We are proud to announce long-standing American Society for Nutrition (ASN) member and pioneer in the field of obesity research, Dr. George A. Bray and his wife, Marilyn M. Bray have worked with the ASNF to establish the Bray Outstanding Scientific Achievements Award in Obesity Research and the George Bray Obesity Research Student Award. These awards are being offered through their establishment of an Endowment with the Foundation.
Dr. Bray has been an active ASN member for over 50 years. He was recognized for his distinguished career in the Class of 1997 ASN Fellows.
Dr. Bray is a Boyd Professor Emeritus at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University. He has been at the forefront of advancing the field’s understanding of obesity since the 1970s. His leadership, expertise, and dedication to understanding the causes and biology of human obesity have informed public health policy and positively affected the quality of life for millions of people for decades now.
Dr. Bray completed undergraduate work at Brown University and earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He completed an internship at Johns Hopkins Hospital, served as a Research Associate at the National Institute of Health, and completed fellowships at the National Institute for Medical Research and the New England Medical Center.
Dr. Bray approached ASNF with the idea for this award, reflecting on his past experiences in the field of nutrition research. “Funding is one of the most challenging aspects of scientific work. We are pleased to work with ASNF to offer these annual awards in obesity research: one to honor a lifetime contribution to the field of obesity research, and two to students presenting obesity research at ASN’s annual meeting,” explained Dr. Bray.
The Bray Outstanding Scientific Achievements Award in Obesity Research is presented to a physician, clinician or investigator who has made a significant lifetime contribution to the field of obesity research. This award is designed to recognize an individual whose lifetime body of work includes meaningful contributions and/or demonstration of highly original, sustained, and reproducible scholarship that has made major contributions to the understanding of the causes, treatment and/or prevention of obesity.
The George Bray Obesity Research Student Award is awarded to two students with the highest-scoring poster/presentation in a topical area related to the causes, treatment or prevention of obesity at ASN’s annual meeting.
Applicants for these awards will be considered in late 2020. Presentation of these awards will be made beginning at Nutrition 2021 and every year thereafter. “We look forward to presenting these awards in the years to come, and we are so excited to know the recipients of our endowment are true leaders in obesity research,” said Dr. and Mrs. Bray. The Brays’ generous contribution to the ASNF Awards program works to further obesity research for years to come.
