Stephen M. Black appointed associate dean of research at College of Medicine

Renowned translational researcher Stephen M. Black has been named associate dean for research at the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, where he is a tenured professor and chair of the Department of Cellular Biology and Pharmacology. He also serves as director of the FIU Center for Translational Science and as associate vice president for Translational Research. 

“Dr. Black has always demonstrated a collegial approach with tremendous constructive energy and collaborative leadership skills,” says Dr. Juan Carlos Cendan, interim dean of the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine. “We look forward to the collaborations and innovations he will forge in this new role.”

Black is a vascular biologist whose laboratory takes a translational/integrative approach to the roles played by oxidative and nitrosative stress in the development of pulmonary hypertension, lung injury and stroke. His labs have been supported by extramural funding for more than 20 years and awarded over $50 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, March of Dimes Foundation and other foundations. He is currently funded by several NIH awards, including two P01 awards focused on ventilator-mediated lung injury and pulmonary vascular disease. Over the years, Black has trained many M.D. and Ph.D. investigators who have gone on to independent academic careers.

“Translational science is important in training the next generation of physicians and scientists,” Black says. “I am excited at this opportunity to grow and focus the College of Medicine’s research efforts to turn discoveries in the lab into new treatments to improve health.”

Black joined FIU last year after serving as director of the Center for Lung and Vascular Pathobiology at the University of Arizona. His academic career has also included faculty appointments at the University of California San Francisco, Northwestern University, the University of Montana, the University of Washington, and Augusta University (previously Medical College of Georgia). He earned his Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology and his Ph.D. at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.