Josephy
University of Guelph

1995

No awardees

1994

Thomas E. Massey
Queen’s University, Kingston

1989-1993

No awardees

1988

Larry W. Whitehous
Health Canada, Ottawa

1987

No awardees

1986

Anver D. Rahimtula
Memorial University, St. John’s

1985

No awardees

1984

Jerry F. Payne
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St. John’s

1983

Sam Kacew
University of Ottawa

1970-1982

No awardees

1969

Gabriel L. Plaa
Université de Montréal