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Dear Wayne State community, I am excited to announce the selection of Ezemenari Obasi, Ph.D., as Wayne State University's new vice president for research, pending final approval by the Board of Governors in their January 31 meeting. Dr. Obasi, who will begin on February 1, joins us from the University of Houston, where he has significantly advanced health research through tackling health disparities, particularly in urban communities. At the University of Houston, Dr. Obasi currently serves as the associate vice president for research administration, and previously served as associate dean for research and as a department chair. Notably, he is the founder and director of the university’s HEALTH Research Institute, which was established in 2016. His leadership has been transformative, making the HEALTH Research Institute one of the top-ranked institutes at the university in terms of research proposals, awards and expenditures. Under his guidance, the institute established the NIH/NIMHD-funded U54-RCMI Center for Addictions Research and Cancer Prevention and made profound strides in health equity initiatives, especially within Black and Latino/a communities. A key figure in advancing the University of Houston’s health and medical sciences, Dr. Obasi led team science initiatives that advanced novel interdisciplinary collaborations aimed at addressing urgent societal challenges, built infrastructures to support community-based translational research and crafted innovative strategies that enhanced the university's research capabilities. In the College of Education, he developed transformational research policies that incentivized grant productivity and grant development programming, streamlined grant administration, and fostered consultation services, leading to a 2.5-fold increase in federal research funding. Prior to his appointment at the University of Houston, Dr. Obasi was a researcher and faculty member at the University of Georgia, where he was promoted and tenured. He received his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University and completed his clinical internship at Harvard Medical School’s McLean Hospital. Dr. Obasi's research, which has attracted more than $35 million in grants, including $19 million as the primary investigator, focuses on advancing health equity science and the neurobiology of stress. This expertise aligns seamlessly with Wayne State’s mission, particularly as we expand our commitment to public health research and education. I am excited by the wealth of experience as a faculty leader he brings at the unit, college and university levels, and his impressive track record of success in health research addressing disparities in urban communities. His work to bring faculty together in transdisciplinary teams to address national priorities across campus, as well as through external partnerships with health systems and other entities, will advance our capabilities and competitiveness for new research growth. In his current role, he has promoted the growth of sponsored research at the University of Houston, and the university has doubled its expenditures and improved its institutional rank from #140 to #113 over the last decade. This success will prepare him well to achieve the goals set out in our strategic plan. Let me extend my gratitude to Dr. Timothy Stemmler for his exemplary service as the interim vice president for research. Under his leadership, Wayne State realigned and stabilized its research administration and infrastructure, positioning us for greater success in knowledge development and impacting our community. Tim’s leadership has been key in establishing a culture of collaboration and transparency in research administration that supports our investigators and advances the university’s research mission, including securing final approval for two transdisciplinary centers — the Center for Emerging and Infectious Diseases and the Ben L. Silberstein Institute for Brain Health. His collaboration with Vice President and General Counsel Mike Poterala on Wayne State’s tech transfer review also has set the stage for future success in tech commercialization and industry engagement, which will be mutually beneficial to both Wayne State and the Detroit region. Please join me in thanking Tim for his continued leadership and service to the university. I appreciate all of the members of the Wayne State community who played a pivotal role during this important search. A particular thanks to the members of the search advisory committee for their leadership and diligence, as well as to those who participated in the open forums and candidate vetting. I am also grateful to Acting Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Laurie Lauzon Clabo for helping to lead this search to a successful conclusion. Please join me in warmly welcoming Dr. Obasi to Wayne State University. His appointment marks an exciting chapter for our university community, and I eagerly anticipate the research growth and innovation he will bring to our institution in the years ahead.
Sincerely,
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