An Interview with Dr. Ken Dawson-Scully, new NSU Senior VP and Associate Provost

 

Ken Dawson-Scully, Ph.D. joins NSU as Senior Vice President for Translational Research and Economic Development (TRED) and Associate Provost. By combining these two roles, he will bridge the academic and research opportunities at NSU to advance both faculty and student research and scholarship.

 

Tell us about your research.

I was most recently a full professor in the Florida Atlantic University (FAU) Department of Biological Sciences. I have brought my team of nine scientists to my lab’s new home on NSU’s Palm Beach campus. My lab looks at ways to protect the brain from different types of stress that relate to human diseases such as stroke, epilepsy, and neurodegeneration. We are currently funded by the National Institutes of Health and to-date have secured three patents and spun out two companies in Palm Beach County. These translational initiatives aim to improve the treatment of stroke and hemiplegic migraines. Our most recent patent is a composition of matter for a new small molecule that uses the scaffolding of the molecule resveratrol that led us to an extremely neuroprotective compound that we call resveramorph, which is very potent in the picomolar concentrations. Our lab uses the soil nematode C.elegans and the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as model organisms to look at synaptic transmission and calcium dynamics at the cellular level with behavior, genetics, and pharmacology.

Access Dr. Dawson-Scully’s publications here on PubMed.

 

What has your journey been to south FL?

I was born and educated in Canada and arrived in 2008 with my family in Florida, where I have been a resident of Palm Beach County for the last 13 years. In addition to my professor role at FAU, I also served as the FAU Associate Vice President for STEM Partnerships and Head of Institutional Partnerships at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience.

I am excited with this new transition to Nova Southeastern University where I will join TRED to further university-wide research opportunities and resources for faculty and students. I will also work with NSU internal and external stakeholders to build bridges to facilitate regional economic development.

 

What role will you be playing at NSU?

I am very excited to be joining the NSU at this critical period in its extraordinary growth. The strategic expansion of basic, applied, clinical, and commercial research have elevated NSU’s position as a rising research university. The fundamentals of a strong reputation in research excellence are supported by assets like the new HCA hospital, NSU’s premier research facilities, innovative research, highly qualified faculty, and all the NSU students who are advancing their lives and careers through NSU.

My role, along with my talented team at TRED, will amplify ongoing initiatives and build a recognized brand of research to the state of Florida. This will be accomplished by enhancing the student experience with research across the curriculum, driving and facilitating faculty research across all colleges, and leveraging NSU research as the innovation engine for economic development across the state and nationally.

My office will be in the TRED administrative offices, which are located in the NSU Shepard Broad College of Law on the Davie campus. I will also have a very strong presence in the NSU Center for Collaborative Research (CCR), the NSU Guy Harvey Oceanographic Research Center, and the state-of-the-art NSU Clearwater Campus. As my lab is located on the Palm Beach campus, I will also spend time there along with all NSU’s campuses around the state and in Puerto Rico.

 

Photo of Dr. Dawson-Scully and his research team outside his lab on NSU’s Palm Beach campus.

 

What are some opportunities for growth in NSU research?

NSU has had strong growth in research activity and expenditures over the last several years, and I aim to assist in its further advancement to the next level with regards to research and economic development. The creation of NSU Health is special because it allows TRED to be part of not only basic, curiosity-driven research but also, by enhancing our clinical research footprint, we can innovate toward improving human health and attract external partnerships. Additionally, our strong marine research presence in the state of Florida at the Guy Harvey Oceanographic Research Center is a jewel of NSU that has international prominence that I look forward to further facilitating. I also see some extraordinary potential for unique research and economic development with NSU partners through collaboration with TRED and our new world-class Alan B. Levan NSU Broward Center of Innovation, where the sky isn’t the limit!

 

What are your hopes for the future of research at NSU?

In close collaboration with the leadership, deans, and the research community at Nova Southeastern University, we at TRED will aim to further enhance grant funding toward achieving President Hanbury’s Vision 2025, increase undergraduate and graduate student research across all colleges and campuses at the university, and support a rise in innovation toward further economic development in our region. We also want to offer to our faculty and students improved infrastructure and resources to enhance their ability to do research as well as to fund and disseminate their research to the world. TRED is committed to facilitating collaboration across all units across the campuses toward a “one NSU for research.”