A festive atmosphere filled Robbins Auditorium on Monday, October 12, 2009, when 14 faculty members at Einstein were honored at a special academic convocation and investiture ceremony, along with the donors who make their work possible. This celebration of professorships endowed through major philanthropic contributions to the College of Medicine also featured the instatement of several faculty members as directors of critical programs, and the announcement of a newly established institute.

Dr. Ruth L. Gottesman and Burton P. Resnick That unexpected revelation was the announcement of the new Wilf Family Cardiovascular Research Institute. Dr. Allen M. Spiegel, the Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean, explained that the new institute was not mentioned in the convocation invitation in order to permit the special announcement during the ceremony. "This is a momentous development at Einstein, vital to all of us," he said. "It is the establishment of a new cardiovascular institute at Einstein targeting the number one killer of Americans."

The institute's establishment was made possible by a generous donation from the Wilf family, whose longtime support of both Einstein and Yeshiva University is further exemplified by Zygi Wilf's service on the Einstein board and the Wilf family name on the YU campus. Dr. Richard Kitsis, the Dr. Gerald and Myra Dorros Professor of Cardiovascular Disease, will be the director of the new institute.

This key commitment also highlights the overall generosity of Einstein's philanthropic community, whose $100 million in new support during the past two years has resulted in record fund-raising for the College of Medicine.
In presiding over the convocation ceremony, Dr. Spiegel noted, "The faculty are our lifeblood, and the Board and donors are the oxygen that nourishes it and allows it to flourish."

Addressing the donors specifically, Dr. Spiegel said, "We are grateful for all you do for Einstein. You empower us to do the work we love."

A reception followed the ceremony in a tent set up in the courtyard behind the Forchheimer Building. Following introductory remarks from Glenn Miller, associate dean for institutional advancement, Dr. Spiegel noted that Einstein supporters have contributed more than $100 million over the last two years - easily the best two-year span in the College of Medicine's history. "If this was a state of the union address, I would be able to say that the state of the union is good."

In special recognition of Einstein's new Wilf Family Cardiovascular Research Institute, Dr. Spiegel reminded those in attendance of the strong foundation in cardiovascular research established by Dr. Edmund Sonnenblick, a member of the founding faculty who passed away in 2007. "Then, we lacked the resources to marshal the strength of our researchers. Now, thanks to the Wilf family, we can realize our potential." He also invited Zygi Wilf to say a few words in behalf of the entire Wilf family.

Drs. John M. Greally, Allen M. Spiegel,
and Ruth L. Gottesman Mr. Wilf, whose family also owns the National Football League's Minnesota Vikings, said, "We appreciate the beginning of a partnership in this vital field. But the Wilf family and Einstein are not just creating a partnership. We're on the same team. You need a team and, together as a team, we will create wonderful discoveries."

Other donors in attendance, whose investments in professorships, scholarships, and Einstein programs were recognized, were Ruth L. Gottesman, Judith and Burton Resnick, Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz, Evelyn Gruss Lipper, Linda and Earle Altman, Dillard Kirby, and Hirschell Levine and Kim Baptiste (on behalf of Mildred Goldstein) along with Mrs. Goldstein's son, David Goldstein, as well as Kathy Weinberg and Bambi Felberbaum, the current and immediate past president, respectively, of the National Women's Division. Notable donors unable to attend included Diane Belfer, Betty Feinberg, and Sylvia Olnick.

Also recognized at the convocation and investiture ceremony were 11 faculty members who recently were awarded tenure at the medical school. These included Aviv Bergman, Ph.D., Eric Bouhassira, Ph.D., Streamson C. Chua, M.D., Ph.D., Roy Chuck, M.D., Ph.D., Mark J. Czaja, M.D., Winfried Edelmann, Ph.D., Betsy Herold, M.D., Kami Kim, M.D., Steven Libutti, M.D., Jeffrey Segall, Ph.D., and Jan Vijg, M.D., Ph.D.

