Littlejohn Award presented to Naperville resident

Midwestern University recently bestowed its highest honor – the Littlejohn Award – upon Naperville resident Alejandro M. S. Mayer, Ph.D., M.S.Ed., at the annual Faculty and Staff Recognition Dinner. Dr. Mayer, a member of the University faculty since 1993, received one of three Littlejohn Awards. The awards are presented each year to one faculty member, one staff member, and one alumnus who best embody the qualities of service and commitment to the University.

Dr. Mayer, Professor of Pharmacology, currently teaches students studying osteopathic medicine at Midwestern's Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine (CCOM) and will also teach in the College of Dental Medicine-Illinois when it opens this fall. Dr. Mayer's research areas include marine antineuroinflammatory pharmacology and marine toxicology which explores the pharmaceutical potential of the enormous biodiversity of organisms present in the world's oceans. His contributions to this area of scientific research are highlighted for the general public at large at http://marinepharmacology.midwestern.edu/.

Dr. Mayer is an active member of the campus community serving as Chair of the Financial Aid Committee, Chair of the CCOM Scholarship Committee, and as the CCOM International Student Advisor. In addition, he is the course director for a 20-hour elective in Medical Spanish, which has been offered to medical, pharmacy and health science students since 1994. Dr. Mayer received the Littlejohn Award for his exceptional mentorship of Midwestern students and his many contributions to the University, which include the first two patents awarded to Midwestern University for his discovery of the marine anti-inflammatory Manzamines, compounds found in a marine sponge.

The Littlejohn Awards, established in 2000, are named after the three brothers – John Martin, James Buchanan, and David – who, in 1900, established the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern's founding college.