News Release

Friday, June 20, 2014

New NIH Council of Councils members named

The National Institutes of Health today announced the appointment of nine individuals to the NIH Council of Councils. The council was established to advise the NIH Director on policies and activities of the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI), including making recommendations on research that represents important areas of emerging scientific opportunities, rising public health challenges, or knowledge gaps that deserve special emphasis or would otherwise benefit from strategic planning and coordination.

The council is composed of 27 members nominated by the NIH Institutes and Centers and from the Council of Public Representatives, an advisory committee to the NIH Office of the Director. Council members bring knowledge of institutes and centers and Office of the Director Office missions and operations, not as official representatives, but to provide advice beyond the research agenda of any individual institute or center.

“I am delighted to welcome this distinguished group of leaders to the Council of Councils. Collectively the council will inform our approach to foster new ideas based on analysis of the science. We will benefit greatly from their diverse perspectives, insight, and experience.” said DPCPSI Director, James M. Anderson, M.D., Ph.D.

The following members will serve terms on the council through Oct. 31, 2016:

  • Philip O. Alderson, M.D., Saint Louis University
  • Marlene Belfort, Ph.D., University of Albany, State University of New York
  • Ana M. Cuervo, M.D., Ph.D., Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York
  • Judy E. Garber, M.D., M.P.H., Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston
  • Lila Gierasch, Ph.D., University of Massachusetts, Amherst
  • King K. Holmes, M.D., Ph.D., University of Washington, Seattle
  • Norma Sue Kenyon, Ph.D., University of Miami School of Medicine
  • Terry Magnuson, Ph.D., University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine
  • Norbert J. Pelc, Sc.D., Stanford University, Department of Bioengineering, Shriram Center for Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering, Stanford, California

A roster of the full Council of Councils with further information about the members is posted on the council's website.

The Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives, in the Office of the Director, NIH, identifies emerging scientific opportunities, rising public health challenges, and scientific knowledge gaps that merit further research. The Division plans and implements trans-NIH initiatives supported by the Common Fund and coordinates research related to AIDS, behavioral and social sciences, women's health, disease prevention, dietary supplements, tobacco regulatory science, and supports research infrastructure and science education activities. Additional information about the Division can be found at: http://dpcpsi.nih.gov.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

NIH…Turning Discovery Into Health®

###