Camilla P. Benbow, dean of Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of education and human development, has received the 2008 Distinguished Alumna Award from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
"The leadership and vision that you have demonstrated in your career are an inspiration and a source of great pride to Johns Hopkins," William Brody, president of Johns Hopkins, and James Miller, president of the university’s alumni association, wrote in a letter to Benbow announcing the award.
Benbow will deliver the commencement address at the Johns Hopkins School of Education May 22.
"We are extremely proud that Camilla has been recognized for her impressive record of accomplishments in the field of education and contributions to education nationwide," Ralph Fessler, dean of the Johns Hopkins School of Education, said. "She is a distinguished researcher, author and leader, and I can think of no one more deserving of this award."
"My experience at Johns Hopkins was deeply formative," Benbow said. "The themes of talent identification and development that I began to explore there as a student have continued to be the primary focus of my academic work, and they have provided a philosophical framework for my efforts in leading Peabody College. I feel greatly honored by this recognition."
Past recipients of the award have included Nobel Prize winner Peter Agre; acclaimed writer Russell Baker; actor John Astin; and world-renowned cardiologist Ben Carson.
Benbow earned her Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) from Johns Hopkins in 1981 and her Master of Science in Education in 1980. She also earned her B.A. (1977) and M.A. (1978), both in psychology, from the university.
Since 1998, she has led Peabody College, ranked as the No. 2 education school in the nation by U.S.News & World Report in its 2008 rankings. She was nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed by Congress as a member of the National Science Board, the advisory board for the National Science Foundation. Nationally recognized as an expert on giftedness and talent identification and cultivation, she recently served as co-chair of the president’s National Mathematics Advisory Panel. With husband and colleague David Lubinski, Benbow leads the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth, a 50-year study that began at Johns Hopkins in 1971 of 5,000 highly gifted children throughout their lifetimes.
For more information about Peabody College, visit http://peabody.vanderbilt.edu.
Media Contact: Melanie Moran, (615) 322-NEWS
melanie.moran@vanderbilt.edu