Announcing the 2024 Evens Society Honorees

2024 Evens Society Honorees

MIR’s third biannual Evens Society Alumni Weekend will honor six radiology trailblazers at the weekend’s focal point, a gala dinner on September 7. We’re thrilled to celebrate the following alumni, who will be honored for their significant contributions to the advancement of radiology in the areas of patient care, education and research:

Michael D. Darcy, MD

Bonnie N. Joe, MD, PhD

Perry J. Pickhardt, MD

Marcus E. Raichle, MD

Cynthia K. Rigsby, MD

Sally W. Schwarz, RPh


Michael D. Darcy, MD

Faculty (1989–Present)

headshot of Howard Forman, MD

Michael D. Darcy, MD, is an interventional radiologist who has served on the MIR faculty for more than 30 years. Soon after arriving at MIR’s fledgling IR section of just two members, he gained recognition for his own cutting-edge technique, performing the first transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) procedure at Washington University in 1991. Darcy — who served as chief of vascular and interventional radiology from 2001 to 2019 — has trained more than 125 IR fellows throughout his illustrious career.

Darcy’s main areas of clinical and academic interest are portal hypertension and gastrointestinal bleeding. Also actively involved in research, he has participated in multiple clinical trials and authored or co-authored numerous papers and book chapters.

A longtime active member with the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR), Darcy served as its president in 2002. In 2017, he was invited to deliver the society’s Charles T. Dotter Lecture, given annually by senior interventionalists recognized for their extraordinary contributions to the field. Then, in 2021, he received the prestigious SIR Gold Medal in recognition of his achievements in advancing the quality of medicine and patient care through IR.


Bonnie N. Joe, MD, PhD

Diagnostic Radiology Residency (’02) and Body MRI Fellowship (‘03)

Bonnie N. Joe, MD, PhD, is a professor in residence and chief of breast imaging in the department of radiology and biomedical imaging at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Joe’s expertise includes screening for breast cancer using digital breast tomosynthesis and breast cancer evaluation using breast MRI, dedicated breast PET and breast ultrasound. She specializes in performing stereotactic, ultrasound and MRI breast biopsies.

As a physician-scientist, Joe is committed to improving clinical care and impacting current practice through clinical translational research efforts in breast imaging. She has served as principal investigator and co-investigator for several grant projects related to her research. Joe is a leader in advancing imaging-based approaches to breast cancer diagnosis, earlier detection, and reduction of disease recurrence and improved survival.

Joe’s accolades include being honored as a fellow of the Society of Breast Imaging (SBI) and receiving the Cum Laude Award from the Society for Advanced Body Imaging. In 2023, she was named a Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Honored Educator for producing high-quality educational content in her field of study. She also serves on the board of directors for the RSNA Research & Education Foundation and SBI.


Perry J. Pickhardt, MD

Diagnostic Radiology Residency (’99)

Perry J. Pickhardt, MD, is a professor of radiology and chief of gastrointestinal imaging at University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison, Wisconsin (UW). Pickhardt began publishing widely during his residency at MIR, including co-editing a textbook on body CT. He remains a prolific researcher, with over 500 peer-reviewed publications, h-index of 92, i10-index of 401, and multiple NIH R01 grants.

Following his training at MIR, Pickhardt served in the U.S. Navy, spending one year as head of radiology at Naval Hospital Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, followed by three years as the head of GI-GU Imaging at the National Naval Medical Center (NNMC) in Bethesda, Maryland. While at NNMC, he organized a large multicenter screening trial evaluating CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy) and served as the principal investigator.

In recognition of his work, Pickhardt was twice named Most Influential Radiology Researcher by AuntMinnie – in 2016 and again in 2023. Additional accolades include being named an honorary fellow of the European Society for Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology and receiving the Lodwick Award from Massachusetts General Hospital. In 2024, the Society of Abdominal Radiology awarded Pickhardt a Gold Medal, the society’s highest honor based on a lifetime of commitment to its mission and values.


Marcus E. Raichle, MD

Faculty (1971–Present)

Marcus E. Raichle, MD, the Alan A. and Edith L Wolff Distinguished Professor of Medicine and a professor of radiology, neurology, neurobiology and biomedical engineering, is widely regarded as a pioneer for his work on human brain function for the past 40 years. Raichle, the founding member and now a principal investigator in MIR’s Neuroimaging Labs Research Center, is a trailblazer in the study of human brain function through the development and use of PET and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Seeking to explain task-induced activity decreases in functional brain images, Raichle’s team employed an innovative strategy to define a physiological baseline. This led to the concept of a default mode of brain function and invigorated studies of intrinsic functional activity, an issue largely dormant for more than a century. An important facet of this work was the discovery of a unique fronto-parietal network in the brain that has come to be known as the default network. This network is now the focus of work on brain function in health and disease worldwide.

Among his numerous accolades, Raichle is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and has received the MetLife Foundation Award for Medical Research in Alzheimer’s Disease and the Kavli Prize for Neuroscience.


Cynthia K. Rigsby, MD

Diagnostic Radiology Residency (’95)

Cynthia K. Rigsby, MD, is chair of the Department of Medical Imaging and the Earl J. Frederick Distinguished Professor of Radiology at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital, and professor of radiology and pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. Prior to being named chair in 2020, she served as division head of body imaging for nearly two decades.

Rigsby is an internationally recognized pediatric cardiovascular imaging clinician and researcher. Her primary clinical interest is in pediatric CT and MR imaging, with a specialty expertise and research focus in pediatric cardiovascular imaging. Her work includes evaluating techniques and analytic tools for the comprehensive in-vivo measurement and analysis of cardiovascular hemodynamics in patients with congenital and acquired heart disease.

A member of the Society for Pediatric Radiology, Rigsby has served as president and board chair, as well as been the recipient of its Presidential Recognition Award. She is an active member of the Radiological Society of North America and fellow of the American College of Radiology. She has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and has been continuously grant funded for over 15 years by many organizations, including the NIH.


Sally W. Schwarz, RPh

Nuclear Pharmacist (1976–2023)

Sally W. Schwarz, RPh, served as co-director of the Cyclotron Facility and Nuclear Pharmacy from 2013 until 2019, was director of PET radiopharmaceutical production at Washington University, and helped design MIR’s new state-of-the-art cyclotron facility, which opened in 2000.

Schwarz, who arrived at MIR in 1976 to work with Michael J. Welch, PhD, started her work when there were less than 100 nuclear pharmacies nationwide. She is globally recognized for her contributions to pharmacology and ability to adapt to changes in the field. A renowned speaker, Schwarz has lectured widely on regulatory matters and the use of PET scans in the diagnosis of diseases. She has helped craft U.S. and global regulations on the best production practices for PET and other radiotracers.

In 2016, Schwarz served as president of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI), the first pharmacist and fourth woman to hold the position. And in 2022, SNMMI created the Sally W. Schwarz Award to recognize outstanding contributions to the field of radiopharmacy — from radiopharmaceutical development and translation to mentoring the next generation of radiopharmacists. The following year, she was named recipient of the SNMMI Michael J. Welch, PhD, Award for her significant impact within the field of radiopharmaceutical sciences.