TTUHSC President Appoints New Leadership
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: 01/15/2008
CONTACT: Suzanna Cisneros Martinez ( suzanna.martinez@ttuhsc.edu )
PHONE: (806) 743-2143
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center President John C. Baldwin, M.D., announced the appointment new leadership positions.
Douglass Stocco, Ph.D., formerly TTUHSC vice dean for research, was appointed Executive Vice President for Research at the institution. In this role, he will have, in collaboration with Dr. Baldwin, overarching responsibility for strengthening the institutional research efforts.
Stocco joined the Department of Cell Biology and Biochemistry at TTUHSC in 1974. He received several honors such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Career Development Award in 1985 and the NIH MERIT Award. His career has been funded by the NIH since 1984. Stocco’s research achievements include the identification and characterization of a novel protein, named Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory or STAR protein, the existence of which had been predicted for 40 years.
He has received many top awards presented by the Texas Tech System such as the Grover E. Murray Distinguished Professor in 1997, the highest distinction a faculty member can attain. Stocco was awarded a University Medical Center Endowed Chair and also was named the Robert A. Welch Endowed Chair in Biochemistry in 1998. In 2003, he was honored with the distinction of University Distinguished Professor and in 2005 was elected as an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow.
“Dr. Stocco is truly a national expert who has made such important contributions in research and has for many years served as a grant reviewer for the NIH,” Baldwin said. “He is a dedicated teacher and mentor and has supervised more than 50 TTUHSC Ph.D. students during his career.”
Also appointed was Luis Reuss, M.D., as dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. Reuss was formally the chairman of the Department of Physiology at TTUHSC, a position he will continue to hold.
Reuss served as a professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in the Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology. He also served as professor and chairman of the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at UTMB.
Reuss received his medical degree at the University of Chile in Santiago and completed a Fogarty NIH Fellowship at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C. His teaching experience also includes the University of Chile, University of North Carolina and Washington University, as well at UTMB.
He serves on various national committees such as the American Physiological Society and the Society of General Physiologists. Reuss, whose current research is funded by the NIH, has served on numerous NIH review committees.
His research focuses on epithelial physiology, drug resistance to cancer cells and the structural biology of membrane proteins.
“Dr. Reuss is a renowned teacher and also has mentored more than 30 Ph.D. students. I am delighted that he has joined the senior administration of our university,” Baldwin said.
Rial Rolfe, Ph.D., was promoted to the position of Vice President for Academic Services.
He is primarily responsible for maintaining the university’s accreditation status with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and other agencies.
Rolfe formerly served as the associate vice president for Academic Affairs for all campuses. He was the associate dean for Faculty Affairs and Development in the School of Medicine.
“Dr. Rolfe’s experience is extensive in these areas. And his many contributions to the Health Sciences Center over numerous years, demonstrates his in-depth knowledge of this institution,” Baldwin said. “He has a tremendous commitment to the students, faculty and academic programs of the Health Sciences Center.”
Rolfe has served as the founding dean for the Office of Faculty Affairs and Development in the School of Medicine since August 1998. Rolfe is a professor and has been interim chairman and associate chairman in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the School of Medicine. He has been a faculty member of the university since 1981.
Baldwin also broadened one vice president position to oversee a Center for International and Multicultural Affairs. Vice President Gèrmàn Nuñez currently oversees the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs.
Nuñez formerly served as vice provost at Oregon Health and Sciences University. He was the director for the Center for Diversity and Multicultural Affairs. He also is a professor of biomedical engineering.
“I feel this new center reflects our increasing involvement in international matters, not only for our partnerships along the Mexico border, but also around the world, through opportunities presented to us by students, faculty and alumni,” Baldwin said.