Farel and King selected for School’s Greenberg and Barr awards

Farel, recipient of the Greenberg Alumni Endowment Award for Excellence in teaching, research and service, and King, selected for the Barr Distinguished Alumni Award for achievements and contributions to the field of public health, will be honored at the School’s annual Fred T. Foard Jr. Memorial Lecture at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, at the William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education.

The Greenberg Award

Dr. Anita Farel

Farel, clinical professor and associate chair for graduate studies in the Department of Maternal and Child Health, received a DrPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1979 and joined the maternal and child health faculty in 1984.

Her public health career has focused on children and adolescents, particularly those with disabilities, and their families. Colleagues praise her research and impact on the profession, as well as her extensive and collaborative service to the department and the School. Faculty and students alike say that her warmth, compassion and strong teaching and mentoring skills are an inspiration.

“She truly is a professional who utilizes research to facilitate systems change for some of our most undeserved populations,” said Stephen R. Hooper, PhD, UNC professor of psychiatry, psychology and education.”

“Without fail, Anita’s commitment to teaching and advising has benefited hundreds of students over the years and served as a model of engaged scholarship for junior faculty for whom she has served as both mentor and colleague, said Herbert Peterson, MD, chair of the Department of Maternal and Child Health.

The Greenberg Award was established by the School of Public Health Alumni Association to honor Dr. Bernard G. Greenberg, founder and chair of the Department of Biostatistics from 1949 to 1972 and dean of the School from 1972 to1982. The award is given annually to an outstanding full-time faculty member for excellence in the areas of teaching, research and service. Special consideration is given to candidates who have seamlessly integrated these areas of focus. A major criterion is continuous demonstrated excellence over a number of years in service to the broader public health community. The award currently includes a cash prize of $12,000 per year for three years.

The Barr Award

Dr. Rebecca King

King, chief of the Oral Health Section of the Division of Public Health in the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, received a DDS from UNC in 1977 and an MPH from the UNC School of Public Health in 1987.

In 1977, she began her long and successful career with the state of North Carolina as a public health dentist in Chatham, Lee and Harnett counties. “During her 13 years in this field position, she saw firsthand the impact of dental disease on our state’s children, says C. Jean Spratt, DDS, MPH, in her letter nominating King for the Barr Award. “As a result, she developed an understanding, commitment and compassion that color her approach to her work to this day.”

Subsequently, King held positions of increasing responsibility with the Division of Dental Health and the Oral Health Section of the N.C. Division of Public Health. In her current position, she is responsible for dental public health throughout the state and directs the division’s dental public health residency program, which provides specialty training for one or two dental public health residents each year who have DDS and MPH degrees.

Under her leadership, the state studied tooth decay rates of N.C. children entering kindergarten and has significantly increased the preventive dental services available at a high risk for dental decay. She has collaborated on grants that have evolved into the nationally recognized Into the Mouths of Babes, a program of physician-provided preventive dental services for Medicaid recipients age 3 and younger.

Gary Rozier, DDS, professor of health policy and management at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, added, “Her collaboration with the School can hardly be matched by anyone else in state government. Her support of research that fully integrates the academic and proactive communities is having a major impact on the health of the state’s population and in developing models for other states.”

Established in 1975, the Barr Award recognizes the achievements of alumni and their contributions to public health. For many years, the alumni award has carried the name of its 1980 recipient — Harriet Hylton Barr — to honor her contributions to the field, which continue to this day. The Barr Award recognizes leadership, experimentation, collaboration and innovation within the profession; impact within the practice arena; and outstanding service beyond the requirements of the recipient’s employment.

UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health contact: Ramona DuBose, director of communications, (919) 966-7467 or ramona_dubose@unc.edu.