Marshall Magazine Autumn 2022

development where we have real strengths to ensure we are having the maximum im pact possible o n t h e r e - gion’s growth,” Maher said. Smith, who

Marshall has been awarded grants focusing on addiction and recovery through the Center for Recovery Excellence, headed by Dr. LynnO’Connell, associate director of Addiction Sciences, and Amy Saunders, managing director of the center. They apply state-of-the-art techniques to provide services to people in recovery to maximize their chances of finding success and re-entering the workforce. This involves partnerships between state and federal organizations such as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Marshall’s Psychology Department and the Department of Family Medicine at the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine. “We work a lot on the most profound problems that address the state, and we hope that we’re hav ing an impact,” Maher said. “These folks are work ing to make this state a better place, either from an economic development perspective or from a health perspective.” Under Marshall President Brad D. Smith’s leadership, the university is reorganizing and even more sharply focusing its research strategy. “We’re also going to emphasize areas of economic

continues the tradi t ion of encouraging research, said the growth of the research enterprise at the university has been noth ing short of incredible the past few decades. “Under the direction of my predecessors, and with the commitment of our dynamic faculty, staff and students, Marshall has transformed into a Carnegie Classification R2 institution, a designa tion that gives us a standing in the research world,” Smith said. “Research is a two-pronged operation in higher education: it drives novel concepts and prepares the next generation of investigators.” Research is a priority at Marshall, Maher said, because it’s fundamentally important to science while also having a positive economic impact on society. “If people were not doing research, we wouldn’t have transistors, iPhones or cholesterol drugs,” Maher said. “All of that comes from people asking basic questions and training students to be curi ous. The economic impact of the research itself is that we hire people and we conduct research, and it creates a vibrant university community. “The most gratifying aspect is that the students and faculty are working hard not only to come up with innovative solutions, but to make them a real ity as well,” he continued. “Everybody in the com munity should recognize all the good work being done at Marshall and take pride in its commitment to research.” Dr. Barbara Becker-Cottrill is senior research associate at the WV Autism Training Center at Marshall University.

Amanda Larch is a freelance writer living in Hurricane, West Virginia.

Professor of Biological Sciences Dr. Wendy Trzyna focuses her investigation on cellular activity.

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