| Diane Husic
is a professor of chemistry and coordinator of the biochemistry degree
program at East Stroudsburg University. She received her BS degree
in Biochemistry in 1981 from Northern Michigan University and a Ph.D. in
Biochemistry in 1985 from Michigan State University. Her
postdoctoral work in chemical carcinogenesis at the Wistar Institute was
supported by a NIH National Research Service Award, She joined the
facutly at ESU in 1988. At that time, undergraduate research was not
a significant component of the mission of the university. Dr. Husic
was a member of the task force established to initiate a viable
undergraduate research program at the institution and she helped to create
a campus-wide committee on Undergraduate Research and Creative
Endeavors. In addition, she has chaired the annual ESU Sigma Xi
Research Forum planning committee and helped to establish endowments to
support student research and travel to conferences. Currently, she
is serving on the Planning and Implementation Advisory Council for the
State System of Higher Education in Pennsylvania -- a group that is
involved in implementing system goals, including the enhancement of
technology and collaborative efforts with industry. She has been
active in developing high school teaching modules through the Science
Alliance Program in New Jersey, a NSF-sponsored business-education
partnership. Most recently, she received a NSF grant to help support
the development of a new, interdisciplinary biotechnology program at ESU.
After the establishment of a biochemistry laboratory during the renovation
of the chemistry building at ESU in 1994, she has involved 16
undergraduate students in research projects that have focused on
characterization of enzymes of photorespiration and biochemical responses
of algae to environmental stress. In addition, Dr. Husic is involved
in collaborative research projects with faculty and students from the
biology department. Beside research publication, she has contributed
numerous science articles for book series aimed at the high school
audience. She would bring to CUR perspectives from a public
institution that has minimal resources to support research, as well as
experience in initiating undergraduate research at an institution and
developing collaborative teaching and research endeavors. |