For their outstanding service in a range of fields, an inspiring and distinguished group of staff, students and alumni from The University of Queensland community have been honoured in the 2013 Australia Day awards and honours list.

UQ alumni were in in the running for Australian of the Year in three of the four categories, while many other staff, students and alumni received Australia Day honours.

The University congratulates Ms Ita Buttrose on being named Australian of the Year 2013 and all awardees for their achievements.

Australian of the Year finalists from the UQ community:

National Finalist Australian of the Year Professor Adele Green AC

Professor Green has been at the frontline of melanoma research for 20 years. As head of cancer and population studies at Queensland Institute of Medical Research, her research establishing that daily sunscreen use can halve the risk of melanoma set the benchmark for prevention. At UQ, she gained a Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery (1976) and Doctor of Philosophy 1984. More information is available here

National Finalist Senior Australian of the Year Laurie Lawrence

Starting with the smallest babies, Mr Lawrence's widely acclaimed program teaches children the skills to save themselves from drowning. Aiming to reduce child drowning rates to zero, he demonstrates the same conviction that saw him coach the Australian Olympic swimming team at Los Angeles in 1984, Seoul in 1988 and Barcelona in 1992. At UQ, he gained a Diploma of Physical Education (1963). More information available here

National Finalist Young Australian of the Year Julie McKay

In her five years leading UN Women Australia, more than $1 million has been raised for projects which directly affect the lives of women and girls in the developing world and hundreds of thousands of Australians have engaged with the organisation's work. At UQ, she gained a Bachelor of Arts (2004) and a Bachelor of Business Management (2004). More information available here.

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Australia Day honours abound for UQ community in 2013

24 January 2013 Last updated at 06:01 ET By Kate McGeown BBC News, Philippines

The little health clinic in the town of Tanauan, on the rural island of Leyte, is often so full of patients that some have to wait outside.

Ryan Almirez is one of only two doctors steadily working his way through the crowds.

Technically, he is still a trainee and due to qualify next year. But he's already seen as an essential member of the team.

The people of Tanauan are lucky to have Ryan.

Most of us come from poor families. We wouldn't have become health professionals if it were not for the school

Most Philippine doctors prefer to work in the cities, where they can supplement their government incomes by taking on private patients.

Still others - at least 11,000 since 2000 - have retrained as nurses and gone abroad, earning four or five times as much as they would as a doctor back at home.

But Ryan is not a typical medical student, and neither will he become a typical doctor.

He is enrolled in the University of the Philippines' School of Health Sciences, which is based down the road from Tanauan.

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Rural solution to health brain drain

NEWARK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

McCarter & English LLP has elected four new partners and one special counsel in its offices in Boston and Newark, effective January 1, 2013. The new partners are Maneesh Gulati, Yu Lu and Jonathan Short, members of the Intellectual Property / Information Technology group; and Joseph E. Ruccio III, a Construction and Infrastructure group member. The new special counsel is Kevin J. Quinn, who is part of the Public Finance group.

We are so pleased to welcome these five outstanding and talented attorneys to the partnership and our roster of special counsel, said McCarter & English Chairman Michael P. Kelly. These young attorneys have extraordinary skills and will contribute immensely to the future of this firm. We are confident in their continued success in their careers here at McCarter.

Maneesh Gulati (Boston) Mr. Gulati is a member of the Intellectual Property and Information Technology practice, where he focuses on the management and development of intellectual property portfolios, including the drafting, filing and prosecution of patent applications in a variety of genomics, chemical, biotechnological and mechanical fields. He has managed and actively prosecuted substantial patent portfolios with applications throughout the world, including for several Fortune 100 biotechnology companies. Mr. Gulati manages and prosecutes portfolios protecting FDA-approved drug products and performs extensive freedom-to-operate analyses, patentability analyses, due diligence investigations, clearance searches, noninfringement and invalidity opinion drafting, and competitive landscape analyses for industry clients, venture groups and emerging companies. He is admitted to practice in Massachusetts and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Mr. Gulati earned his B.S. from the University of Michigan and his J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law. He was named a Massachusetts Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012.

Yu Lu, Ph.D. (Boston) Dr. Lu is a member of the Intellectual Property and Information Technology practice, where he focuses on strategic patent portfolio development and management for biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, as well as leading academic institutions. He has extensive experience preparing and prosecuting U.S. and foreign patent applications in the chemistry, renewable energy, genetics, cell biology, immunology, RNA interference, drug delivery, stem cell, pharmaceuticals and medical device fields. Prior to starting his legal career at a global law firm as a patent agent, Dr. Lu was a Jane Coffin Childs Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School. His research has led to the publication of multiple scientific articles in journals such as Genes & Development, Nature Medicine and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States. Dr. Lu received his B.Sc. with Highest Distinction in genetics and genetic engineering from Fudan University (Shanghai, China), his Ph.D. from Harvard University and his J.D. cum laude from Boston College Law School.

