Montgomery Serves Awards 2020

---

Roscoe R. Nix Distinguished Community Service Award 

Honoring extraordinary contributions to the quality of our community

 

Winston Anderson, Ph.D.

Through his work as a scientist and activist, Dr. Winston Anderson has driven change and provided representation for African Americans and minorities. His work has informed all groups about the advantages of cross-cultural communication and diversity, as expressed through history, the arts, and the humanities. 

 

Dr. Winston Anderson was raised in rural Jamaica and immigrated to the United States at age 17. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in zoology from Howard University and a doctorate in biomedical sciences from Brown University. Following postdoctoral work, Dr. Anderson became an assistant professor at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Medicine. In 1975, he was appointed chair of the Howard University Department of Zoology and served in that position until 1983. He remained on the faculty as a professor of biomedical science.  

Beginning in 1977, and for the next decade, Dr. Anderson directed the Life Science Careers for Minority High School Students in the United States, which provided summer research opportunities throughout the country.  In 2006, with a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Dr. Anderson started the Howard Hughes Medical Research Scholars program, which selected talented science and math majors and immersed them in a research-intensive, mentored curriculum designed to give them a competitive edge for pursuing PhD degrees in the biomedical and related sciences.  

The civil rights movement in the 1960s strengthened his commitment to empower Black people, and led him to begin collecting historical items related to the African American experience—many of which are now displayed at the Sandy Spring Slave Museum and African Art Gallery, which he founded in 1988 with his brother Bernard.  This collection highlights the heritage of African American families in Montgomery County and houses an extensive collection of African American and African artifacts.  

One of Dr. Anderson’s recent projects has focused on the Sandy Spring Odd Fellows Hall—one of the few places that were accessible to African Americans for socializing during the era of segregation. Dr. Anderson and a support team have been renovating the building with a grant from the state of Maryland and hope to once again make the lodge a center of social and cultural activity. 

His many previous honors include the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Engineering and Math, presented by President Obama in 2011.  
 

 

See all of this year's honorees