The American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics elected Barbara Levey president for 2003-'04. Levey is assistant vice chancellor for biomedical affairs and an adjunct professor of both medicine and molecular and medical pharmacology. Levey was one of the first physicians in the nation to become board-certified in clinical pharmacology.... Jason Cong, professor in the Department of Computer Science, was selected as the recipient of the Semiconductor Research Corporation's Technical Excellence award for 2000. Cong's work has significantly enhanced the productivity of the U.S. semiconductor industry. He received $5,000 in recognition of his achievements.

The American Anthropological Association honored Alessandro Duranti with the AAA/Mayfield Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. In addition to teaching, he co-directs the UCLA Center for Language, Interaction and Culture. His popular undergraduate course, "Culture and Communication," wins rave reviews from students and has doubled its enrollment since 1988.... David H. Solomon, professor emeritus of the Department of Medicine's Division of Geriatrics, will receive the John Phillips Memorial Award from the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine. The award recognizes outstanding work in clinical medicine.... Eli Yablonovitch, electrical engineering professor, was awarded the 2001 Julius Springer Prize for Applied Physics for his work on photonic crystals. The prize is awarded annually by the Springer-Verlag publishing company to scientists who have made an outstanding and innovative contribution to the field of applied physics.

Edward R.B. McCabe, professor and executive chair of the Department of Pediatrics, was elected president of the Western Society of Pediatric Research, a regional organization that encourages basic and clinical research relevant to pediatric disease. He is physician-in-chief of the Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA and also serves as president of the American College of Medical Genetics, chairperson of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetic Testing and a member of the Institute of Medicine.... Assistant Registrar Clifford A. Ramirez was elected president of the Pacific Association of Collegiate Registrars & Admissions Officers, an association dedicated to professional development in the western United States, Alaska, Hawaii and western Canada. He will serve this year as president-elect and will assume the top post in 2003.

Leslie P. Dornfeld, 64, a masterful teacher who won six major outstanding teaching awards from the Department of Medicine, died March 22 in New York City at the age of 64 from pancreatic cancer. Born in Patterson, N.J., he received his B.A. from Rutgers University in 1959 and his M.D. from George Washington Medical School in 1963. In 1966, he served as a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy and chief of medicine at a military hospital for the First Marine Division in Vietnam. In 1968, he joined the UCLA Medical Center as a Clinical Research Fellow in rheumatology and nephrology. Dornfeld, clinical professor of medicine emeritus, was a gifted, inspiring and dynamic teacher, according to his colleagues. He was selected as outstanding teacher of the year in the Department of Medicine four times and outstanding clinical faculty teacher of the year twice. He also received the Chief Resident’s Senior Faculty Award in 1998.