Lehman Today Online Magazine Lehman Today Fall 2015 | Page 6

campus walk Lehman College Welcomes Davina Porock, Stefan Becker As Vice Provosts Dr. Davina Porock This fall, Lehman College welcomed two new vice provosts. Professor Davina Porock, a registered nurse with over 30 years experience, is the new vice provost for Academic Personnel; and Professor Stefan Becker of the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Geospatial Sciences is now the vice provost for Academic Programs. Porock’s most recent appointment was at the University of Buffalo where she was professor and associate dean for research and scholarship, as well as director of the Center for Nursing Research. In her new role at Lehman she will oversee several aspects of faculty development to support the scholarship of teaching and learning. This includes assisting deans, chairs, and faculty in recruitment and retention, development of tenure and promotion portfolios, and advancing the honorific recognition of faculty. “It’s a win-win situation for everyone,” explained Eva Sofianos, a Lehman alumna (’04, ’06) and IBM IT Specialist, who co-ran the summer pilot program. “Here are businesses in need of IT solutions and students in need of opportunities to build their experience. The training this program provides is rigorous, but at the end the students are ready to move to the next level in their careers.” National Cancer Institute Awards $1 Million Grant to Biology Professor for Killing Cancer Research Professor Moira Sauane, who teaches in the Biological Sciences department, received a four-year, $1 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to support her groundbreaking research. Her work is focused on understanding how different proteins behave at the cellular and molecular level for the purpose of developing cancer therapies that kill cancerous tumors, while sparing healthy cells. In 2013, Sauane and her team, which included several undergraduate students, identified the molecule that plays a pivotal role in killing human cancer cells. The discovery centered As Vice Provost for Academic Programs, Professor Becker will continue to participate in advancing larger, strategic initiatives for the College, providing leadership and support for departments and schools in preparation and submission of courses and curricula, developing educational opportunities, and offering institutional oversight in the planning, development, and implementation of review and accreditation of self-studies. “Ever since joining academia, it has been one of my most rewarding experiences to help students realize their goals and succeed in their lives,” he said. New Innovation Lab at Lehman Grooms IT Professionals, Businesses Lehman College’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on August 19 for its new Information Technology Innovation Lab, located at CUNY on the Concourse. The lab, which offers intense programming and web development training for budding computer engineers, is the latest initiative by the College to groom the next wave of professionals in the field of information systems. Earlier in the summer, 24 students participated in the Lab’s pilot program, Traincube. There they learned to build professional web applications for existing businesses. Traincube received funding through a generous grant from New York City Council Member James Vacca of District 13 in the Bronx. Traincube partnered with the one-year-old Bronx Business Bridge Incubator, which receives support from the New York City Economic Development Corporation, to select four businesses with IT needs. 4 Lehman Today/Spring 2015 Dr. Moira Sauane and students in her lab. on the interaction of two proteins (Interleukin-24 and Sigma 1 Receptor) that promote the death of cancerous cells, and makes tumors more sensitive to radiation and chemotherapy. Their research was published in the journal Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communication, and later resulted in a patent. “It is information that we are now using to produce a better therapy for patients,” she said. Indeed, the U.S. patent that she and her team were responsible for is already in its second phase of clinical trials. Sauane is now collaborating with researchers from Harvard Medical School. Once again, she is working with undergraduate students, many of whom benefit greatly from the experience. “The level of cancer research, and in biological sciences in general, at Lehman College to a great extent depends on our students on