Oncological Sciences Center

People

Marietta L. Harrison

OSC Director
Associate Vice President for Research 
Associate Director, Purdue Cancer Center
harrisom@purdue.edu

Marietta was named Associate Vice President for Research in October 2009. She is a professor of medicinal chemistry and molecular pharmacology in the College of Pharmacy and serves as the Director of the Oncological Sciences Center in Discovery Park and the Associate Director for the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research. Her research interests lie in the area of immune cell activation and the role of immunity in cancer surveillance. The Harrison laboratory studies the mechanisms underlying the function of the pivotal tyrosine kinase Lck and the group has published over 60 articles in peer-reviewed journals.

Harrison served as a member of the NIH Experimental Immunology Study Section and as an ad hoc reviewer for the NIH Allergy and Immunology Study Section, the Transplantation, Tolerance and Tumor Immunology Study Section and various NIH Special Study Sections. She served two terms on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Biological Chemistry and as a standing member of the ASBMB Human Resource Committee. She is the recipient of the Lafayette Lions Purdue Cancer Research Award, Walther Cancer Institute “Collaborator of the Year Award” and is designated a 2009 Women of Purdue honoree.

Harrison received a doctoral degree in biochemistry from the University of Wyoming in 1980 and holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of New Hampshire.

Li Yuan Bermel

Managing Director
The Oncological Sciences Center
Women’s Global Health Institute
lmi@purdue.edu

Li Yuan (Luanne) Bermel, Ph.D., is the Managing Director of the Oncological Sciences Center and the Women’s Global Health Institute in Discovery Park at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana.  Dr. Bermel completed her postdoctoral training at Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 2011.  Her research interests cover various areas including vascular biology, cell signaling, regenerative medicine, and coupling of computational modeling and biological experiments.  She was funded by Johnson & Johnson to study vascular progenitor cells in heart tissue repair. She received her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from The City University of New York with research focused on bone formation induced by mechanical loading using computational cell network model.

Kris Swank

OSC Operations Manager 
kswank@purdue.edu

Kris Swank is the Project Coordinator for the Oncological Sciences Center. She came to the Center in October, 2005, from the Division of Recreational Sports. She brings 16 years of Purdue experience to her position. A Graduate of Leading Edge and Leadership Lafayette, recipient of the 1995 Student Services Merit Award, recipient of the 2006 Eudoxia Girard Martin Award, and the 2009 Discovery Park Sunrise Award. She is also an honorary member of the Tomahawk Service and Leadership Honor Society.

Susan McCreery

OSC Secretary 
smccreer@purdue.edu

Susan is new to Purdue University, February, 2012. She is the secretary for the Bindley Bioscience Center and the Oncological Science Center in Discovery Park. Living in Lafayette most of her life, she spent 13 years in retail, 18 years managing an out-of-the home decorating business, and the past 14 years on the staff at Lafayette School Corporation. In her current position, Susan will provide secretarial/clerical assistance to Bindley Bioscience and the Oncological Science Center staff members, faculty, and students.  Her main focus at the OSC will be working with the Cancer Culture and Community Program.

Catherine Reedy

Business Manager
reedycm@purdue.edu

Lanie Foster

Business Office Clerk
fosterl@purdue.edu