Dear Faculty and Staff,
I am pleased to announce that Lars Furenlid, PhD, will assume the role of Vice Chair of Research for Medical Imaging, effective October 13th.
Maria Altbach, PhD, Professor of Medical Imaging and Biomedical Engineering, has announced that she will step down from her leadership role as Vice Chair of Research and Medical Imaging Executive Committee (MIEC) member to focus on her recent grants.
Dr. Lars Furenlid is Professor of Medical Imaging, Optical Sciences and Biomedical Engineering, was a founding member, contact principal investigator, and director of the NIH-P41-funded Center for Gamma-ray Imaging (CGRI), serving as a project leader for the Center since its inception in 1999.
Dr. Furenlid has more than 25 years of experience in molecular imaging and the development and application of advanced instrumentation for x-ray and gamma-ray imaging and spectroscopy, optical imaging and spectroscopy, and related methods for biomedical research. Prior to joining the University of Arizona, Dr. Furenlid worked as a physicist for the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS), Brookhaven National Laboratory and served as a Consultant for the Dow Chemical Company. Dr. Furenlid’ s depth of experience across industry and academia, as well as his familiarity with the department, position him well to take on the critical role of Vice Chair of Research.
I wish to express my appreciation for Dr. Altbach, who has served as Vice Chair of Research since September 2016. During her tenure, the Department of Medical Imaging (DMI) oversaw 217 active research awards totaling over $18 M. In 2018, Dr. Altbach played an important role in securing office and research space for our faculty in the Biosciences Research Laboratory during the DMI relocation. Most recently, Dr. Altbach provided strategic guidance to the department during the finalization of the Master Research Agreement between Siemens, Banner and the University of Arizona. Thanks to her oversight on this important project, the MR pulse sequences that are considered “works in progress” (WIPs) are allowed to be used in patient care and clinical research.
Please join me in thanking Dr. Altbach for her service and in congratulating Dr. Furenlid for his new role.
With best wishes to you all,
Geoffrey Rubin, MD, MBA, FACR, FAHA, FSABI, FNASCI
Chair and Professor
Department of Medical Imaging