uicnews.uic.edu July 12 2017 Volume 36 / Number 34 uicnews.uic.edu For the community of the University of Illinois at Chicago GLOBALCollaboration improves IMPACT health care in Ethiopia / pg. 6 Photo: Juhri Selamet UI Health Illinois Urban garden Record number marches in legislators addresses of Flames make Pride Parade end budget food insecurity honor roll impasse 2 3 8 1212 Facebook / uicnews Twitter / uicnews YouTube / uicmedia Flickr / uicnews Instagram / thisisuic & uicamiridis 2 UIC News | Wednesday, July 12, 2017 UI Health marches in Pride Parade It was all pride and smiles June 25, when about 80 tators to the city’s Uptown and Lakeview neighbor- commitment to inclusiveness than any university students, staff and faculty members marched as UIC/UI hoods. around. We know that no health enterprise in Illinois is Health in the 48th annual Chicago Pride Parade. UIC’s involvement in the parade started within the more engaged in the pursuit of health equity and the The hospital and all seven of UIC’s health sciences College of Nursing because of the college’s research elimination of health disparities than UI Health. And we colleges were represented in the delegation. focus on sexual-minority health, said Liz Miller, director should be broadcasting those truths,” Miller said. For the first time this year, UIC and the hospital offi- of marketing and public affairs for the College of Nurs- “It felt great to be able to publicly affirm our alliance cially appeared in Chicago’s largest parade, which in ing. It later expanded to include all of UI Health. with the LGBTQAI+ community at such a joyful event.” recent years has attracted an estimated 1 million spec- “Here on campus, we know we embrace a clearer Photos: Mark Mershon uicnews.uic.edu UIC News | Wednesday, July 12, 2017 3 Legislators end state’s record-setting budget impasse By Francisca Corona — [email protected] Lawmakers ended the state’s re- and $40 million in Medicaid funding to cord-setting budget stalemate July 6 by support the hospital and clinics. passing a spending plan that will provide Amiridis noted that although the univer- full-year funding for the University of Illi- sity still needs to address the fiscal 2016 nois System for the current fiscal year. deficit of about $125 million, he and other The resolution, which was reached university leaders are glad that the storm of after members of the General Assembly budget uncertainties has passed. voted to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s “Now we can focus on what we do best: vetoes of the budget package, is the serving our students and the citizens of state’s first budget plan — and UIC’s first Illinois,” he said. full-year budget appropriation — since In an email to the campus community, U fiscal 2015. Fiscal 2018 began July 1. of I President Tim Killeen wrote he is grate- ful “to legislators working overtime and “NOW WE CAN making the difficult decisions on a compro- mise to avert the potentially dire conse- FOCUS ON WHAT WE quences that loomed if the budget DO BEST: SERVING stalemate had extended through a third fiscal year.” OUR STUDENTS AND He also thanked community stakehold- THE CITIZENS OF ers who voiced their support for the U of I System before explaining the importance ILLINOIS.” of innovative legislation, like the System’s “Today’s legislative action to pass a proposal to shift to performance-based balanced budget for the state is a great funding. Killeen said the university would step forward for higher education in Illi- continue to advocate for stable future fund- nois and for UIC,” UIC Chancellor Michael ing through a plan known as the Invest- Amiridis wrote in a campus announce- ment, Performance and Accountability ment last week. “I am relieved and full of Commitment (IPAC) reform. The agreement optimism as we look to the future.” would provide predictable funding to the According to the budget plan, the U of university from the state over the next five I System expects to receive about $538 years in exchange for tangible performance million for fiscal 2018 —10 percent less goals that serve the needs of the state and than state support in fiscal 2015; an ad- support Illinois students. ditional $300 million to cover shortfalls “I hope the lessons learned during this The Illinois General Assembly on July 6 passed a plan that will provide full-year funding in fiscal 2017; Monetary Award Program long and difficult impasse will help restore for the University of Illinois System for the current fiscal year, which began July 1. (MAP) funding for fiscal 2017 and 2018; long-term stability,” he said. CDC division director named public health dean By Sharon Parmet — [email protected] “I AM CONFIDENT THAT DR. years. The division focuses on pro- Wayne Giles, director of the Division grammatic and research activities in for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention GILES WILL ADVANCE THE community health promotion, arthri- at the Centers for Disease Control and