Three Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies (CAAS) Postdoctoral Fellowship Alumni and current CAAS Assistant and Associate Professors, Drs. Treloar Padovano, Merrill , and Becker recently received prestigious awards in recognition of their research excellence, mentorship, and collaboration.

First, the Research Society on Alcoholism awarded Dr. Hayley Treloar Padovano the “RSA Early Career Investigator Award” which recognizes early career investigators who have demonstrated research excellence, potential to be a future leader, and a commitment to the field of alcohol. Dr. Treloar Padovano will be formally accepting the award during the RSA/ISBRA-2021 Closing Ceremony (being held virtually) on Wednesday, June 23, 2021. As part of the award, at the 2022 RA/ISBRA Conference, Dr. Treloar Padovano will also present a plenary talk.

Dr. Treloar Padovano is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior and Behavioral and Social Sciences. She is a clinical psychologist who seeks to understand factors underlying the progression from initial alcohol and other drug use to problem use to Substance Use Disorder. Her research currently focuses on pairing longitudinal bursts of ecological momentary assessment (EMA) with human laboratory assessments. Her current NIAAA funded K23 project is evaluating novel approaches to understanding how alcohol pathology develops in adolescents.

Second, Dr. Jennifer Merrill received an “Early Career Research Achievement Award” from Brown University in recognition of her high-impact research and fundamental discoveries as an accomplished Brown scholar. Recipients of this award will be celebrated during this spring’s 2021 virtual Celebration of Research taking place on Tuesday, May 18. Additionally, Dr. Merrill was selected as one of two faculty members to receive the 2021 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Mentoring in the School of Public Health. This annual award recognizes outstanding contributions in mentoring of undergraduate and graduate students to faculty leaders who demonstrate a commitment to excellence in mentoring that goes above and beyond the usual call of duty.

Merrill is an Associate Professor in the Department of Behavioral and Social Science, has received multiple federal grants for her research, and holds early career awards from the Research Society on Alcoholism and the American Psychological Association. Her research focuses on investigating the etiology and consequences of alcohol misuse among young adults. Her most recent awarded R01 is from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to study drinking patterns, proximal antecedents, and consequences of both high-intensity drinking and alcohol-induced blackouts among emerging adults.

Lastly, on Thursday, April 14^th, Dr. Sara Becker received the 2021 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research Collaboration from the Brown University School of Public Health. Nomination for this award requires, and is awarded to recognize, outstanding contributions in interdisciplinary collaborations with another division(s) or unit(s) within Brown University. Dr. Becker received this award in honor of her strong research collaborations across departments including Public Health, Emergency Medicine, and Psychiatry and Human Behavior.

Dr. Becker is an Associate Professor in the Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior and also serves as the Project Director/PI of the SAMHSA-funded New England Addiction Technology Transfer Center. Becker studies both dissemination and implementation strategies to increase the utilization of evidence-based treatment models and is currently MPI of a NIDA-funded R01 project evaluating strategies to implement motivational incentives, an evidence-based behavioral treatment, in 30 opioid treatment centers throughout New England.