Research Rising Star Award

Purpose
The Research Rising Star Award is presented annually to a Department of Medical Imaging Faculty member who, within 10 years of their initial faculty appointment, has demonstrated exceptional excellence in research at a local and/or national level.

Award
This award will be presented annually to one recipient. If there are no nominations by the deadline or the candidates do not meet the standard of excellence required for this award, it will not be given that year.

The award recipient will be notified directly and receive a framed certificate.

Criteria and Nomination Process
The recipient of this award must have a full-time, primary appointment in the Department of Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto. Faculty are only eligible to receive this award within 10 years from their initial appointment date; self-nominations are not permitted. Faculty members will only be eligible to receive this award one time.

The recipient of this award must be nominated by at least one full-time faculty member in the Department of Medical Imaging. After the nomination period has closed, eligible candidates, will be requested to provide: 

  • List of 5 most impactful/significant publications over the past 10 years
  • Up-to-date CV
  • Brief statement highlighting research accomplishments to date (250 words)

Nominees who do not submit the above will not be considered for this award.

Selection Process
This award will be adjudicated by a committee chaired by a designated faculty member in the Department of Medical Imaging.

When selecting the recipient, the following criteria will be used to evaluate the candidate's research potential:  

  • novelty, originality, and new concepts in research work; advancement of knowledge; 
  • impact of research on clinical practice;
  • strong publication record; peer-reviewed grants; local or national recognition as supported by awards, participation in local and national research networks, invited lectures, editorial boards.

H index and total number of citations may also be considered.

2021-2022 Awardees

Photograph of Dr. Kate Hanneman

Dr. Kate Hanneman

Dr. Kate Hanneman is a Cardiothoracic Imaging Radiologist at the Joint Department of Medical Imaging (JDMI) and an Associate Professor within the Department of Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto. Dr. Hanneman is also the Site Director at Women’s College Hospital and the Director of Cardiac Imaging Research at JDMI. 

Since joining the department in 2015, Dr. Hanneman has established herself as a Research Rising Star; she has an h-index of 19 with 91 documents and 1160 citations. Dr. Hanneman has built a reputation for herself nationally and internationally by advancing the knowledge in cardiac imaging. Dr. Hanneman’s principal research interests relate to evaluation of the clinical utility of new cardiovascular imaging techniques and the use of cardiac MRI to improve the outcomes of patients with cardiomyopathies. 

Photograph of Dr. Pejman Maralani

Dr. Pejman Maralani

Dr. Pejman Maralani is a Neuroradiologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and an Associate Professor within the Department of Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto. Dr. Maralani is also an Affiliate Scientist at the Sunnybrook Research Institute and a member of the Sunnybrook Research Ethics Board. Dr. Maralani has recently stepped down as Neuroradiology Residency Program Director after a successful tenure and has recently been named the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2022 William R. Eyler Editorial Fellow. 

Since joining the department in 2013, Dr. Maralani has established himself as a Research Rising Star; he has an h-index of 20 with 66 documents and 1143 citations. Dr. Maralani’s primary research activities focus on different applications of advanced MRI techniques in neuro-oncology, particularly in the prediction of outcome for brain and spine tumors.