Bacro honored for use of educational
technology in teaching anatomy
The
American Association of Anatomists (AAA) presented the 2006 Basmajian
Award to Thierry Bacro, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of
Cell Biology and Anatomy during its annual meeting and awards banquet
April 4. The AAA award recognizes health science faculty who are in the
formative stages of their careers, teach human or veterinary gross
anatomy, can document excellence in their contribution to the teaching
of gross anatomy, and have outstanding accomplishments in biomedical
research or scholarship in education. 
Dr. Thierry Bacro,
left, accepts the award from Dr. Jeffrey Laitman, award chairman.Bacro is credited with integrating educational technology in anatomical sciences in creative and meaningful modalities. Robert Malcolm Jr., M.D., MUSC associate dean for continuing medical education, views Bacro as both a “superb teacher of human gross anatomy” and a “major innovator” in the development of web-based anatomy courses and testing of students’ knowledge.
Bacro serves as MUSC director of faculty development for web-based instruction and as course director for dental gross and neuroanatomy. In the former position, he assists faculty in integrating educational technology in their teaching. Bacro is also on the steering committee of the MUSC Apple Tree Society, a group of educators committed to improving their teaching by attending retreats, taking society-sponsored short courses, and attending seminars on teaching and learning.
As nominator and cell biology and anatomy co-faculty member Robert Ogilvie, Ph.D., noted, Bacro not only serves his institution well through his support of technological innovation and educational leadership, but he also has been a valuable “servant of education throughout the state of South Carolina by his effective collaborative interaction.”
Bacro is principal investigator on a U.S. Department of Education Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need project related to cell and neurobiology. This grant is designed to train Ph.D. candidates at MUSC to be effective anatomy teachers. He also leads the faculty development and mentoring component of a grant to integrate physician training and biomedical research in South Carolina and is developing the technology for a new graduate course on the biology of neurological and neuropsychiatric diseases.
Bacro received a degree in physical therapy from the Medical University of Lille in France and a bachelor’s in science in sports injuries from the University of Cape Town. After completing a master’s in exercise science at the University of South Carolina, he received his doctorate in developmental biology and anatomy from the USC School of Medicine in 1994.
Founded in 1888, the AAA is a professional society for biomedical researchers and educators focusing on anatomical form and function.
Friday, June 2, 2006
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