Contact: Jennifer Sereno, Communications
Morgridge Institute for Research
(608) 770-8084
jsereno@warf.org
MADISON, Wis.— As the scientific capacity of the Morgridge Institute for Research continues to grow, three recent additions will add significantly to the private, nonprofit institute’s leadership and scientific talent.
The recently hired employees are:
* Jeanne McCabe, chief operating officer. McCabe joins the Morgridge Institute for Research in this new position following her most recent work as director of research administration with BloodCenter of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. Prior to that, she served as research administrator for University of Iowa Health Care. McCabe reports to Sangtae “Sang” Kim, executive director of the Morgridge Institute for Research, and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the institute. McCabe, a certified public accountant whose background includes accounting and grants administration experience, holds an MBA from the University of Iowa.
* Ariel Fernández, distinguished investigator, pharmaceutical informatics. Fernández, a native of Bahía Blanca, Argentina, previously held the Karl F. Hasselmann Chair in Engineering at Rice University and served as a professor of bioengineering. Fernández focuses on molecular targets for cancer therapy and transformative concepts in drug design including the ability to re-engineer molecules known as kinase inhibitors for improved therapeutic efficacy and reduced toxicity. Fernández holds undergraduate degrees from the Universidad Nacional del Sur in Argentina, his Ph.D. from Yale University and engaged in postdoctoral studies with Nobel Laureate Manfred Eigen at Göttingen University. Over a distinguished research career in the chemical sciences, he has received this field’s notable awards including the Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award.
* Pilar Ossorio, bioethics scholar in residence. Ossorio is currently an associate professor of law and bioethics at the University of Wisconsin Law School and was selected to serve in this newly created position. The bioethics scholar-in-residence program is part of an effort to provide support to biological researchers across the UW–Madison campus who may encounter ethical issues while conducting research. Addressing bioethics issues in timely, transparent and structured ways has been shown to facilitate discovery and improve public understanding of scientific challenges. Ossorio holds a law degree from the University of California, Berkeley and a doctorate in microbiology and immunology from Stanford University.
“With these latest leadership and scientific additions, the Morgridge Institute for Research continues to build the foundation needed to accelerate the discovery and delivery of scientific breakthroughs to improve human health and well-being,” said Kim. “We are pleased that the private, nonprofit structure of the institute is enabling us to pursue timely recruiting opportunities, develop groundbreaking initiatives such as the bioethics scholar-in-residence program and establish new collaborations to benefit UW–Madison.”
The Morgridge Institute for Research currently employs 66 and additional staff will be hired in the weeks and months ahead as the planned research program moves forward. Employment is projected to reach 110 people by 2015.
About the Morgridge Institute for Research
Made possible with support from John and Tashia Morgridge, other private donors and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, the interdisciplinary Morgridge Institute for Research aims to speed the process through which discoveries in the laboratory are delivered to the public to advance human health and well-being. The Morgridge Institute’s scientific leaders pursue research challenges and programming in regenerative biology; virology; medical devices; pharmaceutical informatics; education research; core computational technology; and education and outreach experiences. The private, nonprofit Morgridge Institute for Research is located on the UW–Madison campus and works collaboratively with the public Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. For more, visit: http://discovery.wisc.edu/morgridge.
