Dr Brocard is a Registered Biosafety Professional currently working for the department of Environmental Health and Safety at The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston as a consultant for the Biological and Chemical Safety program. She is the director of the Laboratory Biosafety Training program. Dr. Brocard is an assistant professor for the Department of Pathology and teaches a Biosafety course for the Graduate Experimental Pathology program. She is primarily responsible for training all the new BSL3 laboratory personnel in basic Biosafety and proper laboratory practices. This training also includes BSL2 users and BSL4 users as well as training for personnel entering the Animal Biosafety level 3 areas. She participates in the Institutional Biosafety Committee meetings as a non-voting member and is a voting member on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. She is also involved in helping new principal investigators on campus ensure they are compliant with all local rules and regulations. Responsibilities also include auditing existing research laboratories on campus.
Dr Brocard did her post-doctoral fellowship at UTMB in the Department of Pathology working on the interaction between reservoir rodents and Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis virus. She received her Ph.D. in Dentistry from King’s College Dental School at Guy’s Hospital in London, UK with her thesis: Live recombinant bacteria as vehicles for mucosal immunization against dental caries. She obtained her Master in Biotechnology from De Monfort University in Leicester, UK, in collaboration with Hogeschool West-Brabant -Breda, The Netherlands and her BS in Biological and Biochemical Analyses, from the University of Lille "A", France.
Bruce Brown is the director of Environmental Health and Safety at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and has more than 13 years of experience in the field. Previously, he managed the Chemical, Biological, and Environmental Protection programs at UTHSC-H. He started his career at Silliker Laboratories of Texas. At Silliker Laboratories, he had a wide variety of duties including Microbiologist, Chemical Hygiene/Safety Officer and customer service representative. Bruce graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a bachelor's degree in Microbiology and completed a Master of Public Health degree in Occupational and Environmental Health at The University of Texas School of Public Health. He is currently pursuing his Doctorate in Public Health. Bruce holds board certifications as a Certified Biological Safety Professional (CBSP), Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM), and Associate in Risk Management (ARM).
Michael Charlton is the Assistant Vice President for Risk Management & Safety for the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. He holds a bachelors degree in physics and a masters degree in health physics from Texas A&M University and a masters of public health from the University of Texas School of Public Health. He recently completed a Ph.D. in Health Physics at Texas A&M University. Mike is board certified in health physics (CHP), industrial hygiene (CIH), occupational safety (CSP), fire safety (CFI), and hazardous waste management (CHMM). Mike has authored several environmental health and safety publications and given numerous local and national presentations.
Charles Divan received his education at McGill University in Montreal and the University of Wisconsin in Madison. He has worked in the fields of Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Government Regulations for many years. Research interests have included various microbial species and their ecological niches from Pseudomonas, photosynthetic bacteria, and viruses to the biosynthesis of the neurotoxin saxitoxin and other Gonyaulax toxins. Charles has been with USDA, APHIS since 1987, when he was hired as a Biotechnologist by Biotechnology, Biologics, and Environmental Protection to work on new regulatory issues concerning genetically-modified organisms released into the environment. Since then he has held several challenging positions within USDA, APHIS. He is currently senior staff for the Agriculture Select Agent Program, specifically involved with Plant Select Agents and Toxins that are considered a severe threat and bioterrorism concern to the United States. He severs as the USDA, APHIS member of the Select Agent Steering Committee. This committee is a joint APHIS/ Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) activity to manage and develop policies and procedures for the APHIS/CDC Federal Select Agent and Toxin Program. He serves as the USDA, APHIS representative on several Federal Government-wide committees, including the Trans-Federal Committee to examine current and proposed Federal oversight regulations for BSL-3 and BSL-4 laboratories, the UNSCR 1540 Committee which, is developing both international and domestic rules, regulations, and penalties to prevent proliferation of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons, and the State Department-led US Government initiative concerning developing domestic regulations and international cooperation for regulation of dual-use techniques and technologies with emphasis on genetic engineering capabilities.
Dr. Robert Emery has more than 25 years of experience in health and safety and holds master’s degrees in health physics and environmental sciences, and a doctorate in occupational health. Bob is unique in that he possesses national board certification and registration in all of the main areas of health and safety;
Bob is the author of many peer-reviewed articles on practical health and safety topics and makes frequent presentations on such issues at the local and national level.