Joseph E. Ruccio III (Jed) (Boston) Mr. Ruccio is a member of the Construction and Infrastructure practice. He advises clients on the preparation of contracts, implementation of best practices and dispute resolution for their construction projects. Whether involved from a projects inception or brought in to handle a distressed project, Mr. Ruccio has the industry and legal experience to help avoid disputes or to minimize their cost and duration. Should litigation be unavoidable, he has the first chair trial experience necessary. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Ruccio gained significant experience in the area of public procurement as chief of the Bid Protest Unit in the Massachusetts Attorney Generals Office. He served as the chief hearing officer for all public contract disputes filed with the AG, prosecuted violations of the bidding and wage laws enforced by the AG, and served as the AGs liaison to state agencies, municipal organizations and trade organizations. Mr. Ruccio earned his B.A. from Colgate University with Honors and his J.D. from Boston College Law School, where he was the executive editor of the Uniform Commercial Code Reporter-Digest. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Massachusetts Bar Association and the Boston Bar Association. He is admitted to the Bars of Massachusetts and New York. Mr. Ruccio was recognized as a Super Lawyers Massachusetts Rising Star in 2009 and 2012.

Jonathan Short (Newark) Mr. Short practices in all areas of intellectual property law, representing clients in disputes and transactions relating to patent, trademark, trade dress, copyright, trade secrets, cyberlaw and data privacy issues. He is dedicated to providing business-minded solutions to corporate clients from startups to international market leaders, including litigation avoidance and pre-litigation counseling. He has extensive experience with patent and other litigation relating to consumer electronics products and computer technology, including flash memory products (nonvolatile computer storage). Mr. Short has litigated several transaction-based disputes, including the alleged copyright infringement of a multimillion-dollar software product. Mr. Short earned his B.A. from Bowdoin College, magna cum laude, and his J.D. from William & Mary School of Law. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the New Jersey State Bar Association, the Bowdoin Alumni Schools and Interviewing Committee, and the Bowdoin Career Advisory Network. He is admitted to the Bars of New Jersey and Massachusetts, and was recognized as a Chambers USA Associate to Watch for 2012 and a Super Lawyers Rising Star for 2013.

Kevin J. Quinn (Newark) Mr. Quinn practices in the area of public finance, serving as bond counsel for conduit and direct issuers, and counsel for underwriters, borrowers, banks and trustees. He concentrates primarily on revenue bond financings, having extensive experience with acute and subacute health care facility financings, higher education facility financings and economic development transactions. He has participated in financings through the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, the New Jersey Healthcare Facilities Financing Authority and the New Jersey Educational Facilities Authority, as well as financings of various municipalities, school districts and local authorities. Mr. Quinn received his J.D. from Fordham University Law School, his MBA from Fordham University and his B.A. from Franklin & Marshall College. He is a member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers. He is admitted to the Bars of New Jersey and New York.

About McCarter & English, LLP

McCarter & English, LLP, established more than 160 years ago, represents Fortune 500 and middle-market companies in their national, regional and local litigation and on important transactions. Its 400 attorneys are based in offices in Boston, Hartford, New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Stamford and Wilmington. http://www.mccarter.com

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McCarter & English LLP Promotes Five Attorneys in Boston and Newark

Three Harrisonville High School graduates will become the ninth class inducted into the HHS Distinguished Alumni Wall of Fame during Winter Homecoming activities at HHS Feb. 1.

G.R. Milner, Ret. Lt. Col. Renee (Labitska) Holmes, and Dr. Hillary (Rolls) Kelly will be inducted during a banquet and introduced to the community prior to the 7 p.m. varsity basketball game.

Milner graduated in 1958 from Harrisonville High School as the salutatorian. During his youth, he was highly involved in 4-H and band. He is a lifetime resident of Cass County.

Following graduation, Milner went to work as a bookkeeper at Henderson Burris Motors in Harrisonville. He worked in all facets of the business and at 23 purchased shares of stock in the business. He was one of the youngest dealers in the nation to be given ownership approval by the Ford Motor Company. He also graduated from the Ford Motor Companys School of Accounting and their School of Retail Salesmanship.

In 1977, he became full owner and changed the name to GR Milner Ford Sales and in 1978, he moved the dealership from near the square to its current location on Cantrell Road. During this time, Milner grew the business to one of the largest Ford, Lincoln, Mercury dealerships in the state of Missouri and tripled the number of his employees.

In 2012, Milner was honored by the Ford Motor Company for his 50 years as a dealership owner. Milner was a member of the Missouri Automobile Dealers Association and served in numerous leadership capacities including the associations 60th president in 1998.

As a business leader in Harrisonville, he was a member of the Chamber of commerce, Masonic Lodge and Ararat Shrine.

Milner and his wife, Karazo, will celebrate 22 years of marriage this year. His family includes two children, three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Holmes is a 1986 graduate of Harrisonville High School and spent a 20 year career with the United States Marine Corp.

She retired in December.

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Harrisonville announces Wall of Fame inductees