National Institute Specializing in Mathematical and Biological Synthesis Names New Director
October 15, 2014
KNOXVILLE—The National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) will have new leadership beginning in January.
Colleen Jonsson, an expert in infectious disease dynamics and molecular virology, has been named the new NIMBioS Director to begin January 2015.
Jonsson will succeed Louis J. Gross, who is continuing on as a professor of mathematics and ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Tennessee (UT) in Knoxville, a position he has held concurrently with the NIMBioS directorship since 2008.
Jonsson has previously been active at NIMBioS, as both an Advisory Board member and co-organizer of the NIMBioS Investigative Workshop on Modeling Wildlife and Virus Zoonoses.
She comes to NIMBioS from the University of Louisville (UofL) in Louisville, Kentucky, where she has directed the Center for Predictive Medicine for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases since 2008.
Jonsson, whose research spans 30 years, is also a professor of microbiology in UofL's Department of Microbiogy and Immunology. While at NIMBioS, she will also hold the position of professor of microbiology at UT. Her research areas include the ecology of hantaviruses in rodents and other viral zoonoses in wildlife populations.
Jonsson has led other interdisciplinary research initiatives, including the New Mexico Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network and the Emerging Infectious Diseases Program at the Southern Research Institute, a non-profit organization based in Birmingham, Alabama.
NIMBioS is a scientific research center that supports cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary research at the interface of mathematics and biology. NIMBioS offers a range of fellowships for visiting scientists and educators each year. Since its beginnings in 2008, NIMBioS has hosted more than 4,700 visitors from 54 countries, and NIMBioS activities have led to the publication of more than 370 journal articles.
NIMBioS is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Synthesis Center supported through NSF's Biological Sciences Directorate via a Cooperative Agreement with the University of Tennessee totaling more than $35 million over ten years.
"NIMBioS has a proven track record of success in making substantial contributions to cross-disciplinary research and training efforts at the interface of mathematics and biology. I am excited to build and lead new multidisciplinary scientific directions and maintain already successful existing ones at NIMBioS," Jonsson said.
"We are delighted that Dr. Colleen Jonsson will be joining us as the next NIMBioS Director," said Dr. Taylor Eighmy, Vice Chancellor for Research & Engagement. "She brings a wealth of experience and has had marvelous success with her research and her leadership of transdisciplinary centers. She and her colleagues will be able to build on strong foundations as they look to the future. I trust that NIMBioS will further its national prominence as an NSF center focused on discovery in math and biological synthesis. On behalf of the entire community, we extend our gratitude to Dr. Lou Gross, the founding director of NIMBioS, for his leadership in establishing NIMBioS and securing the NSF renewal."
#
The National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis is an NSF-supported center that brings together researchers from around the world to collaborate across disciplinary boundaries to investigate solutions to basic and applied problems in the life sciences.
CONTACT:
Catherine Crawley, NIMBioS – (865) 974-9350 ccrawley@nimbios.org
NIMBioS
1122 Volunteer Blvd., Suite 106
University of Tennessee
Knoxville,
TN 37996-3410
PH: (865) 974-9334
FAX: (865) 974-9461
Contact NIMBioS
