RCMI Consortium National Conference 2024
Today we salute an extraordinary leader in biomedical research. Dr. Cecilia Shikuma is an Edwin C. Cadman Professor of Medicine and a Clinical Researcher at the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawai`i at Mānoa. With an extensive career of remarkable leadership and mentorship spanning over 25 years, Dr. Shikuma was nominated for this award by Dr. Hedges and myself and the entire Ola HAWAII team because she exemplifies the inclusive excellence of the Sidney A. McNairy Jr. Awards.
She is a dedicated RCMI research investigator with a focus on AIDS/HIV and has been the Principal Investigator of NIH funded U01s, P20, R01s, R21s and UG3 awards, and has received investigator-initiated research funding from Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology firms. She has published over 200 publications in high level refereed journal articles. She is deeply committed to team-driven and collaborative research and was instrumental in engaging investigators from the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus and the University of Hawai`i to investigate HIV complications.
As an outstanding senior investigator, she has been remarkably generous in mentorship and fostering the growth and development of the next generation of minority health and health disparities researchers.
A Hawaiian proverb that reflects her expansive status and dignity is, He pua no ka wēkiu. A blossom on the topmost branch.
The RCMI Consortium is pleased to present the Sidney A McNairy Jr. Award for Outstanding Senior Investigator to Dr. CS.