UNMC for the record, April 15, 2022

Dr. De Alba named health equity champion

Armando De Alba, MD, received the Health Equity Champion Award from the Public Health Association of Nebraska (PHAN) at the Nebraska Public Health Conference. PHAN presents this award to an individual who has distinguished themselves professionally by working toward social justice for underserved and disadvantaged populations.

"Health equity has been a driving factor that made me immigrate to the United States," Dr. De Alba said. "I am fortunate to be surrounded by outstanding people who also are driven by the principles of social justice and who I want to share with the spirit of this award. My gratitude to the Public Health Association of Nebraska for selecting me as a recipient of this recognition and for highlighting my work. The mission of advancing health equity and providing quality care continues, and here I stand with you."

Dr. De Alba is an assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Family Medicine and assistant dean for diversity, equity and inclusion student programs in the UNMC College of Medicine.

VCR search committee gains new member  

An additional member has joined the search committee tasked with finding a new vice chancellor for research. The committee, chaired by UNMC’s Ken Cowan, MD, PhD, director and physician-in-chief of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center and the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer, now stands at 29 members with the addition of Emily McElroy, dean of the McGoogan Health Sciences Library.   

The committee is charged with finding a successor for Jennifer Larsen, MD, who in December announced she would step away from her role once her replacement was identified. Dr. Larsen has led UNMC’s research enterprise since 2011 and will remain the Degen Professor of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism at UNMC, a position she has held since 1987. 

Great Plains IDeA-CTR has new community engagement directors

Great Plains IDeA-CTR has new leadership of its Community Engagement and Outreach Core.

Keyonna King, DrPH, assumed the role of director starting Jan. 1, replacing Paul Estabrooks, PhD. Fabio Almeida, PhD, has stepped in as co-director.

Dr. King is an assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Health Promotion in the College of Public Health. Dr. Almeida is an associate professor in the UNMC Department of Health Promotion within the college.

The Community Engagement and Outreach Core aims to enhance clinical and translational research by facilitating collaboration between research, practice and community stakeholders to address regional health priorities.

As director, Dr. King will oversee the implementation of the Community-Engaged Research Institute and the Community-Engaged Research Incubator, among other responsibilities.

As co-director, Dr. Almeida will assist Dr. King in the implementation of the Community-Engaged Research Incubator and will oversee the planning and execution for the Community-Engaged Research Interest Group, as well as other community-engaged research activities.

Big Ten Neuroscience Seminar Series is today

The UNMC Department of Neuroscience will host the Big Ten Neuroscience Seminar Series today from noon to 1 p.m.

Presentations will include:

• Padmashri Ragunathan, PhD, assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Neurological Sciences, will present,  "Behavioral and auditory processing alterations in a mouse model of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders."
• Nashanthea Roland, PhD student in the UNMC Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, working in the lab of Kelly Stauch, PhD, assistant profession in the UNMC Department of Neurological Sciences, will present, "Cholinergic system alterations in a tauopathy mouse model."

Interested UNMC faculty and students can email Sallie Weathers for Zoom information.

UNMC retirements

Kevin Jespersen, of facilities management and planning, retired April 1 from UNMC.

With a start date of Dec. 16, 1976, Jespersen’s more than 45 years at UNMC made him the longest-tenured retiree announced by human resources in April.

Other retirees announced by the department:

• Joseph Kracijek, comparative medicine, retired March 18 (start date May 7, 1990)
• James Talmadge, PhD, pathology/microbiology, retired April 2 (start date Aug. 1, 1991)
• Cheri Bott, Munroe-Meyer Institute, will retire July 8 (start date Oct. 16, 2006)
• Rongshi Li, PhD, UNMC College of Pharmacy, retired April 2 (start date Sept. 16, 2013)
• Peggy Brown, pediatrics, retired April 1 (start date Oct. 1, 2017)

Food trucks on campus

Food trucks will be on campus the week of April 18-22 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in two spots on campus.

East end of campus north of the UNMC ice rink:

• Monday – Kebobs Gyros and Brats
• Tuesday – Street Eats
• Wednesday – La Casa Pizza 
• Thursday – Zemogs
• Friday – Corndog Company

Durham Research towers:

• Wednesday – Kebobs Gyros and Brats
• Friday – Zemogs