Debbie Ricker | |
---|---|
President of Hood College | |
Interim | |
Assumed office July 1, 2024 | |
Preceded by | Andrea Chapdelaine |
Personal details | |
Born | Deborah Dianne Ricker October 1,1965 Asheville,North Carolina,U.S. |
Education | Mars Hill College East Tennessee State University Johns Hopkins University |
Deborah Dianne Ricker (born October 1,1965) is an American reproductive biologist and academic administrator serving as the interim president of Hood College since 2024. Her research has focused on reproductive biology,particularly studying sperm motility,fertilization processes,and the role of nitric oxide synthase in male reproductive systems.
Ricker was born on October 1,1965,in Asheville,North Carolina. [1] She pursued an undergraduate degree in biology at Mars Hill College,graduating cum laude with a B.S. in 1987. Ricker then earned a M.S. in biological science from East Tennessee State University in 1989. During her graduate schooling,she served as a graduate teaching assistant and laboratory technician in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at East Tennessee State University James H. Quillen College of Medicine from 1987 to 1989. [1] Early in her research,she studied reproductive biology topics,including the effects of platelet-activating factors on sperm motility and fertilization processes across various species. [1] Her research on reproductive biology and sperm physiology was further shaped by mentors such as Donald S. Coffey. [1]
Ricker continued her studies at Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health,completing her Ph.D. in reproductive biology in 1995. During her doctoral studies,Ricker's primary advisor was Thomas S. K. Chang,who encouraged her development as a scientist and educator and offered her guidance in balancing academic and personal pursuits. [1] [2] Ricker began her doctoral research under an National Institutes of Health (NIH) training grant. [1] Her work there included studies on epididymal protein changes following sympathetic denervation and the role of nitric oxide synthase in male reproductive systems. She collaborated with colleagues Barry and Barbara Zirkin,Arthur Burnett,and Evelyn Barrack,who contributed to her training and research in the division of reproductive biology and the department of urology. [1]
Ricker completed training at the Institute for Educational Management at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. [3]
Ricker's academic career began at York College of Pennsylvania,where she joined as an assistant professor in the biological sciences in 1995. [3] She advanced through academic ranks to associate professor with tenure and later to professor of biological science. [3] Her early research focused on reproductive biology,specifically the autonomic innervation of the male reproductive tract and its effects on fertility,with her work published in journals such as Journal of Andrology,Biology of Reproduction,and Fertility and Sterility . She received several research grants from the Pennsylvania Academy of Science to support her studies and undergraduate research initiatives. [3]
At York College,Ricker held administrative roles,including chair of the department of biological sciences from 2002 to 2008. [4] [3] She expanded the biology curriculum and developed a new ecological sciences center,promoting undergraduate research through events like Student Scholars Week. [3] Ricker authored strategic plans and led initiatives for a new general education curriculum,"Generation Next," implemented in 2015. [3] In 2010,Ricker became dean of academic services at York College,overseeing academic advising,career services,study abroad,and experiential learning programs. [3] [4] In this role,she developed first-year and at-risk student support programs,including the summer academic enrichment program,"Bridge to Results." [3] Her retention-focused initiatives helped improve first-year student retention rates. [3] Her research on reproductive biology,combined with her administrative experience,guided her work in supporting academic quality and program structure at York College. [4] [5]
In July 2016,Ricker joined Hood College as provost and vice president of academic affairs,where she managed the college's 17 academic departments and partnered with faculty on initiatives related to student success,institutional research,and community engagement. [2] Her work at Hood College includes developing new programs in public health,cybersecurity,and finance and advancing student success and experiential learning initiatives. [3] In 2019,she was one of four finalist to be provost of Elon University. [6] In 2024,Ricker was appointed interim president following the departure of Hood's previous president,Andrea Chapdelaine. She began this role on July 1,2024,overseeing the institution's strategic goals during the leadership transition. [2] [4]
Ricker resides in Jefferson,Maryland,with her partner,Christopher,and their 3 dogs. She enjoys quilting. [2]
Shirley Marie Tilghman,is a Canadian scholar in molecular biology and an academic administrator. She is now a professor of molecular biology and public policy and president emerita of Princeton University. In 2002,Discover magazine recognized her as one of the 50 most important women in science.
