Aug. 12, 2025 — The University of Florida College of Medicine congratulates the following students, trainees, faculty and staff who have recently been recognized with awards and achievements that honor their hard work and commitment to advancing scientific discovery, improving medical education and helping patients:

• Martina Murphy, M.D., the senior associate dean for graduate medical education and an associate professor in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, has been named a fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the world’s leading professional organization for those caring for people with cancer.
• Timothy W. Martin, M.D., M.B.A., a professor of anesthesiology and pediatrics, has been appointed by the American Board of Emergency Medicine as an item writer for the Health Care Administration, Leadership and Management examination.
• Juan M. Aranda, MD, FACC, a professor of medicine and chief of cardiovascular medicine, has been awarded the 2025 Heart Failure Society of America Distinguished Leadership Award. This prestigious national honor recognizes Aranda’s outstanding contributions to advancing heart failure research, clinical care and education.
• Ashley Norse, M.D., a professor at the College of Medicine – Jacksonville who serves as chair of operations and medical director for the Department of Emergency Medicine, has been installed as president of the Florida Medical Association. Norse’s one-year term will continue through next summer.
• Ramzi Salloum, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Health Outcomes and Bioinformatics, has been appointed to serve on the Science of Implementation in Health and Healthcare Study Section, or SIHH, a standing study section in the Center for Scientific Review at the National Institutes of Health. Salloum’s four-year term began earlier this month.
• The College of Medicine communications team was awarded a top-level Grand Gold award in the 2025 Council for Advancement and Support of Education Circle of Excellence Awards, for the campaign led by social media manager Danielle Ivanov, titled “Residency Reels Series: Elevating Visibility for UF College of Medicine.”
• Four teams of UF pre- and postdoctoral fellows have been selected to participate in the third two-year cohort of TICaRT, the only National Cancer Institute-funded T32 training program of its kind in the country. The trainees include College of Medicine doctoral candidates Kevon Jolly, Kyle Scheller, Lewis Alexander, Michael MacNair, Cali Love and Sadi Quinones-Al-Muhtaseb.
• Medical student Gopi Hiren Patel has been awarded a 2025 AΩACarolyn L. Kuckein Student Research Fellowship for her research on the clinical evaluation of the first-in-human trial of glioblastoma. The fellowship provides $5,000 to recipients for support as research is completed.
• Bryan Penberthy, M.F.A., an editor in the Department of Anesthesiology’s communications and publishing office, has earned the Medical Writer Certified credential. This distinction is offered by the Medical Writing Certification Commission in collaboration with the American Medical Writers Association and recognizes and distinguishes medical writing professionals who have demonstrated expertise in the field.
• At the 2025 meeting of the Society for Vascular Surgery in New Orleans, UF was one of only six institutions recognized with the inaugural Larry Kraiss Quality Award from the society’s Vascular Quality Initiative. Established to recognize hospitals consistently achieving the highest standards of patient care and quality improvement, the accolade honors institutions that have earned a three-star quality award — the highest bestowed by the initiative — for a minimum of eight consecutive years.
• Jennifer Co-Vu, M.D., an associate professor at the UF Health Congenital Heart Center, received the 2025 C. Richard Conti, MD, MACC, Gifted Teacher Award from the Florida chapter of the American College of Cardiology.
• Three second-year anesthesiology residents scored in the top 10% nationally on the June American Board of Anesthesiology BASIC Examination: Victor Adepoju, M.D., Dimitri Kampouris, M.D., and Rohan Patel, M.D. These high scores are a testament to the residents’ commitment to hard work and lifelong learning.

• Six College of Medicine faculty and staff members have been selected to participate in the 2025-26 UF Academy and Advanced Leadership for Academics and Professionals cohort: Carla Bredehoeft, M.S., the assistant director of program management for the Quality and Patient Safety initiative; Katherine Blackburn, MSPH, the assistant director of strategic research initiatives for the Office of Research; Anna Kukulka, R.N., B.S.N., CCRC, M.Ed., the assistant director of experimental therapeutics and cellular therapies at the UF Health Cancer Center; Natalie Ebner, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Neuroscience and Department of Psychology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Christina Cline, B.S.N., R.N., CCRC, the assistant director of clinical operations for the UF Health Cancer Center; and Tammy Bleeker, the assistant director of education administration for the Department of Anesthesiology.
• Two teams of UF Health Cancer Center researchers have been awarded pilot funding to use artificial intelligence to advance innovative cancer research. The AI pilots were supported by the Cancer AI Working Group, which aims to advance AI methods and applications in basic and translational cancer research, foster interdisciplinary collaboration and support early-career investigators.
• Erin Mobley, Ph.D., M.P.H., an assistant professor in the Department of Surgery at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville, has been named a 2025 Special Merit Award recipient by Conquer Cancer, the American Society of Clinical Oncology foundation.
• Ruchira Singh, M.D., FACOG, an associate professor at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville and chief of the Division of Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery, was selected as the recipient of the 2025 Faculty Enhancement Opportunity Award. These awards from the university are granted to faculty for development activities such as educational experiences, conferences and activities related to scholarly work. Singh began participating in Harvard Medical School’s health care transformation course in August.