In conducting the formal proceedings of the event, Dr. Spiegel was joined by Morton Lowengrub, Ph.D, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Yeshiva University. They were joined onstage by Henry Kressel, the newly-elected chairman of Yeshiva University's Board of Trustees, who also took part in the event.
Members of Einstein's faculty honored were:

Dr. Craig A. Branch, Ph.D., associate professor of radiology, was invested as director of Einstein's Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center. Although a member of Einstein's faculty since 1997, Dr. Branch's previous collaborations with other Einstein researchers were conducted from the Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research. Since moving to the Bronx, he has overseen the renovations of the center and he will play a leadership role in research focusing on the development of MRI-based measures of brain function and their application to brain disorders.

Roy S. Chuck, M.D., Ph.D., professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences and of genetics, was invested as chair of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the College of Medicine and Montefiore Medical Center. A cornea specialist with expertise in the field of laser techniques for refractive eye conditions, Dr. Chuck has run basic laboratories for his entire career, studying vision correction He also is a veteran stem cell investigator who has a strong interest in ocular surface corneal transplantation and sight restoration. His work includes cutting-edge corneal stem cell surgery, which has a success rate of nearly 50-percent-one of the highest for stem cell surgery.

John S. Condeelis, Ph.D., professor and co-chair of anatomy and structural biology, co-director of the Gruss Lipper Biophotonics Center, scientific director of the Analytic Imaging Facility, and director of Einstein's Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Program, was invested as the Judith and Burton P. Resnick Chair in Translational Research. Through his pioneering research in how cancer spreads, Dr. Condeelis has helped advance the methodology used by researchers to study aspects of the living cell, and provided important insights into metastatic breast cancer. 

Dinner ceremony Ekaterina Dadachova, Ph.D., associate professor of nuclear medicine and of microbiology & immunology, was invested as the Sylvia and Robert S. Olnick Faculty Scholar in Cancer Research. Through her studies using radioimmunotherapy (RIT), Dr. Dadachova has demonstrated the potential of RIT - previously considered an exclusive treatment for cancer - in treating fungal, bacterial, and viral infections. Most recently, her development of RIT to treat metastatic melanoma has led to clinical trials that are under way in Israel.

John J. Foxe, Ph.D., professor of pediatrics, was invested as the newly created position of research director for Einstein's Children's Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center (CERC). In his new role, Dr. Foxe will bridge the broad range of the investigations taking place in our neurology and neuroscience laboratories with the cognitive and developmental efforts provided through CERC's renowned clinical programs.

Gary Goldberg, M.B., Ch.B., professor and vice chair of obstetrics & gynecology and women's health, was invested as the Linda and Earle Altman Faculty Scholar. Throughout his career, Dr. Goldberg has conducted clinical trials for gynecological cancers, in particular ovarian cancer, cervical cancer and endometrial cancer. Additionally, he serves as chief of the gynecology surgery services at Montefiore Medical Center, The University Hospital and Academic Center for the College of Medicine, where he also leads the training of fellows, residents, house staff, and Einstein students. This includes overseeing the gynecologic oncology fellowship training program, which is one of just 40 such fellowship programs in the nation. 

John M. Greally, M.B., B.Ch., Ph.D., associate professor of genetics and of medicine and director of the Einstein Center for Epigenomics, was invested as the Faculty Scholar for Epigenomics. Within the emerging field of epigenetics, Dr. Greally studies the epigenomic regulation of the genome and its dysregulation in disease. The epigenetic regulation of genes - turning them on and off - is proving crucially important, since glitches in epigenetic control mechanisms, for example, have been found in every type of cancer that researchers have examined to date. Dr. Greally's investigations include studying the epigenetic regulation of stem cells, as well as epigenetic abnormalities in human diseases such as breast cancer, diabetes, Huntington's disease and allergies.

Sanjeev Gupta, M.D., M.B., B.S., professor of medicine and of pathology, was invested as the Eleazar and Feige Reicher Chair in Translational Medicine. A pioneer in translational technologies, Dr. Gupta is developing cell transplantation strategies that include stem cells, turning such cells into cells with appropriate functions. By analyzing the activities of cells transplanted into the liver, Dr. Gupta and his team gain insights into the molecular interactions that affect the replacement of diseased cells; these studies will ultimately reveal which liver cell types and the kinds of manipulations that would most likely repopulate a damaged liver.

