Dr. Carolyn Smith to lead research mission at Baylor College of Medicine
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Dr. Carolyn Smith was announced as senior vice president and dean of research at Baylor College of Medicine following approval by the Board of Trustees earlier this week. She has been serving in this role in an interim capacity since May 1.
“Dr. Smith is an excellent scientist and has been an outstanding interim leader of the research mission,” said Dr. Paul Klotman, president, CEO and executive dean at Baylor. “She has been a great mentor to faculty and trainees and will continue to advance the prominence of our research programs.”
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Smith has served as dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences since 2019, and she will continue in that leadership role as well. She was named vice president of education affairs in 2022 and also is professor of molecular and cellular biology and a member of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her research interests focus on the molecular pharmacology of estrogen receptors, regulation of gene expression by transcriptional coactivators and corepressors, tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer and steroid hormone action in urothelial carcinomas.
“It has been a privilege to have Baylor College of Medicine as my research home throughout my career. The collaborative research environment, excellent research resources, and talented faculty, staff, trainees and students make this a wonderful place to engage in science discovery. I look forward to working with our basic, translational and clinical research communities to ensure the continued growth and impact of BCM research,” Smith said.
She has published more than 100 papers and been funded for over 20 years by the National Institutes of Health, along with support from the American Heart Association, Department of Defense and the National Space Biomedical Research Program. She has served on numerous study sections for the NIH, Department of Defense and the American Cancer Society, most recently as a member of its Extramural Grants Council, and recently completed a term on the Board of Directors of the Endocrine Society.
Smith received her Bachelor of Science from the University of Toronto and her Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Baylor and joined the faculty in 1994.
