October 24, 2023
Presented by President Joe Biden, this prestigious award recognizes Dr. Akil’s outstanding contributions to the “physical, biological, mathematical, engineering, or social and behavioral sciences, in service to the Nation.”
At the ceremony, Dr. Akil was praised for her dedication to advancing the field of neuroscience and her tireless efforts to help those with addiction and mental illness. Her work has led to breakthroughs in understanding how the brain works and has opened new avenues for treating these conditions. Her work also played a crucial role in combatting our nation’s opioid epidemic.
Dr. Akil is currently the Gardner C. Quarton Distinguished University Professor of Neurosciences, an MNI Research Professor, and a Professor of Psychiatry. She has spent most of her career at U-M building a wide-ranging research program with her scientific partner and husband, Stanley Watson, M.D., Ph.D., the Ralph Waldo Gerard Professor of Neurosciences, an MNI research professor, and professor of Psychiatry. Together, Drs. Akil and Watson led the Michigan Neuroscience Institute and its predecessor unit, the Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute, for 26 years.