Richard N. Kitsis, M.D., professor of medicine and of cell biology and the Dr. Gerald and Myra Dorros Professor of Cardiovascular Disease, was invested as director of the Wilf Family Cardiovascular Research Institute. Dr. Kitsis studies the mechanisms of cell death and the roles of cell death in human disease. His investigations have led to the discovery of new mechanisms that regulate how our cells die. He also has defined the role of regulated cell death in the two major cardiac syndromes: myocardial infarction (or heart attack) and heart failure. More recently, he has begun to delineate mechanisms that link different forms of cell death into a unified whole. Insights from his work have provided the basis for the development of new drugs to decrease the damage from a heart attack.

Dr. Richard N. Kitsis, Dr. Allen M. Spiegel,
Zygmunt "Zygi" Wilf, Audrey Wilf,
Jonathan Wilf and fiance Rachel Goodman,
Mark Wilf, Leonard Wilf
Jeffrey W. Pollard, Ph.D., professor of developmental & molecular biology and of obstetrics & gynecology and women's health, director of Einstein's Center for Study of Reproductive and Women's Health, and deputy director of the Albert Einstein Cancer Center, was invested as the Louis Goldstein Swan Chair in Women's Cancer Research. Dr. Pollard's work in breast cancer has pioneered studies on the tumor microenvironment, particularly the role of macrophages (key players in a cell's immune response to foreign invaders). His current efforts include leading a team of Einstein researchers in conducting studies that will focus on a wide range of diseases of the female reproductive tract, including menstrual disorders, endometriosis, and infertility.

Bruce D. Rapkin, Ph.D., professor of epidemiology & population health and of family and social medicine, was invested as director of the Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Comprehensive Cancer Prevention & Control Research Program (CPCR). He also serves as chief of a newly established division within epidemiology & population health, called community collaboration and implementation science. In addressing community health and health disparities issues in the Bronx, the CPCR Program promises to bring a vital new dimension to Einstein. Under Dr. Rapkin's leadership, program staff also will develop new methodologies in the primary prevention and early detection of cancer in the Bronx population that can be extrapolated to other populations of similar need throughout the U.S.

Jeffrey E. Segall, Ph.D., professor of anatomy and structural biology, was invested as the Betty and Sheldon Feinberg Senior Faculty Scholar in Cancer Research. Dr. Segall's investigations have largely focused on cell motility, particularly as it applies to cancer metastasis, or how cancer spreads. In addition to studies on breast cancer, Dr. Segall is collaborating with other Einstein faculty to apply the methods he and his collaborators have developed to other cancers, including glioblastoma and head and neck cancer. The goal of his current work is to reduce the rates of tumor recurrence through the discovery of new ways to block the ability of tumor cells to spread and metastasize.

Ulrich Steidl, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of cell biology, was invested as the Diane and Arthur B. Belfer Faculty Scholar in Cancer Research. Dr. Steidl's research examines critical mechanisms that drive the development of deregulated stem cells known as leukemia stem cells (LSC), which contribute to treatment failure in leukemia patients. To date, his promising contributions aid understanding of the molecular pathways implicated in the development of acute myeloid leukemias (AML). His investigations also focus on identifying strategies by which these cancer stem cells can be eradicated.

R. Suzanne Zukin, Ph.D., professor of neuroscience and director of Einstein's Neuropsychopharmacology Center, was invested as the F.M. Kirby Chair in Neural Repair and Protection. For nearly three decades, Dr. Zukin has had a leading role in the research of brain glutamate receptors, furthering the understanding of how these receptors impact on neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, Huntington's disease, and stroke. Her current work includes evaluating three approaches to addressing damage from stroke. These include "rescue," which takes place following an ischemic event; "protection," which prevents an ischemic event; and "neural repair," which involves the potential use of stem cells to stimulate the growth or repair of cells that would otherwise die.

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