The Medical College of Wisconsin Honors Five with 2025 Distinguished Service Awards

The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) has recognized five individuals with 2025 Distinguished Service Awards, the institution’s highest faculty and staff honor. Recipients will officially receive recognition at MCW’s Faculty Awards and Honors Celebration on October 9.

Diane W. Braza, MD ’87, is professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) at MCW, where she served as chair from 2012 to 2024. She joined the faculty in 1992 and has been a driving force in advancing clinical care, research, and faculty development.

In 1995, Dr. Braza co-founded MCW SpineCare, the nation’s first program to integrate surgical and nonsurgical services for spine disorders. Under her leadership as co-medical director, SpineCare grew to national recognition and now provides more than 60,000 patient visits annually. She also expanded PM&R’s research enterprise, achieving the highest NIH funding levels in the department’s 75-year history, and oversaw the opening of the Bluemound Rehabilitation Clinic, a modern facility that expanded MCW’s rehabilitation footprint.

A committed mentor and advocate, Dr. Braza helped establish a faculty career development committee at MCW and has guided countless students, residents, and junior faculty. She has also played a leadership role on numerous institutional committees and faculty searches that shaped MCW’s future.

Nationally, Dr. Braza is a respected leader in her specialty. She is a past chair of the Association of Academic Physiatrists and currently serves as treasurer of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Joseph Carroll, PhD ’02, is the Richard O. Schultz, MD/Ruth Works Professor in Ophthalmology at MCW and co-director of the Dennis P. Han, MD Advanced Ocular Imaging Program (AOIP). He also holds professorships in biophysics, cell biology, neurobiology, and anatomy, and in the joint MCW/Marquette Department of Biomedical Engineering.

Since joining the faculty in 2006, Dr. Carroll has become a national leader in vision science. He co-founded the AOIP in 2008, which has secured more than $19 million in funding and established MCW as a center of excellence in adaptive optics and high-resolution retinal imaging. His research advances understanding of the human visual system, with major contributions to color vision, foveal development, and the diagnosis and management of retinal disease. He has authored more than 250 peer-reviewed publications with over 14,000 citations and an h-index of 68.

Dr. Carroll has also made significant contributions to education, co-directing MCW’s translational research concentrations and mentoring dozens of undergraduate, medical, and graduate students who have gone on to successful research careers.

He currently serves as editor-in-chief of Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, the field’s leading journal, and has served on multiple NIH study sections and journal editorial boards.

April A. Haverty, MPE, JD has served as director of MCW’s Grants and Contracts Office (GCO) since 2005. She leads a team of professionals responsible for reviewing and submitting all applications to extramural funding agencies, collaborating with virtually every MCW department, center, and institute as well as with Froedtert Hospital, Children’s Wisconsin, and the Zablocki VA Medical Center.

Haverty has played a critical role in advancing MCW’s research mission through effective and compliant grants management. She oversaw the surge of grant activity during the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, ensuring MCW met new accountability requirements while successfully securing significant funding. She also guided the implementation of the federal Office of Management and Budget’s uniform guidance, leading the creation of 30 institutional policies to align MCW with national standards.

Nationally, Haverty strengthened MCW’s visibility by successfully advocating for membership in the Council on Governmental Relations, the leading authority on federal research policy. She also has contributed to MCW’s strategic initiatives through the Research Culture Workgroup, focused on improving the institutional environment for research.

In 2022, Haverty was honored with MCW’s Professionalism Enrichment Award for exemplifying excellence, respect, and collaboration in advancing the institution’s mission.

David Hotchkiss is vice president of information services and chief information officer (CIO) at MCW, a role he has held since 2012. He leads more than 100 information services staff and is responsible for enterprise IT strategy, infrastructure, and security.

Under his leadership, information technology has evolved from a support function to a strategic driver of institutional excellence. He established MCW’s first Research Computing Center, advanced large-scale computing and storage capabilities to support the research mission, deployed Microsoft 365 and OneLogin, and implemented MCW’s first electronic lab notebook system. His forward-thinking hybrid cloud strategy and AI governance initiatives continue to position MCW at the forefront of innovation.

Hotchkiss has been a trusted partner to Froedtert Health and Inception Health, aligning technology strategies across the academic medical center. During the COVID-19 pandemic, his team enabled a fully remote workforce in under two weeks, launched telepsychiatry within 48 hours, and transitioned the medical school curriculum online.

Nationally, Hotchkiss served as chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges’ Group on Information Resources and sits on the WiscNet board of directors. In 2024, he was honored as the Wisconsin Orbie Enterprise CIO of the Year. His leadership continues to strengthen MCW’s mission through innovation, collaboration, and service.

Hershel Raff, PhD, FAAAS, FAPS is a professor of medicine and physiology at MCW, and a member of the Cardiovascular Research Center and Office of Medical Education. He joined MCW in 1983 and has since become one of the institution’s most impactful educators, scientists, and leaders.

An internationally recognized authority in adrenal and pituitary physiology, Dr. Raff has authored 12 widely used medical physiology textbooks and numerous influential articles, book chapters, and clinical guidelines. His translational research has advanced endocrine diagnostics, most notably through the development of late-night salivary cortisol testing, now a standard tool for diagnosing Cushing’s syndrome.

A master educator, Dr. Raff has taught more than 10,000 learners across medicine, pharmacy, and graduate programs. He is a six-time recipient of the Harry Beckman Basic Science Teaching Award and was inducted into MCW’s Society of Teaching Scholars and the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. He has helped shape every major iteration of MCW’s curriculum and continues to bridge basic and clinical sciences as co-director of Phase 3 of the MCWfusion Curriculum.

Nationally, he has held leadership roles in the Endocrine Society and American Physiological Society, served on editorial boards of leading journals, and was elected a Fellow of both the AAAS and APS.