MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR

As you may know, very recently I joined the University of California Davis as the new chair of the Biomedical Engineering Department.  When one thinks of biomedical engineering what comes to mind?  Usually, we consider some form of a combination of engineering or quantitative sciences and biological or medical sciences.   Indeed it is fascinating to think that math and physics can be combined with biology and chemistry in a beautiful fashion and generate a platform via which to solve some of the most difficult problems that affect people’s quality of life.  So, I am thrilled to be in this field.

I am particularly excited to be joining BME at UC Davis for many reasons but primarily because of the research we do in our department: we develop means to detect and cure various cancers; we study heart afflictions and how to reverse cardiovascular system diseases; we design vaccines; we use tissue engineering principles to repair and regenerate tissues that are notoriously difficult to heal, such as articular cartilage.  We employ a multi-level approach ranging from computational or mathematical models to experimental testing all the way to translating the work to its rightful place – the clinic or the operating room.  Indeed, some of our faculty have already established a clinical pathway for some of their work, while others have brought FDA-approved products to the market.

As to the demographics of the Department, we currently have 19 full-time faculty members plus three joint appointments.  There are currently 105 graduate students and 296 undergraduate BME majors.  The dollar amount of research expenditures for 2008-09 was almost $11 million, which corresponds to approximately $600,000 per faculty member.  When one realizes that our department has nine assistant professors, then using the metric of annual research expenditures, the department is doing well.  Our projections for 2009-12 are even stronger.

As the chair of the BME Department, I follow on the footsteps of some great faculty members who have served as chairs beginning with Kathy Ferrara in 2001.  In January 2005, Michael Savageau took the reins.  Simon Cherry, who has done an incredible job as an interim chair, served from November 2007 until July 2009.  Untiringly, Simon diligently prepared the ground for me.  I am excited to be taking over because of an unbeatable set of conditions that bode extremely well for our BME department, our College of Engineering, and our University of California Davis.  So let me describe these great conditions:

1. The first thing that I did when I arrived here was to meet our BME faculty.  It is gratifying to know that I am surrounded by leaders in the field but to also know that the next generation of leaders that people around the world will be pointing to reside in the BME Department!
2. We have outstanding undergraduate students, promising and exciting graduate students, strong post-docs, and excellent scientists.  And our staff members are giants in the quality of work they produce.
3. We are surrounded by an excellent School of Medicine -- one of the stronger recipients of federal grants, the home of departments kindred to us (such as orthopaedics, radiology, medicine, just to name a few), with a stem cell presence that promises to be second to none, and centers in translational research or with BME foci.  One of our major objectives is to engage the SOM more fully and more effectively.
4. The School of Veterinary Medicine is on top of the scientific world and the BME main building is right next to it.  The possibilities of research interaction are endless.
5. Then, there is the Graduate School of Management with leadership and faculty with an immense understanding of technology transfer, commercialization of university-based research, and, in particular, strong appreciation of the use of engineering in medicine and biology.  I look forward to working with our business school, SVM, and SOM to effect the translation of our work.
6. We have a new Provost and a new Chancellor.  I have known our provost for some time and I am very happy that we have him here because, he is not only a strong administrator, he is a superb researcher as well.  I am thrilled about our new Chancellor, a dynamic heavy-weight in academics, whom I have known of and admired for many years.  Both of them epitomize excellence.
7. Last, but probably most importantly, we are under the administrative umbrella of the COE.  This is a college that this year is breaking the $100M mark in research grants.  I am glad to report that grants from BME gave the symbolic push over the $100M mark.  My interactions with the Dean of the COE and the Office of the Dean have been impeccable because BME and COE share in pursuing excellence.

We have a lot of work to do but I am excited and enthusiastic about it because I expect that our work will yield tangible outcomes soon.  It is our objective that BME at UC Davis be recognized as one of the very top programs in the nation.  We cannot be idle and we will strive consistently and persistently to reach our rightful spot.  Our department fundamentals are strong and we will rise where we belong. 

On behalf of the BME Department, I can state that my colleagues and I are motivated to reach for the sky.

Kyriacos A. Athanasiou, Ph.D.
Distinguished Professor and Chair
Department of Biomedical Engineering