Yadira Gilchrest, a senior computer scientist at Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport, was recently named a winner of Women of Color magazine’s Technology Rising Star award. The award recognizes minority women who have demonstrated exceptional achievements in their workplace and communities. Gilchrest currently works in NUWC’s sensors and sonars systems department, where she’s particularly interested in studying the effects of undersea testing on marine species. She holds a B.S. and an M.S. in mathematics from University of Central Florida. more

Richard Salit, an environment and health reporter at The Providence Journal, was recently named co-director of the Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting. In this role, he will provide guidance on institute programs and share his professional experience with journalists who are new to environmental reporting. He holds a B.A. degree in English with a concentration in journalism and creative writing from the State University of New York at Binghamton. more

Dr. Adam C. Levine was recently honored as the inaugural recipient of the Global Emergency Medicine Academy’s Humanitarian Service Award. Levine is an emergency physician at Rhode Island Hospital and an assistant professor at Brown University’s medical school. His award recognizes his commitment to serving distressed countries, primarily as a volunteer physician with International Medical Corps. During the last few years, he has worked in Haiti, Libya and Sudan, providing clinical care, running a trauma field hospital and managing a medical clinic. He holds an M.D. from University of California, San Francisco and master’s of public health from the University of California, Berkeley. more

Mark G. Griffin was recently appointed to the board of directors for Children’s Friend, after being selected for his corporate experience and knowledge of the Rhode Island nonprofit community. Griffin brings more than a decade of organizational and human resources experience to the board and currently serves as senior vice president for corporate human resources at CVS Caremark Corp. He holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial psychology and human resources from the University of Rhode Island. more

John H. Mosby was recently named scout executive/CEO of the Boy Scouts of America’s Narragansett Council, which serves 17,000 youths in Rhode Island, southeastern Massachusetts and Pawcatuck, Conn. Mosby has been a scouting professional for more than 20 years and has served as scout executive for two other councils, both in the Midwest. In addition to being an Eagle Scout, he is also a Vigil Member of the Order of the Arrow and serves as an assistant scoutmaster. Mosby holds a B.S. in education with a minor in mathematics from Missouri State University. more

Jack Hayes was recently named director of athletics at Brown University, where he will oversee 37 varsity teams and 17 club-level intercollegiate teams. The Providence native previously held the same position at Hofstra University, where he focused on raising athletic and academic achievement among student athletes. Hayes holds a B.A. from Providence College and a master’s degree in education with a concentration in sports management from the University of Connecticut. more

Lisa Tener, founder of the Bring Your Book to Life program, was recently honored at the American Business Awards with a gold award in the marketing-media category and a bronze award in the executive of the year-media category. Her eight-week program was designed to help writers turn their ideas into published books. Tener holds an M.S. in management, with a concentration in marketing, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition to being a published author, she is a faculty member at Harvard Medical School’s continuing education program and regularly presents at the Ocean State Writer’s Conference. more

Peter V. Lacouture, environmental and utilities partner at Robinson and Cole LLP, was recently named the Rhode Island Bar Association’s 2012 recipient of the Ralph P. Semonoff Award for Professionalism. The award honors the bar’s late president and the importance he placed on justice and public service. Lacouture, who has practiced law in Providence since 1972, represents clients in siting and permitting large infrastructure projects, negotiating related cultural-resource agreements and developing standard contracts for distributed generation facilities in Rhode Island. Lacouture holds an LL.B. degree from the University of Virginia School of Law and a B.A. degree from Yale University. more

Vittoria Pacifico-DeBenedictis was recently appointed president of St. Mary Academy-Bay View, a Catholic school for girls in pre-kindergarten through grade 12 in East Providence. For the past 11 years, she has served as principal of St. Francis of Assisi School in Braintree, Mass. Pacifico-DeBenedictis holds a master’s degree in school administration from Emmanuel College and is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Massachusetts at Boston. more

Robert P. Brooks, shareholder at Adler Pollock and Sheehan PC, was recently named one of the top 20 most powerful labor attorneys in the nation by Lawdragon Magazine and Human Resource Executive. Candidates for this list usually have impressive recommendations, a list of noteworthy accomplishments and have practiced for more than 20 years. Brooks has represented employers in employment-discrimination matters and a variety of labor arbitration and administrative proceedings. The current chairman of the firm’s labor and employment practice group and a member of its executive and diversity committees, Brooks holds a B.A. from Rhode Island College and a J.D. from Suffolk University. more