Marvel-Dare Fellows Nutting Award

This award is named in honor of Marvel-Dare Fellows Nutting, who was the first woman to receive the Ph.D. in Biochemistry at the University of Rochester, June 1938. Her thesis, The Anti-Gonado Trophic Hormones in the Normal Blood Serum reflected the interests of Dr. Arthur Elden, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Dr. Willard Allen, Professor of Anatomy. Prior to beginning the Ph.D., she had worked with Professor Bloor, the first Chairman of Biochemistry and Dr. William McCann, Chair of the Department of Medicine. After time extending her thesis work, she took a position in Washington, DC as a Medical School faculty member, teaching biochemistry to students in the V-12 Program (an accelerated M.D. program designed to provide doctors for World War II).

In 1947, she began a career in the Department of Agriculture in California as an Associate Biochemist, with a focus on vitamins in vegetables, including frozen foods being developed at that time. A specific interest was Vitamin C in tomatoes and in this work she developed photometric and other technology for analysis. She headed a research group in food appraisal and statistics. An avid athlete she remained active in sports until her death in 2005.

She donated her hood from the 1938 graduation ceremony as her means of honoring women graduates in the Department of Biochemistry. In addition she has contributed funds to support the Nutting Student Travel Award as well as for the award associated with the Nutting Hood.

In 2004, at age 94 when the Nutting Hood Award was established, Dr. Nutting wrote: "Words are inadequate to express my deep and sincere feeling of awe and humbleness in this matter. I can only ask you to extend my great thanks to everyone involved in this unexpected honor with its further extension into other years. I am convinced my thanks are in no way equal to these happenings. They are from the bottom of my heart".

The hood is now preserved at the Edward G. Miner Library.

Award Recipients

• 2004 — Kefang Xie
• 2006 — Anshika Bajaj
• 2007 — Varuni Jamburuthugoda
• 2008 — Marie Rossi
• 2009 — Jennifer Newell
• 2010 — Melanie Preston
• 2011 — Tamara Caterino
• 2012 — Jennifer Gewandter
• 2013 — Karyn Schmidt
• 2015 — Brenda Cadiz-Rivera
• 2016 — Morgan Monaghan
• 2018 — Amber Cutter
• 2019 — Bronwyn Lucas
• 2020 — Hong Zhu
• 2022 — Lisa Houston
• 2023 — Arica VanderWal
• 2024 — Jessica Ciesla
• 2025 — Gloria Asantewaa
• 2026 — Madeline (Jensen) Washburn