MD Anderson Cancer Center administrative accolades

Williiam Atkinson was recently honored with the Julie and Ben Rogers Award for Excellence in Administration. He received a $15,000 prize in recognition of his excellence in administration, leadership and dedication to MD Anderson and its mission to end cancer.

Atkinson is responsible for all financial, human resource, strategic and budgetary oversight for the academic division of Internal Medicine, which is made up of more than 150 clinical and research faculty and more than 350 classified employees. He first joined MD Anderson in 2007, working in Physicians Referral Services and Emergency Medicine before joining the department of Internal Medicine. 

"Bill exemplies collaborative leadership," says Shibu Varghese, Chief Human Resources Officer at MD Anderson and a member of the Rogers Award selection committee. "He empowers and engages his team towards successful outcomes. Based on the nominations, it's evident that his style of leadership is welcoming to his peers, direct reports, and faculty."

This year marks the 31st anniversary of the Julie and Ben Rogers Award, established in 1987 by Regina Rogers, a senior member of the MD Anderson Cancer Center Board of Visitors. Rogers created the award as a tribute to her parents, the late Julie and Ben Rogers of Beaumont, Texas. Her mother, Julie, and brother, Arvey Rogers, M.D., were treated successfully at MD Anderson.

"Like too many others, my family has been touched by cancer," says Rogers. "It's an honor to be able to give due credit to the very best and brightest at MD Anderson - the outstanding men and women who work harder and harder each day to make a difference in the lives of cancer patients and their families."

2017 Finalists

• Shamsha Damani, program director, Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences
• Ray Gerwitz, Police Administration and Support Services
• Randy Vidrine, medicine department administrator, Melanoma Medical Oncology and Sarcoma Medical Oncology
• Tricia L. White-Rhemtulla, department administrator, Health Disparities Research Department