Awards & More: Several Pitt Faculty, Staff, Alumni Are Named 2012 New Pittsburgh Courier Men of Excellence

Issue Date: 
November 12, 2012

 

(Standing, from left, are Gregory Greene, David A. Young, Ervin Dyer, Morris E. Turner, Ricardo Williams, and Waverly Duck. Seated, from left, are William M. Carter, Linwood Mitchell, John R. Laymon, Robert L. Thompson, and Julius Lee Redd.)

Five University of Pittsburgh faculty and staff members—and eight Pitt alumni—have been named 2012 New Pittsburgh Courier Men of Excellence for their individual contributions to their professions as well as to the local community. A total of 50 honorees were recognized during the Courier’s Oct. 25 Men of Excellence Awards Reception in the Grand Ballroom of the Fairmont Pittsburgh hotel, Downtown. 

Pitt’s faculty and staff awardees follow. 

 William M. Carter, dean of Pitt’s School of Law, was honored in the category of education. Carter is the 19th dean of the law school. Widely respected for his scholarship on the 13th Amendment, constitutional law, international human rights law, and social justice issues, Carter is an award-winning teacher who has taught in the areas of constitutional law, civil procedure, political and civil rights, and litigation.

 Waverly Duck, an assistant professor in Pitt’s Department of Sociology, was honored in the category of education. Duck is widely regarded as an expert on poverty, race and gender relations, community order, and the drug trade. He teaches courses on social change, urban sociology, and race and the city. 

 Ervin Dyer, senior editor with Pitt Magazine in the University’s Office of Public Affairs, was honored in the category of communications. Dyer has covered news in Southwestern Pennsylvania as an award-winning journalist for more than 20 years. He earned a master’s degree in sociology from Pitt in 2011. 

 Robert L. Thompson, assistant professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences in Pitt’s School of Medicine, was honored in the category of health care. Thompson has practiced medicine in Southwestern Pennsylvania for more than 35 years. He earned a master’s degree in applied statistics and a Doctor of Medicine degree from Pitt in 1965 and 1973, respectively.  

 Morris E. Turner, assistant professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences in Pitt’s School of Medicine, also was honored in the category of health care. Turner has served as president of Magee Womens Hospital’s medical staff, medical director of Adagio Health, and chief of gynecological services at McKeesport Hospital, among other positions. He earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from Pitt in 1973.

 The following Pitt alumni were selected for the honor: Gregory Greene (A&S ’11G), supervisor, Allegheny County Juvenile Courts; John R. Laymon (KGSB ’78), president of JRL Enterprises Inc.; Lamar D. Lee Jr. (EDUC ’72, ’77G, ’99G), pastor, St. Mark AME Zion Church; Linwood Mitchell (BUS ’01), vice president, PNC Bank; Julius Lee Redd (EDUC ’68), retired administrator, Pittsburgh Public School District; Christophas Walker (UPB ’90, ’96G, ’03G), professor of public health and social work, Slippery Rock University; Ricardo J. Williams (CGS ’93), executive director, Homewood-Brushton YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh; and David A. Young (EDUC ’83), associate dean of academic affairs, Community College of Allegheny County.