Kathryn is the Senior Outreach and Education Specialist in the Office of Biotechnology Activities (OBA) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). OBA promotes science, safety, and ethics in biotechnology through advancement of knowledge, enhancement of public understanding, and development of sound public policies. OBA accomplishes its mission through analysis, deliberation, and communication of scientific, medical, ethical, legal, and social issues in several areas, including recombinant DNA and human gene transfer, genetic technologies, xenotransplantation, and dual use research and biosecurity.
Kathryn joined OBA in 2004. One of her current roles within OBA is to develop national and regional programs of stakeholder relations, education, and outreach strategies relevant to the oversight of recombinant DNA and dual use research. In addition, she advises on biosafety and biosecurity issues. She received her Ph.D. from Cornell University and completed two years of postdoctoral training at Washington University in St Louis.
Prior to joining OBA she was the Biological Safety Officer at Northwestern University. Kathryn is Registered Biosafety Professional and a member of the American Biological Safety Association (ABSA. She was a founding member and first president of the Midwest Area Biosafety Network (MABioN).
David Holmes is currently Associate Director for Science and Team Leader with the Division of Select Agents and Toxins in the Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Previously at CDC, Dr. Holmes was with Constella Group as a Senior Inspector for the Division of Select Agents and Toxins. Prior to working at CDC, Dr. Holmes was an Assistant Professor of Biology at Kennesaw State University.
Dr. Holmes received his BS in Microbiology and Cell Science and Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from the University of Florida in Gainesville. He has completed post-doctoral appointments in Virology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics and has extensive experience working in and inspecting high containment laboratories.
Stanley M. Lemon received his undergraduate A.B. degree in biochemical sciences from Princeton University summa cum laude, and his M.D. with honor from the University of Rochester. He completed postgraduate training in internal medicine and infectious diseases at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and is board certified in both. From 1977 to 1983, he served with the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command, followed by a 14 year period on the faculty of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He moved to UTMB in 1997, serving first as Chair of the Department of Microbiology & Immunology, then as dean of the School of Medicine from 1999 to 2004. Dr. Lemon’s research interests relate to the molecular virology and pathogenesis of positive-strand RNA viruses responsible for hepatitis, including both hepatitis C and hepatitis A. Particular areas of research interest include pathogenesis and host cell interactions of hepatitis C virus, and the role of hepatitis C proteins in disabling innate immune responses and in promoting the development of hepatocellular cancer. His laboratory has also focused on the adaptation of hepatitis C virus to growth in cultured cells, and the development of cell culture assays for neutralizing antibody to hepatitis C virus. Dr. Lemon previously served as Chair of the Forum on Microbial Threats of the U.S. Institute of Medicine, and co-chaired the recent National Research Council-Institute of Medicine study "Globalization, Biosecurity, and the Future of the Life Sciences".
Keith McDowell received a B.S. degree in chemistry from Wake Forest University in 1966 and a Ph.D. in chemical physics under the direction of Martin Karplus from Harvard University in 1972. From 1972 to 1974 he served as a postdoctoral fellow with Richard Porter at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. From 1974 until 1983 he was a member of the Department of Chemistry at Clemson University, and moved from the rank of Assistant Professor to tenured Associate Professor in 1978, to Professor in 1983. Dr. McDowell spent the academic year 1981-1982 on sabbatical leave at Los Alamos National Laboratory. In 1983, he became Group Leader of the Physical Chemistry Group at Los Alamos. In 1988 he became Coordinator of Materials Science at Los Alamos. From 1991 to 1996 he was Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Texas at Arlington. In 1999 he became the Associate Dean of Science followed by a year as Dean of Graduate School. From 2001 until 2003 Dr. McDowell served as the Vice President for Research and Information Technology. In 2003 Dr. McDowell became the Vice President for Research at The University of Alabama and in 2007 the Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Transfer for The University of Texas System.
Dr. McDowell has won several awards during his career. In 1962 he received an honorable mention in the annual Westinghouse Science Talent Search. In 1978 he was awarded the position of Alfred P. Sloan Fellow. In 2000 he won the University of Texas Chancellor’s Teaching Award.
