Governor Abbott Announces New Governor’s University Research Initiative Award
Governor Greg Abbott and Texas A&M today announced that Kenneth Ramos, MD, PhD, PharmB, will be joining the Texas A&M University Health Science Center in March through the Governor’s University Research Initiative (GURI). Dr. Ramos will serve as the Executive Director of the Institute of Biosciences and Technology in Houston and as Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Services at The Texas A&M University System. The matching GURI award of $3.5 million will aid Dr. Ramos’ research on gene-environment interactions and how these interactions impact public health.
"The Lone Star State has long been a leader in science and healthcare, and the addition of the internationally recognized Dr. Ramos to the Texas A&M University Health Science Center to lead the Institute of Biosciences and Technology will further strengthen our state’s progress in these fields,” said Governor Abbott. “I have no doubt that the Texas A&M University System and the state as a whole will benefit greatly from his invaluable experience and wealth of knowledge from his years of research and time at the National Academy of Sciences. This grant represents Texas’ continued commitment to a world class workforce, excellence in higher education, and a diversified economy.”
Dr. Kenneth Ramos received his PhD from UT Austin in Biochemical Pharmacology and has held multiple faculty positions in Pharmacology and Physiology at Drexel University, Texas Tech University, Texas A&M University, and University of Louisville. Dr. Ramos completed his MD degree from University of Louisville in 2011. Since 2014, Dr. Ramos has serviced as the Associate Vice President for Research, Discovery and Innovation and Director Center for Applied Genetics and Genomic Medicine at the University of Arizona Health Sciences. He was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2015. Dr. Ramos has led multiple translational, clinical research, and educational programs that have taken a multi-disciplinary approach to elucidating the genomic basis for multiple for oncologic, pulmonary, and vascular diseases, and his work has laid the basis for the development of novel therapies.
Founded in 2015, GURI assists Texas public universities in recruiting the best and brightest researchers from around the world to the Lone Star State.
Read more about the Governor’s University Research Initiative.