Since 2000, when the award was expanded to recognize both scientific teaching and scientific research, four other USC faculty members have been honored for their research, including last year's recipient, chemistry professor John Baynes.

"I have had the privilege of interacting with many intelligent and dedicated people over the nearly 20 years I have been at USC," said Berger. "These include the students and staff within my laboratory, colleagues within the department of biological sciences and collaborators at USC and other institutions. This award is truly a tribute to these people, and I thank them for all they have added to my growth as a scientist."

The award cites Berger's research on colon cancer in particular, as well as his work as a scientist, teacher and scholar. Berger has written more than 80 peer-reviewed publications and trained more than 20 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. In 1990, he was a Fulbright fellow at the University of Lund, Sweden, and in 1999, he received USC's Educational Foundation Research Award for Science, Mathematics and Engineering.

"I believe Frank's success can be attributed to his tireless efforts in putting the right interdisciplinary team together to accomplish the goals," said Mary Anne Fitzpatrick, dean of USC's College of Arts and Sciences. "We are proud that Frank is a faculty member in the College of Arts and Sciences."

At USC, Berger has generated more than $15 million in extramural grant support for his research, including a COBRE grant from the National Institutes of Health to support USC's Center for Colon Cancer Research. He is director of the center and a former chairman of the department of biological sciences.

8/05