MISSION OF THE COLLEGE tis, aging, health care utilization, and Prevention, will become dean of the AND EXPAND ITS IMPACT.” racial and ethnic disparities in health. School of Public Health Sept. 1, pending Giles has more than 150 publica- approval by the University of Illinois leading clinical trials evaluating the ef- tions in peer-reviewed journals. He Board of Trustees. fectiveness of cholesterol-lowering has been the recipient of numerous Giles, 56, succeeds Paul Brandt- agents. awards, including the CDC’s Charles Rauf, who was dean of the school from “The School of Public Health is a crit- C. Shepard Award in Assessment and 2008 to January 2017. ical part of UIC and its mission is dedi- Epidemiology and the Jeffrey P. Ko- The Division for Heart Disease and cated to protecting and improving the plan Award. Stroke Prevention works to improve car- well-being of the people of Chicago, the Giles has a bachelor’s degree in diovascular health through public health state of Illinois, the nation, and the world biology from Washington University in strategies and policies that promote through education, research, policy and St. Louis and a master’s degree in epi- healthy lifestyles and behaviors, healthy service,” said Robert Barish, vice chan- demiology from the University of environments and communities, as well cellor for health affairs. “I am confident Maryland. He received his medical as improve access to early and afford- that Dr. Giles will advance the mission of degree from Washington University in able detection and treatment. the college and expand its impact. He St. Louis, and completed a residency Giles’ past research and scientific will be a great asset to our University in internal medicine at the University work includes examining the prevalence and our local and global community.” of Alabama at Birmingham and a resi- of hypertension in Africa, studying racial Wayne Giles Giles previously led the Division of dency in preventive medicine at the differences in stroke incidence and Population Health at the CDC for six University of Maryland. 4 UIC News | Wednesday, July 12, 2017 CAMPUS NEWS Scientific leader to head Chicago Biomedical Consortium By Bill Burton — [email protected] She helped formulate the CBC concept and the proposal that led to Phase 1 The Chicago Biomedical Consortium knowledge of drug discovery, as well as funding, during which CBC researchers (CBC), a research and education collab- connections to an outstanding network advanced our understanding of the biolo- oration of Northwestern University, UIC of relationships with the pharma, bio- gy underlying heart disease, autism, leu- and the University of Chicago, has tech and biotech investment communi- kemia, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and named James E. Audia, a distinguished ties,” said Brian Kay, the CBC scientific other medical conditions. researcher and scientific leader with director at UIC. During Phase 1, almost 300 merit- more than 30 years of broad experience In six years at Constellation, Audia based awards supported research in in the pharmaceutical industry, as its focused on epigenetics and the discov- drug discovery, epigenetics, biomedical new executive director. ery of small molecules that target chro- engineering, proteomics and systems Audia, currently chief scientific officer matin regulatory mechanisms in cancer, biology. Researchers and projects funded at Constellation Pharmaceuticals, as- immunologic disorders and other dis- by the CBC have so far earned $514 mil- sumes his position Aug. 1. A named in- eases. Under his leadership, Constella- lion in additional external funding, mostly ventor on more than 100 issued patents, tion established a portfolio of novel from the National Institutes of Health, and he will usher the innovative consortium inhibitors and immuno-regulatory mole- generated more than 1,700 publications. into a new phase in its second decade, cules in blood cancers and solid tumors. For Phase 2, the Searle Funds at The with a focus on fostering entrepreneur- Audia succeeds Kathryn C. (Katie) Chicago Community Trust has pledged ship and guiding translational research Stallcup, who will retire in September $21 million over five years, including $5 projects toward commercialization. after serving as executive director of the million for the first year, which began “Jim brings expertise and deep consortium since its launch in 2006. James E. Audia Jan. 1. Helping chemistry teachers, students tackle heavy metals By Carlos Sadovi — [email protected] UIC has received a nearly $450,000 mental scientists from UIC, Northwestern principal investigator National Science Foundation grant that University, Loyola University and mem- Kathryn Nagy, profes- will help high school chemistry students bers of the Chicago Environmental Jus- sor and head of Earth and teachers from seven Chicago public tice Network. and environmental schools study and address urban heavy “The young people in high school sciences.