Dear Faculty, Staff and Students,

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Laurie Kilpatrick, PhD, as Associate Dean of Research at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine. Dr. Kilpatrick has been a dedicated member of the Temple community since 2009, during which time she has held numerous key roles, including Assistant Dean for Clinical Research and faculty appointments in the Departments of Microbiology, Immunology, and Inflammation, and Thoracic Medicine and Surgery.  

Dr. Kilpatrick is a recognized leader in vascular inflammation, sepsis, and acute lung injury research, having authored over 90 peer-reviewed papers. She has also held prominent positions such as President of the Shock Society, an international society promoting clinically relevant research into the basic biology of trauma, shock, and sepsis, and served on several National Institutes of Health (NIH) study sections.

She has also served as an Ad Hoc member of the NIH National Institute of General Medical Sciences Council. Her groundbreaking work on sepsis treatments and neutrophil-endothelial interactions continues to shape the future of inflammatory disease therapies.  

In addition to her research achievements, Dr. Kilpatrick has been instrumental in developing strategies and infrastructure to support the growth and development of clinical research – a vital component of the Katz School’s overall research enterprise. She worked with various teams at Temple to establish the Katz BioBank in 2022, and this year she helped launch the CollabConnect research partnership development program, designed to foster increased collaboration among Katz researchers.  

As Associate Dean of Research, Dr. Kilpatrick will collaborate with Erica Golemis, PhD, Senior Associate Dean for Research, to provide leadership and strategic oversight for our school’s research activities. She will help develop a clinical research strategy, evaluate research productivity, and ensure faculty have the resources they need to succeed alongside supporting faculty career development. We are confident that Dr. Kilpatrick’s leadership will continue to advance our research mission by fostering a vibrant research environment across Temple. 

 Please join me in congratulating Dr. Kilpatrick on her well-deserved appointment.  

Sincerely,

Amy J. Goldberg, MD, FACS
The Marjorie Joy Katz Dean
Lewis Katz School of Medicine

WellSpan Health and the Lewis Katz School of Medicine (Katz) at Temple University have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to establish a new regional campus in York County. The proposed arrangement will add the second regional campus to Temple’s medical school, which currently enrolls 880 medical students at the main Health Sciences Center campus in North Philadelphia and St. Luke’s University Health Network campus in Bethlehem, Pa. (read more)

Dear Temple community,  

Now that we have entered a new academic year, Temple University’s Department of Public Safety wanted to take a moment to remind students, faculty and staff of all of the available safety resources here on campus. The safety of both the Temple and North Philadelphia communities is of the utmost importance to us, and it is also foundational to the vibrant learning, working and visiting environment that we seek to provide.

We can help keep each other safe by following best practices and utilizing the numerous safety resources available here at Temple. Here are some best practices and recommendations that we encourage our Temple community to utilize.

• Save the Temple University Police Department’s phone number directly into your cell phone: 215-204-1234. Calling that number connects you with a Temple dispatcher, who will send a Temple police officer to you if needed. You can also call that number to report a crime.  
• Download the TUSafe app. TUSafe is Temple University’s one-touch personal safety app. It is available to all students, faculty and staff members at Temple’s U.S. campuses. The Temple community can use this mobile tool to connect directly with Temple’s Department of Public Safety.
• Register your cell phone to receive TUalerts here. TUalerts are an emergency notification system used to communicate with students, faculty and staff, as well as visitors, local residents, parents and the news media in the event of an emergency or impactful weather events.
• Students, faculty and staff can request a walking escort by calling 8-9255 from a campus phone or 215-777-9255 from a cell phone. This program allows students, faculty or staff to be escorted anywhere within Temple University Police Department’s patrol zone by a security or police officer. 
• Become familiar with medical amnesty. Temple University has a medical amnesty policy that states that no student will be subject to university discipline for seeking medical treatment for the effects of drug or alcohol use, and this amnesty will be granted to both the intoxicated student and the student seeking help for an intoxicated student.
• Utilize Flight, Temple’s free, nighttime shuttle loop service. With more than 50 stops within the campus patrol zone, Flight takes you where you need to go from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. The Flight service runs seven days a week, and you’ll never have to wait more than 15 minutes for a shuttle to arrive. Plus, Flight stops are easy to locate with their flashing strobe lights. The TransLoc app enables you to track when a shuttle is approaching the nearest stop.
• If you are a student living off campus, use Temple’s Best Nest Program, which offers students the ability to search off-campus housing options that meet certain safety, security and good neighbor criteria. The Best Nest Program allows properties to display recognition as either a cherry- or diamond-certified property on their listing, thus providing students with more information about the locations where they consider living. 

I also want to update you on our latest public safety initiatives. While our students were away for the summer, our team worked hard, and we invite you to continue to monitor our progress through the Safety Dashboard. Here is just a snapshot of some recent accomplishments over the last several months. 

• Temple is the first university in Pennsylvania to use license-plate reading cameras from Flock Safety.
• We have made major upgrades to the department’s records management and report system for the first time in more than 20 years. This new system, called the Automated Records Management System, or ARMS, improves communication between dispatchers and police officers, while providing rich data for analysis to allocate resources and direct strategy. 
• In an effort to better serve the Temple community, we expanded our Investigations Unit. We recently hired two new detectives, and promoted a sergeant of investigations.
• Seven police officers were recently hired. We continue recruitment efforts and are leveraging social media and advertising to expand our reach. 
• In addition to new or upgraded equipment, the department is also installing artificial intelligence gun detectors, which will mark the first time this specific technology is used on a campus in Pennsylvania. 

Our engagement unit also remains committed to continue building a bridge with the North Philadelphia community. We are proud to introduce the Temple 42, the prodigious 42 students from George Washington Carver High School entering Temple’s Class of 2028. This represents about 20% of Carver’s graduating class, and many of these students credit Temple Police Officer Leroy Wimberly as the reason why they chose to pursue a degree here.

We encourage all members of the Temple community to stay updated regarding the university’s available safety resources. The Department of Public Safety is also on Facebook, X, LinkedIn and Instagram, and we invite the community to follow us for safety updates.
 
Best regards,

Jennifer D. Griffin
Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of Police

We are thrilled to welcome Samar Khan as Project Manager for Strategic Initiatives at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine. Reporting to Kendra Kirk, Chief of Staff and Associate Vice Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Samar will play a crucial role in advancing the goals of our Inspiring Excellence 2024–2029 five-year plan.

Already a member of the Temple family, Samar brings over seven years of experience to the role, most recently serving as Associate Director in the Department of Finance at the Fox School of Business. Her extensive project management experience includes facilitating cross-departmental collaboration, processes and procedures to support institutional recruitment, programming and events. Samar also brings a background in data analysis and business communications to the role. She holds an MBA from Thomas Jefferson University, is pursuing a Post Master’s Certificate from Temple in Clinical Trials Management and is a Temple PhD candidate in Health Policy and Human Services.

In this position, Samar will collaborate with the Dean, senior leadership, Inspiring Excellence working groups and various departments to oversee the execution of our strategic plan, ensuring consistency, adaptability and continued alignment with the school’s long-term goals. Samar’s leadership will be key to the successful launch and management of projects that support Katz’s mission to advance our excellence in education, research, and clinical care.