 First Friday Update by President Scott Ransom
More about our Health Institutes of Texas…
In my February Update, I told you about the major funding request we presented to the Texas Legislature for 2008-2009: a proposal to establish The Health Institutes of Texas here on our campus.
Is this a single place, a building, or anything you can actually touch? No… not yet. This is an idea… a concept of organizing some of our current – and future – programs, centers and institutes differently. More productively. More strategically. More competitively. All focused on leveraging our existing strengths in public health, interdisciplinary scientific research, medical education and patient care. All focused on creating solutions for the most critical health issues in Texas.
This week I took one more step to turn this vision into reality. I hired staff.
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Employees’ career milestones to be celebrated with service awards
Employees who achieved 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 years of service with the Health Science Center in 2006 will be honored on Thursday, March 8, at 3 p.m. in Luibel Hall. Everyone is invited to attend and applaud the honorees, and enjoy a reception in the Atrium following the program.
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DNA Lab receives new federal funding
Our DNA Identity Lab was awarded $819,081 from the National Institute of Justice for developing improved capacity in the lab. The grant, which lasts through Sept. 30, offers an opportunity for states and units of local government with existing crime laboratories that conduct DNA analysis to improve laboratory infrastructure and analysis capacity so that DNA samples can be processed efficiently and cost-effectively. This DNA Capacity Enhancement Program grant brings NIJ funding of the lab to a total of $1,308,524 for the past three years. A full explanation of the purpose of the grant can be found at http://www.dna.gov/funding/labcapacity/. 
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The Health Science Center and Cook Children’s Physician Network are collaborating to improve primary care and public health in Tarrant County
Researchers and leaders from Cook Children’s and the North Texas Primary Care Practice-Based Research Network, or NorTex, housed in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, met in January to discuss and establish the mission, values, goals and objectives of the new partnership, named the Cook Children’s/NorTex Interdisciplinary Research Team, or CIRT. One major initiative will be an assessment of pediatric and adolescent health needs. The team’s disciplines include pediatrics, family medicine, epidemiology, health management and policy, social and behavioral sciences, and the basic sciences. NorTex, under the direction of Roberto Cardarelli, DO, MPH, TCOM/SPH '91, assistant professor of family and community medicine, is a network of more than 70 clinics that has received National Institutes of Health funding through the Health Science Center’s Texas Center for Health Disparities.
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Brenner receives health communication award to host visiting scholar in April
M. Harvey Brenner, PhD, professor and chair of the School of Public Health’s Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, received the Pfizer Visiting Professorship in Health Literacy/Clear Health Communication Award. The $7,500 award will allow Dr. Brenner to host a three-day educational exchange with Irving Rootman, PhD, who is the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research distinguished scholar from the University of Victoria. The visit, scheduled for April 11-13, will include both institutional and public presentations on the topic of best practices in health promotion and literacy.
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562 Denison survey responses have been received so far...
Do you want your opinion to count? Then you have to share it. Now through March 5 is your chance to speak up about our weaknesses and our strengths on the 2007 Denison Organizational Culture Survey. Your participation in this unprecedented employee survey will help us build the foundation we need to be a Top 10 health science center. Particiption is voluntary, totally confidential and anonymous. No answer can be traced back to an individual. And, no, you don't have to answer all the questions for your survey to count. Even better, you won’t have to wait forever to learn the results. Shortly after March 12, all faculty and staff will be notified of the survey outcomes. Together, we’ll celebrate our successes... and start to work on our shortcomings. If you’ve lost the link or have questions, contact Doug Mains, ext. 0473, dmains@hsc.unt.edu.
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In case you missed it: Research Appreciation Day abstracts are due by midnight on March 11
In addition to the expertise of our faculty and students, the work of Health Science Center graduates will also be in the spotlight at the 15th annual Research Appreciation Day on April 6. All alumni are invited to return to campus to share poster presentations of their research and professional activities, and Jonathon Tune, PhD, GSBS ’97, associate professor of cellular and integrative physiology at Indiana University School of Medicine, will present the keynote address, “Heart of the Matter: Coronary Dysfunction in Obesity and Insulin.” All events will take place in the Center for BioHealth. For details, visit www.hsc.unt.edu/rad.
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