The ORS is pleased to announce the renaming of the Outstanding Achievement in Mentoring Award as the Farshid Guilak Outstanding Achievement in Mentoring Award. This is in recognition of Dr. Guilak’s vast contributions in helping musculoskeletal researchers to advance their careers.

Overview

This award celebrates the commitment of the outstanding mentors in the ORS community who promote the success of new investigators in the pursuit of independent orthopaedic research.

About the Award

The ORS Outstanding Achievement in Mentoring Award was created in 2014 to celebrate the commitment of the outstanding mentors in our community who promote the success of new investigators in the pursuit of independent orthopaedic research careers.

This award recognizes an ORS member who has shown exceptional achievement in mentorship and advocacy on behalf of new investigators in orthopaedic research. Awardees are honored for excellence in promoting scientific and professional development and the advancement to independent research careers of new investigators, who are of diverse personal and professional backgrounds. The award will be based on one nominating letter and two letters of support.

Mentorship is very broad and can apply to mentorship of trainees in a mentor’s research program and beyond, as well as faculty, throughout the whole range of orthopaedic research.

Dr. Farshid Guilak is the Mildred B. Simon Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Washington University and the Director of Research at Shriners Children’s in St. Louis.  He has been a dedicated and passionate mentor and has trained over 300 students and fellows throughout his career, a great many of whom are active members of the ORS and the orthopaedic research community.  He has received numerous mentoring awards, including the ORS Excellence in Mentoring Award.  He served on the ORS Board from 2012-2018, and as president of the ORS in 2017, he conceived and originated several major initiatives including creation of the ORS Sections and JOR Spine.  He also spearheaded the incorporation of “satellite” meetings into the ORS, such as the Philadelphia Spine Meeting, the Tendon Meeting, and the Musculoskeletal Biology Workshop, among many others.

His dedication to mentorship not only shapes the careers of individuals but also enriches the broader scientific community, ensuring the continued advancement of research and innovation.

In recognition of his significant contributions, the ORS renamed its Mentoring Award to “The Farshid Guilak ORS Outstanding Achievement in Mentoring Award,” underscoring his lasting impact on mentorship within the field. This is the only ORS award named after a living person.

Recognition

  • Commemorative plaque

The winner must be present at the ORS Annual Meeting to accept the award.

Eligibility

  • Nominee must be an ORS member* in good standing.
  • Must have obtained a PhD, MD, DO, DVM, DDM, DPT, DDS, or equivalent
  • Must have mentored research trainees at least 10 years past their terminal degree.

Selection Criteria

Nominees will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:

  • Training of researchers within the nominee’s research program
  • Mentorship of new orthopaedic investigators
  • Advocacy on behalf of new investigators in and beyond the nominee’s research program
  • Education and professional development of new orthopaedic investigators
  • Overall Impact (including research, teaching, diversity, and mentoring)

*Note: If you are not a member of the ORS, but would like to apply to be eligible for this award, visit our membership section of the website for an application. Thank you for your interest.

Nomination

Nomination packet must include:

  • Nomination Letter: The primary nomination letter summarizing the nominee’s contributions to mentoring will be submitted by an ORS member
  • Supporting Letters: Two letters describing the nominee’s contributions to mentoring (2 page limit per letter)
  • Nominee’s Full Curriculum Vitae (NIH Bio-sketches will not be accepted)
  • Nominee’s Training and Mentoring Record

Letters must detail why the nominee merits recognition as an outstanding mentor. Please clearly describe the nominee’s qualities as a mentor and the contributions he or she has made to the mentees’ careers.

Nominations Now Closed.

For more information, contact the ORS at [email protected].

2026 Farshid Guilak ORS Outstanding Achievement in Mentoring Award Recipient 

Deepak Vashishth, PhD
Co-Director, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute -Icahn School of Medicine Center for Engineering and Precision Medicine (CEPM)
Yamada Corporation Chaired Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Adjunct Professor, Department of Orthopedics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Professor Vashishth is a member of the RPI Leadership Team and directs an institute-wide research center designed to promote interdisciplinary research and education at the interface of science and engineering with a focus on medicine. In his role as the Co-Director of the CEPM, and previously as Director of the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS) at RPI, he expanded partnerships with medical schools and biopharmaceuticals to address global healthcare challenges in Alzheimer’s, Cancer, Diabetes, Precision and Regenerative Medicine, and, more recently, COVID-19. His work has been cited in the mainstream media as “Making Old Bones New,” “New Hope for Osteoporosis Patients,” and “Proving a Link between Alzheimer’s, Diabetes and Osteoporosis.” His research group, in collaboration with others, has identified new structural roles for bone proteins and developed new biomimicry-based strategies for tissue engineering scaffolds and advanced organoid design and development. He is currently leading a Women’s Health Initiative focused on reducing the risk for chronic diseases through better management of the menopausal transition.  He is the Yamada Corporation Chaired Professor at Rensselaer and directs the NIGMS predoctoral T32 program in the area of biomolecular science and engineering, with a strong emphasis on technology transfer and entrepreneurship. As co-PI, he also directed the NSF-funded I-site program at Rensselaer in collaboration with the Lally School of Management, which focuses on customer discovery to enhance the success of start-up companies in the United States.

Dr. Vashishth has mentored over 40 PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, and residents, many of whom have received distinguished and young investigator awards and have established successful careers in both academia and industry. Dr. Vashishth’s dedication to education and research is evident in his numerous awards, including the Class of 1951 Outstanding Teaching Award, the ASBMR Adele Boskey Award, the MNIT’s Professor P. Sirinivasan Memorial Award, the RPI’s William H. Wiley 1866 Distinguished Faculty Award, etc.

Professor Vashishth is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR), and the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES), and served as the ASBMR US Bone and Joint Ambassador. On behalf of professional societies, he regularly participates in advocacy at Capitol Hill and with the New York delegation to promote bone health and increased federal funding for science and Public Health research.