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The epididymis is an elongated tubular genital organ attached to the posterior side of each one of the two male reproductive glands,the testicles. It is a single,narrow,tightly coiled tube in adult humans,6 to 7 centimetres in length;uncoiled the tube would be approximately 6 m long. It connects the testicle to the vas deferens in the male reproductive system. The epididymis serves as an interconnection between the multiple efferent ducts at the rear of a testicle (proximally),and the vas deferens (distally). Its primary function is the storage,maturation and transport of sperm cells.
The vas deferens,ductus deferens,or sperm duct is part of the male reproductive system of many vertebrates. The vasa deferentia are paired sex organs that transport sperm from the epididymides to the ejaculatory ducts in anticipation of ejaculation. The vas deferens is a partially coiled tube which exits the abdominal cavity through the inguinal canal.
Internal fertilization is the union of an egg and sperm cell during sexual reproduction inside the female body. Internal fertilization,unlike its counterpart,external fertilization,brings more control to the female with reproduction. For internal fertilization to happen there needs to be a method for the male to introduce the sperm into the female's reproductive tract.
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The Centre for Human Reproductive Science was established in December 2006 to further develop research and innovation in fertility diagnosis and treatment,working in partnership as the academic and research wing of the Birmingham Women's Fertility Centre at Birmingham Women's Hospital and the University of Birmingham Medical School. A particular emphasis in the biomedical research strategy is placing research and discovery in the true physiological context.
Norman Tenner Adler through his research,teaching,writing,and academic administration,made major contributions to the modern study of biological psychology and in American higher education,having helped develop the fields that are now labeled behavioral neurobiology and evolutionary psychology. One of Adler's prominent experiments included an in depth analysis of mating performance of male rats and its relation to fertilization in the female,which led him to observe how behaviour could affect reproduction in species. With his students and colleagues,he has worked at the interface between biology and behavior. They have stressed the importance of combining the study of physiological mechanisms controlling behavior with the functional/adaptive significance of behavior in an evolutionary context. He was influenced in this approach by his undergraduate teachers at Harvard,especially Paul Rozin,Jerry Hogan,and Gordon Bermant,and his student colleagues like Don Pfaff with whom he has maintained scientific relationships over the years. His research was also impacted by Daniel Lehrman,and he worked closely with Lehrman's student,Barry Komisaruk,on hormones and neural functioning. Adler is also a prominent figure in American higher education,especially the role of behavioral neuroscience in liberal arts education and religion in the college classroom. He participated in Phillip Zimbardo's PBS TV series Discovering Psychology,one of the first distance-learning courses in psychology.
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Lisa J. Fauci is an American mathematician who applies computational fluid dynamics to biological processes such as sperm motility and phytoplankton dynamics. More generally,her research interests include numerical analysis,scientific computing,and mathematical biology. She is the Pendergraft Nola Lee Haynes Professor of Mathematics at Tulane University,and was president of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (2019–2020).
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The epididymis,which is a tube that connects a testicle to a vas deferens in the male reproductive system,evolved by retention of the mesonephric duct during regression and replacement of the mesonephros with the metanephric kidney. Similarly,during embryological involution of the paired mesonephric kidneys,each mesonephric duct is retained to become the epididymis,vas deferens,seminal vesicle and ejaculatory duct. In reptiles and birds both the testes and excurrent ducts occur in an intra-abdominal location (testicond). Primitive mammals,such as the monotremes (prototheria),also are testicond. Marsupial (metatheria) and placental (eutheria) mammals exhibit differing degrees of testicular descent into an extra-abdominal scrotum. In scrotal mammals the epididymis is attached to the testes in an extra-abdominal position where the cauda epididymis extends beyond the lowest extremity of the testis. Hence,the cauda epididymis is exposed to the coolest of temperatures compared to all other reproductive structures.
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