UNMC for the record

From left, RFD-TV's Christina Loren, Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, and Anthony Fauci, MD, on "Rural America Live."

From left, RFD-TV's Christina Loren, Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, and Anthony Fauci, MD, on "Rural America Live."

Dr. Fauci speaks with Dr. Gold on ‘Rural Health Matters’

Anthony Fauci, MD, one of the nation’s most respected experts on infectious diseases and a leading health care voice throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, spoke about pandemic issues Monday with Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, on the RFD-TV broadcast of “Rural Health Matters.”

Dr. Fauci, who has served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984, spoke on such issues as vaccine safety, rural vaccine access and other topics.

Watch the broadcast.

“Rural Health Matters” airs at 5 p.m. CT on Mondays.

Flag to be lowered at UNO to honored Dale Davis

The University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) flag will be lowered today in memory of UNO and UNMC employee Dale Davis.

Davis passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 6, at the age of 58.

Those on the UNO and UNMC campuses know Dale for his many years of service at both campus’ bookstores, serving as assistant manager for course materials.

Davis joined UNO in 2013 and began his role at UNMC in 2018 when management of the two bookstores were combined.

Colleagues said they remembered Davis as someone who was warm, caring, and dedicated to his family; always with a ‘Dad Joke’ to tell and willing to be the first one in and last one to leave.

“He would always go above and beyond to help others,” one colleague said.

The thoughts and condolences of the university community are with Dale’s loved ones during this time.

Dr. Murari-Kanti headlines Bio Nebraska event

Catherine Murari-Kanti, PhD, a licensing specialist at UNeMed, is the featured speaker for a Nebraska Women in STEM event planned for Thursday, Feb. 4.









picture disc.

Catherine Murari-Kanti, PhD

Dr. Murari-Kanti’s presentation is titled, “Women and Entrepreneurship: Can we do it? Yes we can!”

The one-hour virtual event is planned to start at 10:30 a.m. Tickets are $25, but free for students.

Learn more and register.
She will discuss potential solutions for women entrepreneurs and the obstacles they face. She will also discuss her work in technology transfer and research commercialization, and lay out some of the entrepreneurial opportunities available through UNeMed and the wider Omaha community.

Bio Nebraska is hosting the event as a part of its Nebraska Women in STEM initiative, which is aimed at helping support and encourage women interested and specializing in scientific, technical, engineering and mathematical fields. Bio Nebraska is a trade organization aimed at helping grow the state’s “bio-ecosystem.”

Dr. Murari-Kanti holds a PhD in cancer research, and joined UNeMed in 2016. She evaluates new inventions for their commercial potential and helps establish intellectual property protections for new innovations and discoveries. She works closely with university innovators to help them push their inventions beyond the laboratory and into the market. She also has significant experience working within the entrepreneurial and startup community.

UNeMed is the technology transfer and commercialization office for UNMC and the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

University programs eligible for WIN funds

University of Nebraska programs and Nebraska nonprofit organizations may now give funding ideas to Women Investing in Nebraska for grant awards in 2021.

Grant seekers must submit an online letter of inquiry form by Feb. 16. The form is available at the Women Investing in Nebraska website.

Based on submissions, WIN will invite 12 to 16 grant seekers to provide formal grant proposals. Grant seekers must be a part of the University of Nebraska system or be a Nebraska nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity.

“WIN seeks out groups with innovative and bold solutions to the important issues Nebraskans face,” said Vanessa Denney of Omaha, chair of the WIN grants committee. “There are many creative and committed organizations and people in Nebraska working to improve their communities.”

The grant amounts will be based on the total amount of gifts received this year from the WIN members. WIN will announce its grants this fall.

Grant seekers may contact Lori Shriner at 402-458-1209 or 800-432-3216 for more information.

Retirements announced

The department of human resources announced 10 retirements this month, including J. Graham Sharp, PhD, professor of genetics, cell biology and anatomy, who worked at UNMC for longer than 47 years, and Susan Pope, UNMC College of Medicine, who worked at UNMC for longer than 50 years. Both Pope, who started on Sept. 10, 1970, and Dr. Sharp, who started on Aug. 1, 1973, retired effective Jan. 1, 2021.

Other announced retirements include two people who have been at the university for 37 years. The list:

  • Judith Walker, student success, retired Jan. 1 (starting date May 4, 1987)
  • Vito Caragiulo, academic affairs, retired Jan. 1 (starting date Jan. 4, 1995)
  • Darren Dageforde, business and finance, retired Dec. 3 (starting date May 1, 1998)
  • G. Thomas Mason, UNMC College of Nursing, retired Jan. 1 (starting date Aug. 12, 1998)
  • Theresa Koehn, UNMC College of Dentistry, retired Jan. 1 (starting date April 17, 2006)
  • Gary Lerner, MD, UNMC College of Medicine, retired Jan. 1 (starting date Sept. 1, 2009)
  • Bernadette VanDeWalker, UNMC College of Dentistry, retired Jan. 8 (starting date Aug. 15, 2012)
  • David Danielson, College of Medicine, retired Jan. 1 (starting date March 1, 2014