IBHE approves establishment of CBQB as a center at UIC
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UIC’s Center for Bioinformatics and Quantitative Biology (CBQB) was officially established as a temporary center by the Illinois Board of Higher Education June 23, 2023.
“No other center in the College of Engineering has been approved in the past two decades,” said CBQB Director and Distinguished Professor and Richard and Loan Hill Professor of Biomedical Engineering Jie Liang. “It’s great to receive this recognition for all the work we’ve done throughout the past five years.”
The CBQB aims to lead, coordinate, and facilitate campus research and graduate educational initiatives in bioinformatics and quantitative biology.
The IBHE’s approval establishes the creation of a new formally organized research or public service unit that has a temporary mission of up to five years. Being authorized by the IBHE may provide the CBQB benefits through increased statewide exposure and enhanced opportunities for external funding.
The center is expected to seek permanent approval in 2028.
Liang said the center’s approval helps them to accelerate activities, lead research efforts of bioinformatics and quantitative biology, and contribute to campus more.
The center plans to host their annual research day this fall, and continue hosting their journal club, annual symposium, and seminar series.
The CBQB was established in the spring of 2019 and is overseen by Co-Chairs Joanna Groden, vice chancellor for research, and Thomas Royston, head of the Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering, along with members Robert Barish, vice chancellor for health affairs, Peter Nelson, dean of the College of Engineering, Chancellor Marie Lynn Miranda, and Mark Rosenblatt, dean of the College of Medicine.