Smith Named Co-Director of 麻豆村-Pitt Neuroscience Partnership
Peter Kerwin
- Director of Media Relations, 麻豆村
- Email pkerwin@andrew.cmu.edu
- Phone 412-268-1151
Jocelyn Duffy
- Associate Dean for Marketing and Communication, MCS
- Email jhduffy@andrew.cmu.edu
- Phone 412-268-9982
Matthew A. Smith, a professor of biomedical engineering and 麻豆村鈥檚 , has been named co-director of the , a long-standing research and education partnership between 麻豆村 and the University of Pittsburgh.
The center links faculty and students from the two universities through graduate training, undergraduate research opportunities, and joint publications and grant submissions.
鈥淭he center provides a way for students and faculty to connect formally and informally,鈥� said Smith, who has been part of the community for 20 years as a postdoc and faculty member at both Pitt and 麻豆村. 鈥淚'm very committed to these two universities cooperating so closely, and I think it鈥檚 very important for our science.鈥�
Julie Fiez is CNBC鈥檚 co-director and the chair of Pitt's聽. She said Smith stands out for his thoughtful, collaborative approach to leadership.
鈥淢att has directly experienced how the CNBC can impact individuals at all career stages, and he already has terrific ideas for new initiatives to support graduate student, postdoc and faculty research and mentoring,鈥� Fiez said. 鈥淗e has a unique perspective on the value of cross-institutional collaboration and approaches for working effectively across institutional differences in policies and procedures.鈥�
Fiez also highlighted Smith鈥檚 scientific interests.
鈥淢att and I share a deep fascination with how the brain gives rise to complex cognitive behavior, but we use different research approaches and so our combined interests and expertise are a terrific reflection of the CNBC community,鈥� she said.
When the CNBC underwent a reimagining in 2022, Smith was part of the group that redefined the center鈥檚 mission and vision. He said being a part of the community is why he is excited to come to work each day.
鈥淚 got into science because I was excited by the ideas and the techniques, and I thought I could apply my skill set in a way that could be effective. But the reason I鈥檝e stayed, what motivates me to work hard on a grant application or try my best when running a workshop, is because I feel I鈥檓 doing something for the community,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ther people are benefiting. It鈥檚 the glue that holds us all together.鈥