TULANE TALK

October 3, 2003

Good Morning:

This was a particularly good week. It started with the announcement that our National Primate Research Center received a $13.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to build a laboratory where scientists will develop treatments and vaccines for emerging infectious diseases and germs that bioterrorists could use to attack the United States.

Tulane’s National Primate Research Center was the only such center in the country to be awarded this funding. This is a real tribute to Andrew Lackner, the Primate Center’s director and his team. Andrew is well on his way to taking the Primate Center to a new level of excellence. This grant also bodes well for the university posting another record-breaking year for research and development funding. To read more about this exciting story visit http://www2.tulane.edu/article_news_details.cfm?ArticleID=4878.

Also, this week Margie and I had the opportunity to welcome new faculty at a reception in our home and host a separate celebration honoring emeritus professors and chair-holders. These two events gave us the opportunity to recognize past, present and future greatness in our faculty.

I was also pleased to learn that Charles S. Hemenway, associate professor of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, received the first Mauvernay Research Award. Charles will receive this honor, which acknowledges his outstanding research in the area of childhood leukemia, at the Inaugural Mauvernay Research Excellence Seminar and Award Presentation. The seminar, which will be held October 17 from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the first floor auditorium of the J. Bennett Johnston Building, was established by Tulane with support from Debiopharm S.A., a Swiss drug development company. Open to all Tulane faculty members, the seminar will provide a forum for the exchange of ideas on the latest research accomplishments by Tulane faculty that could lead to the discovery of new therapeutic agents for cancer treatment. To register please call Melanie Cross at 988-6592.

Visit http://www.canceriscurable.com/mauvernay.html to see the other important work presented by Tulane faculty at this seminar. We should all be proud of the vital research and teaching underway at Tulane.

Have a great weekend,