For more information, contact: Dick Katschke katshke@mcw.edu
Associate Vice President, Public Affairs, Medical College of Wisconsin
Office (414) 456-4700 Cellular (414) 313-3158
David H. Harder, Ph.D., Kohler Co. Professor in Cardiovascular Research and director of the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Cardiovascular Center, has been promoted to associate dean for research.
Jonathan I. Ravdin, M.D., dean and executive vice president, announced that Dr. Harder, in his newly-created position, will oversee mentorship and faculty development programs focused on increasing faculty research productivity. Dr. Harder will work closely with David D. Gutterman, M.D., Northwestern Mutual Professor in Cardiology and senior associate dean for research.
“This position is vital to reaching our goal to become an upper echelon, research-intensive medical school,” said Dr. Ravdin. “In his new role, Dr. Harder will help laboratory-based faculty members increase their productivity and their ability to make new discoveries, and will help build a strong future for interdisciplinary biomedical research within the Medical College.”
“He will be mentoring junior laboratory-based Ph.D. faculty members as well as those physician/scientist faculty members involved in collaborative and joint interdisciplinary research endeavors throughout the College.”
Dr. Harder will continue as interim director of the Cardiovascular Center until a successor is found. Dr. Ravdin said that with G. Richard Olds, MD, the Chairman and Linda and John Mellowes Professor in Medicine, a joint, national search will be launched to find a physician/ scientist who will lead both the Cardiovascular Center’s research programs as well as the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine within the Department of Medicine.
“The Medical College of Wisconsin’s Cardiovascular Center is a national resource,” said T. Michael Bolger, J.D., president and CEO. “Under Dr. Harder’s leadership, it is consistently one of the highest funded research centers by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. It is also one of the world’s preeminent centers for the study of hypertension, stroke, and neurovascular and renal/vascular disease.”
“As director of the Cardiovascular Center, one of the most rewarding aspects of my work was mentoring young scientists and helping them get a jump-start in their careers,” said Dr. Harder. “We had remarkable success in the Cardiovascular Center. Working with Drs. Ravdin and Gutterman, I look forward to assisting faculty in the College’s other centers of excellence develop a track record in their research careers.”
Dr. Harder, who is also a professor of physiology, of medicine, and of pediatrics, is internationally recognized as an expert in the regulation of blood flow in the brain. His pioneering research has profound implications for the treatment of stroke, heart disease and cancer.
For nearly 30 years, Dr. Harder has received continuous funding for his research from the National Institutes of Health and the Veterans Administration. He is the principal investigator (PI) on a program project grant studying cerebral blood flow, was PI on a second project grant studying vascular biology, and he received the VA Research Career Scientist Award. He has published more than 215 research articles in scientific journals.
Dr. Harder received the Distinguished Service Award from the College in 2004, the highest honor the institution can bestow upon a faculty member.
