Rutgers School of Health Professions alumna Dr. Laura Matarese, Ph.D. Nutrition ’07, has established a scholarship for doctoral students in our clinical nutrition program.

Dr. Matarese said she didn’t realize how simple it was to make a difference for students through the establishment of a scholarship.

“It is a way of giving back that I never knew was within my reach. I really thought you had to be a billionaire to make an impact through philanthropy. I sincerely hope this first step on my part will result in others coming forward to donate,” she said.

For more information on how you can have an impact through philanthropy, email Katie Mayfield or call 848-932-7961.

Antonina Mitrofanova, Ph.D, an assistant professor in the Department of Health Informatics, received a highly competitive National Institutes of Health research grant. The four-year, $1.3 million National Cancer Institute R01 grant is for a prostate cancer research project entitled “Generalizable biomedical informatics strategies for predictive modeling of treatment response."

Ni Gao, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions, received a three-year, $600,000 field-initiated research grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for a project that will create and test a career services toolkit for people with serious mental illness who are pursuing post-secondary careers and technical education.

Weili Lu, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions, was awarded a three-year, $600,000 field-initiated research grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for a study directed toward producing new knowledge about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for students in post-secondary education with psychiatric disabilities and co-occurring Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and the effectiveness of integrated PTSD outcomes.

A panel of treatment providers will be discussing opioid addiction, mental illness, and COVID-19 in a virtual forum on Oct. 16. The event is the first in a series of webinars being held as part of a grant-funded initiative to improve the ability of different health care professionals to work collaboratively to enhance patient care and health outcomes for Opioid Use Disorder. Tameika Minor, assistant professor in psychiatric rehabilitation and counseling, is the grant project director and she will be a panelist in the forum. Please register in advance for this Zoom event which is from 11 a.m. until noon on Friday, Oct. 16

We are pleased to share that we have expanded our Virtual Open House offerings due to popular demand! The success of these events has led to the scheduling of more than 50 program-specific events this year. You can find them listed on a newly created and easy-to-read page on our website.

We encourage you to share this page with those who are interested in learning more about specific programs.

Did you adopt a pet during the coronavirus pandemic? If so, you're part of a trend of Americans filling a void during the quarantine with a canine or feline companion, according to news reports.

We would love to see your pet and we think others in the SHP community would too. We're asking you to send us pictures that we can share on social media and in our next newsletter. The photo can be you with your pet together, of your pet alone, or even of your pet in Rutgers gear. Get as creative as you like!

Please make sure to also include your pet's name, your first and last name, and your role/title at Rutgers SHP. All photos can be sent to: marcomms@shp.rutgers.edu