Dear colleagues and friends,
Looking back on this year, I am reminded of the enduring strength that comes from a community bound by shared purpose. Throughout the year, Stempel College faculty, students, and staff remained focused on changing lives for the better through research and education. Their dedication enabled us not only to stay the course but to achieve significant progress toward our goals.
In this issue, you’ll read about the work of Ph.D. candidate Daniel Martinez-Pérez (pictured on the front cover), who has worked in my lab on research that reveals a promising new target to thwart Alzheimer’s in its tracks. You’ll learn that members of our Student Dietetics Association are conducting nutrition education sessions at local library branches, and that students in our Academy for International Disaster Preparedness participated in a two-day disaster field exercise. Each of these endeavors is meaningful and contributes in its own way to a healthier, more resilient world.
Our faculty continue to expand the limits of what is possible. With a $6.6 million National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Revolutionizing Innovative, Visionary Environmental Health Research (RIVER) grant, professor and researcher Dr. Kim Tieu is collaborating with Scripps Research to identify FDA-approved compounds that target the protein Drp1 for new Parkinson’s disease therapies. Tieu has spent years studying Drp1’s role in Parkinson’s, a disease marked by tremors, stiffness, and the loss of brain cells.
Central to our ability to keep moving forward is our partners, alumni, and friends. Your trust, engagement, and willingness to invest in our work reflect what can be accomplished when people work together. Readers can learn more about one of our newest collaborations in this issue — a $2 million donation from the Casey DeSantis Florida Cancer Innovation Fund to support the work of cancer researcher Dr. Diana Azzam.
What makes Stempel College a remarkable place goes beyond our buildings and labs. It’s our people — our students, faculty, staff, and alumni — who walk these hallways intent upon building opportunity, strengthening communities, and creating lasting impact.
Looking ahead, I am filled with optimism. Our foundation is strong, our community connections deep. Together we have turned moments of uncertainty into opportunities for growth. The future holds tremendous promise, and I have no doubt that our extraordinary Stempel community will continue to lead with vision, heart, and purpose.
With gratitude,
