Marc Lalande has been appointed to the new position of executive director of Genomics and Personalized Medicine Programs at the University of Connecticut, effective Sept. 1. In this role, Lalande will report to the Office of the Provost and also work closely with Jeffrey Seemann, UConn’s vice president for research.
Lalande will help lead the development of innovative research and training programs for the Institute for System Genomics, collaborations with The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, as well as industry and government partnerships for the planned CT Institute for Medical Innovation and Applied Health Care Economics. These important initiatives will help drive cutting-edge research across UConn campuses and its partners and will position the University as a global leader in genomics and personalized medicine.
“I am grateful to the University for giving me this opportunity to integrate genomics into the research and education mission across our campuses and to enhance collaborations with our affiliated hospitals and The Jackson Laboratory,” says Lalande.
While leading these initiatives, Lalande will maintain his current positions as the Health Net, Inc. professor and chairman of the Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology and director of both the University of Connecticut Stem Cell Institute and the Institute for Systems Genomics.
In order to fulfill his new responsibilities, Lalande will step down from his position as senior associate dean for research planning and coordination at the UConn School of Medicine. “Dr. Lalande has been a tireless advocate for and leader of the School of Medicine’s research portfolio and expansion, and we are grateful for his dedication and service in that role,” says Dr. Frank Torti, medical school dean and executive vice president for health affairs at the Health Center.
Victor Hesselbrock has agreed to serve as the interim dean during a national search for a permanent senior associate dean for research. Hesselbrock holds the Health Net, Inc. Endowed Chair in Addiction Studies and is principal investigator and scientific director of the NIH/NIAAA funded Alcohol Research Center at the Health Center. Hesselbrock also serves as vice chair of the Department of Psychiatry and associate director and chief scientific officer of Connecticut Institute for Clinical and Translational Science (CICATS). Hesselbrock has had continuous NIH funding since 1976 and his research is nationally and internationally recognized. He has published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles.
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