Details on the program for the 2025 Annual Meeting will be provided at a later date.
Awards to be Presented at the Annual Awards Banquet
Young Clinical Scientist Award
HUNTER MILLER, PH.D.
Dr. Hunter Miller spent his youth in rural Tennessee and became interested in science during middle school, with a “knack” for biology and physiology.
Dr. Miller attended Murray State University in Western Kentucky, earning a major in chemistry. His favorite courses were calculus, numerical analysis, biochemistry, and analytical chemistry.
In the spring of 2016, Hunter was accepted into the Interdisciplinary Program in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Louisville in the Pharmacology and Toxicology Department. He joined Dr. Hermann Frieboes’ laboratory and became involved in research projects related to mathematical modeling of cancer to evaluate the efficacy of nanotherapeutics.
The experience as a graduate research assistant and a postdoctoral fellow while working in this interdisciplinary bioengineering laboratory allowed Hunter to develop skills in computer programming, data analysis, cell culture, confocal microscopy, and mass spectometrybased metabolomics.
“In 2022, I learned about clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine as a postdoctoral fellow. I became interested in the field due to the data it generates and the vast potential for multivariable predictive modeling for improving patient care,” says Dr. Miller.
“As a first-year clinical chemistry fellow,” continued Dr. Miller, “I found the 2024 Association of Clinical Scientists meeting in Jacksonville, Florida an excellent opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals. I’m looking forward to the 2025 meeting!”
Dr. Miller has long-term research interests that involve developing and validating novel multiplex assays and building machine-learning approaches for clinical laboratory applications and biomarker discovery workflows. In particular, his interest is advancing the state of omics technology, such as mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance, towards clinical applications in cancer diagnostics and enhancing the clinical interpretability of machine-learning models in laboratory medicine.
F.W. Sunderman, Jr. Diploma of Honor
PETER C. HU, PH.D., DABCC, FACSc
Dr. Peter Hu has been a valuable member of ACS. He served as member of the Awards Committee (2011-2017), Credentials Committee (2011-2013), Nominating Committee (2014-2017), Chair of the Membership Committee (2014-2015), member of the
Executive Committee (2014- 2018), President (2015-2016), Past President’s Council (2018-Present), and was the Program Committee Chair for the 2018 annual meeting in Houston, TX.
Dr. Hu is currently the Associate Dean of Research and Strategic Initiatives in the School of Health Professions (SHP) at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX. He is also a Distinguished Teaching Professor with tenure and is the founding Director of the Molecular Genetic Technology and the Graduate Diagnostic Genetics Programs at MD Anderson. His research interests include cancer cytogenetics, tumor markers, and molecular diagnostics.
Dr. Hu holds three specialty clinical certifications in Molecular Biology, Cytogenetics, and Clinical Laboratory Science through the American Society for Clinical Pathology. He joined MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) in 1995 and has worked in both clinical and academic environments. Dr. Hu has published a combined total of more than 300 abstracts, manuscripts, and book chapters. For his efforts, he has received 40 recognitions and awards and he is a member of The University of Texas Kenneth I. Shine Academy of Health Science Education.
Professionally, he has served as President, Board of Directors, and other key leadership positions for various professional societies including Association of Clinical Scientists, National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Association for Genetic Technologists, and American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science. In addition, he has served as a clinical laboratory science programs inspector for the past 20 years and has inspected clinical laboratory science programs throughout the country and abroad. He is internationally recognized for his consulting work in Cuba, China, Qatar, and his recent efforts in Africa through MD Anderson’s Global Academic Programs. Dr. Hu regularly presents at state, national, and international conferences on topics ranging from clinical laboratory sciences to education.
Gold-Headed Cane Award
NINA TATEVIAN, M.D., PH.D., FACSc
Dr. Nina Tatevian is honored to be the recipient of the Association of Clinical Scientists (ACS) Gold Headed Cane Award in 2025. Dr. Tatevian has a long history with the ACS, starting in 1997 when she, as a pathology resident at Brown University, first presented a paper at the Annual Meeting and shortly thereafter became a member of ACS.
Over the years she presented numerous papers on pediatric and perinatal pathology topics at annual ACS meetings. She served ACS as Vice President in 2005, President in 2006, chaired the Membership Committee in 2005-2007, was a member of the of the Scientific Council from 2003 to 2012, and has been a member of the Executive Committee since 2008.
However, the most significant contribution Dr. Tatevian made to the ACS was her relentless work as the Editor-in-Chief of the Association’s journal, the Annals of Clinical and Laboratory Science. She started in 2011 and continued until June 2024, when she became the Senior Associate Editor, passing the “torch” to the younger generation. Dr. Tatevian was awarded by ACS in 2012 with the “Diploma of Honor” and honored in 2016 with title “Clinical Scientist of the Year.”
During her career she has worked as an Assistant Professor in the Pathology Department of Texas Children’s Hospital (Baylor College of Medicine), then Associate Professor, and later Professor in the Pathology Department of the University of Texas McGovern Medical School at Houston.
Nina is now Professor of Pathology in the Warren Alpert School of Medicine of Brown University. She is a very wellrespected clinician in the medical community. In addition to her very busy clinical practice, she mentors medical students, college students, residents, and fellows, earning numerous Teaching Excellence Awards. Many of her trainees graduated with prestigious fellowships and are now authorities in different pathology fields; Dr. Tatevian takes pride in their success! Last, but not least, Dr. Tatevian is an active member of the Society for Pediatric Pathology, having served on multiple committees for many years, as well as on the Board of Directors for three years. Over the years she actively participated in multiple research projects, was a coinvestigator in numerous grants, published over 50 papers, and presented over 100 abstracts at national and international meetings.
Clinical Scientist of the Year
PHILIP R. FOULIS, M.D., M.P.H., FACSc
Dr. Philip “Phil” Foulis is an anatomic and clinical pathologist with subspecialty certification in hematopathology and clinical informatics. He is a professor in the Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Morsani College of Medicine with appointments in the Department of Internal Medicine and College of Public Health. He received his MD degree from McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario Canada, and a residency at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He later received a master’s in public health in Epidemiology from the College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida.
Dr. Foulis’ practice is at the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa, Florida with an academic affiliation with the University of South Florida. Currently, a portion of his duties are as a member of the national deployment of a new electronic health record for the Veterans’ Health Administration in conjunction with the Department of Defense. His clinical duties include cytopathology, hematopathology, and medical informatics. He also teaches medical students, residents, fellows, and undergraduate students. His research activities include residents, fellows, and graduate students with an emphasis on big data in the evaluation of clinical care.
Dr. Foulis’ major academic and administrative interest has focused on informatics throughout his career. Currently, he is concentrating on human factors engineering, diagnostic error, and big data. He has published more than 290 presentations and publications. His research area of specialization emphasizes performance improvement in the clinical laboratory, large extant databases, text mining; knowledge discovery and natural language processing, human factors engineering, and lean principles. He is a member of local, regional, and national committees, intending to empower clinicians and patients to provide more effective, timely, and safe care. The goal of many of these endeavors emphasizes quality utilizing informatics. He is also active in the laboratory accreditation program of the College of American Pathologists.