Autumn 2008

Ticker

Emory research funding up by 7 percent in 2008

University scientists attracted $411.2 million in funding from external agencies for this fiscal year. Federal funding, at $300.2 million, made up about 73 percent of the total, with National Institutes of Health funding, at $251 million, accounting for most. The Woodruff Health Sciences Center received more than $387.5 million, 94 percent of the total.

Emory rated as a ‘Great College to Work For’

The Chronicle of Higher Education recognized Emory as a 2008 “Great College to Work For,” rating it in the top five for: faculty/administration relations, teaching environment, facilities/security, satisfaction, work-life balance, leadership, communications, connection, workspace conditions, relationship with supervisor, fair treatment, respect/appreciation, and engagement.

In case of emergency . . . be prepared

The Department of Education has given $499,788 to help Emory develop its emergency management plan. The University was one of thirteen that received $5.2 million from the department. “We’re excited about having been selected from this competitive field,” says Alex Isakov, executive director of Emory’s Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response (CEPAR).

Emory ranks among nation’s top hospitals

Emory Hospital again joins the ranks of America’s top medical institutions in the annual U.S. News & World Report guide to “America’s Best Hospitals.” Emory achieved top-20 rankings in: ophthalmology (9); geriatrics (11); psychiatry (11); heart and heart surgery (13); neurology and neurosurgery (13); ear, nose, and throat (19); and kidney disease (20).

NIH gives $8 million to prevent transfusion infections

The School of Medicine has received an $8 million grant over five years from the National Institutes of Health to protect adults with leukemia who need bone marrow transplants and premature babies who need blood cell transfusions—two groups especially vulnerable to infections, said Christopher Hillyer, director of the Center for Transfusion and Cellular Therapies.

Proper nutrition for the young boosts economic health

Feeding very young children a high-energy, high-protein supplement leads to significantly higher incomes in adulthood, especially for men, according to a study by Woodruff Professor Reynaldo Martorell, chair of the Hubert Department of Global Health, who discovered through research in Guatemala that the first two years are crucial for nutrition programs.

Candler School of Theology settles into its new home

Candler School of Theology faculty and staff were able to occupy their new offices on Monday, August 11, welcoming both returning and new students to their spacious five-story building, which is also the new home of the Center for Ethics. The facility was constructed to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver certification.

Rushdie novel named the best of the Bookers

Distinguished Writer in Residence Salman Rushdie’s 1981 novel Midnight’s Children was named in July the greatest-ever winner of Britain’s Booker Prize. The novel received more than a third of the votes cast in a competition to mark the prize’s fortieth anniversary, beating out five other finalists, including Pat Barker’s novel The Ghost Road and J. M. Coetzee’s Disgrace.

Coca-Cola supports scholarships and sustainability

The Coca-Cola Foundation has pledged $3 million to the University over the next five years. Two-thirds will go to the Emory Advantage financial aid program for undergraduates in the nursing and business schools; the remainder will support student and faculty efforts to protect metro-Atlanta’s natural resources through Sustainable Partnerships for Atlanta Neighborhoods.

Bicycle racks on campus filling up thanks to Bike Emory

More students, faculty, and staff are cycling to work and class due to a free bike-share program started by Emory and the Clifton Community Partnership, with partners Fuji Bikes and Bicycle South. More than $250,000 has gone to support the initiative, says director Jamie Smith, and 500-plus bikes—including helmets, locks, and lights—have been checked out so far.

Natasha Trethewey named Georgia Woman of the Year

Professor of English and Phillis Wheatley Distinguished Chair in Poetry Natasha Trethewey, who received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry and the Lillian Smith Award for her third book of poetry, Native Guard, was named the 2008 Georgia Woman of the Year by the Georgia Commission on Women. Proceeds from its annual dinner are used to award scholarships to women.

Eureka! Biochemists receive NIH grant for glycomics

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded biochemists David Smith and Richard Cummings a grant of $1.2 million over four years as part of the NIH EUREKA program (for Exceptional, Unconventional Research Enabling Knowledge Acceleration). Together Smith and Cummings direct the Glycomics Center in the Department of Biochemistry in the School of Medicine.