EXCLUSIVE. MUST CREDIT EDISONREPORT.
EdisonReport has learned that Dr. Mariana Figueiro has left Rutgers and will move to Mt. Sinai. We spoke to her on Tuesday and she explained that this is best for the LRC and they will continue to operate out of the Troy, NY area for the foreseeable future. Below is a statement she sent to us:
Life, and particularly life in 2020, takes many unanticipated turns. Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai Hospital, one of the most prestigious medical research facility in the world, has extended an invitation to me and the LRC team to join the School. There, I will be a center director and a faculty member, where I will achieve my vision of placing light and health research at the forefront of improved clinical outcomes. I am seizing this amazing opportunity at Mt. Sinai, in part because it was not possible for Rutgers University to provide a working environment in Troy, NY for the LRC staff. Ensuring employment continuity for the LRC staff was a critical part of my decision. Mt. Sinai will create a facility in the NY Capital District where the interdisciplinary mission of the LRC will continue. Under the large umbrella of a “One-Health Initiative in Lighting” nearly all of the diverse projects and programs that established the LRC legacy will continue as the staff will be joining me in this new venture.
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai is a teaching as well as a hospital and research institution. I will also work with them to establish a Masters’ Degree related to light and health at Mt. Sinai, thereby continuing the educational legacy of the LRC as well. We will create an educational program where physics, design, and human factors remain part of the core curriculum.
Despite these times of turmoil and uncertainty, it is remarkable that the opportunity to expand the clinical arm of the LRC was presented to us twice in a matter of weeks. I strongly believe that joining the faculty and starting the center at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is the best possible option to continue our legacy of leadership in lighting.
I welcome you to join us at Mt. Sinai!
Mariana