Research Leadership Announced

Ken Olliff, Vice President for Research has announced that Enrico Di Cera, M.D., Alice A. Doisy Professor and Chair of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, will serve as Interim Vice Dean for Research for the School of Medicine (SOM) and Deputy Vice President for Research in the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR).

As Interim Vice Dean for Research, Di Cera will report to Robert Wilmott, Vice Dean for Medical Affairs in the School of Medicine and provide leadership for SLU’s biomedical research. His responsibilities will include developing and implementing policies and practices to grow the scale and eminence of SLU’s biomedical research operation, advising the dean concerning the SOM research budget and programs, and overseeing SOM research infrastructure, space and instrumentation.

Biomedical research is a critical component of SLU’s research growth ambitions. Di Cera will focus on growing the amount of extramural funding, the number of impactful publications, and SLU’s ability to attract, mentor, and retain outstanding faculty in the SOM. He will continue to serve as hair of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

As Deputy Vice President for Research, Di Cera will report to Ken Olliff, Vice President for Research. In this role he will facilitate collaborations between basic and applied research in the SOM and across North and South Campuses in medicine, sciences and engineering. He will serve as a member of the senior leadership team in the OVPR and as a member of SLU’s Research Growth Committee. Di Cera will also serve as a liaison to the Applied Health Research Council and the Science and Engineering Research Council. He previously co-chaired the Sponsored Programs Operational Excellence Initiative Team that made significant changes to the university’s F&A distribution policy and established the Grant Operations (GO) Centers