Dr. McDowell is the author of over seventy refereed publications ranging from applications of diagrammatic perturbation theory in quantum chemistry to quantum Monte Carlo, surface diffusion, dynamics in inorganic complexes, and quantum Langevin theories.
Michael D. McKinney, M.D. is the chancellor of The Texas A&M University System, which is composed of nine universities, seven state agencies and a statewide health science center. The universities have about 106,000 students combined, and the agencies, all of which perform agriculture- and engineering-related research, service and continuing education, serve all parts of Texas and beyond.
Dr. McKinney came to the A&M System from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, where he had served as senior executive vice president and chief operating offcer since September 2003. He had served in leadership positions at the UT System since 2002, including vice chancellor for health affairs at the UT System administrative offces in Austin and acting dean of the UT Medical School in Houston.
During 2001 and 2002, Dr. McKinney served as chief of staff to Governor Rick Perry. From 1995-1998, he was Texas Commissioner of Health and Human Services. From 1984-1991, he served in the Texas House of Representatives. He was speaker pro-tempore of the House from 1989-1990.
Dr. McKinney earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston and an M.D. from the UT Medical Branch in Galveston.
He worked as a family physician for 16 years in Centerville, Texas.
He and his wife, Lou Ann, have two sons who play professional football and one who is a freshman at Texas A&M University.
John Murphy earned a Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. From 1972 –1974, he was a Research Fellow of Biology at Harvard University. He is a professor of Medicine and Microbiology at Boston University School of Medicine, co-director of the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories at and chief of the Section of Molecular Medicine in the Department
Scott Patlovich is the manager of Biological Safety Program at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Previously, he was a safety specialist within the same program at UTHSC-H, and also worked with the Environmental Health and Safety Department at the University of Northern Colorado. Scott graduated from Colorado State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Health and completed a Master of Public Health degree in Occupational and Environmental Health at The University of Texas School of Public Health. He is currently pursuing his Doctorate in Public Health. Scott holds certifications as a Certified Biological Safety Professional (CBSP) from the American Biological Safety Association and a Specialist Microbiologist in Biological Safety Microbiology (SM (NRM)) from the National Registry of Microbiologists.
On Nov. 24, 2003, Kenneth I. Shine, MD, joined The University of Texas System as Executive Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs. In that capacity he is responsible for the six UT System health components and their aggregate operating budget of almost $7.1 billion.
Kenneth I. Shine, MD, was President of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), from 1992-2002. Under Dr. Shine's leadership, the IOM played an important and visible role in addressing key issues in medicine and healthcare. IOM reports on quality of care and patient safety, heightened national awareness of these issues. IOM researchers led studies on nutrition, food safety, child development; and examined availability and side effects of vaccines.
Dr. Shine was the founding Director of the RAND Center for Domestic and International Health Security. He led the Center's efforts to make health a central component of U.S. foreign policy and guide the Center's evolving research agenda. Dr. Shine brought to this new role decades-long experience working with international health experts on global issues such as emerging infectious illnesses, bioethics, and access to care.
Dr. Shine is Professor of Medicine Emeritus at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Medicine. A cardiologist and physiologist, he received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1961. Before becoming president of the IOM, he was Dean and Provost for Medical Sciences at UCLA.
Dr. Shine is a member of many honorary and academic societies, including Phi Beta Kappa and Alpha Omega Alpha, Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, Master of the American College of Physicians, and was elected to the Institute of Medicine in 1988. He served as Chairman of the Council of Deans of the Association of American Medical Colleges from 1991-1992, and was President of the American Heart Association from 1985-1986.
Dr. Whitney joined Texas A&M University in February 2008 as the Responsible Official and Biological Safety Officer. Prior to coming to Texas A&M he was a Senior Biosafety and Outreach Specialist (contractor) in the Office of Biotechnology Activities (OBA) at the National Institutes of Health. While at OBA, Dr. Whitney assisted in the development of national and regional programs of education and outreach relevant to the oversight of recombinant DNA research. He advised on all aspects of biosafety issues and conducted site visits as part of OBA’s site visit program. Prior to working at OBA, Dr. Whitney was a Biosafety Officer at the University of Washington in Seattle where he was primarily concerned with select agent and high containment issues. From 1994 to 2003 Dr. Whitney conducted research at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (School of Medicine). He obtained his Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from the University of Arkansas and completed postdoctoral training at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.