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College of Human Medicine

Four Faculty Honored at Investiture

Originally published January 31, 2024

Updated April 4, 2024

Four Michigan State University College of Human Medicine endowed faculty were honored at a university investiture ceremony on March 4th at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts in East Lansing, Mich.

Each year, the ceremony is a celebration of faculty who represent MSU's commitment to academic excellence and innovation, and the donors whose generous support is making a difference for these top, actively engaged faculty positions.

The 2023 honorees are:


Honglei Chen posed in front of a window.Honglei Chen, MD, PhD

MSU Foundation Professor

Honglei Chen is a professor in the MSU College of Human Medicine Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. His research focuses on studying environmental causes of neurodegenerative diseases with the ultimate goal of disease prevention and healthy aging. His primary research areas include: searching for environmental causes of Parkinson's disease and neurodegeneration; understanding the complexity of neurodegeneration; and studying poor olfaction to foretell deteriorating health in older adults. Over the past decade, Dr. Chen’s research has contributed to a better understanding of the role of environmental factors in Parkinson's etiology. Learn more and see Dr. Chen's major research projects here.

Nick_Kanaan_adv.pngNick Kanaan, PhD

Maibach Smiley Alzheimer's Research Professor

Nicholas Kanaan is a professor and leading expert in aging-related neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementias, and the tau protein which forms hallmark brain pathologies (tangles) of the disease. He is world-renowned for his work on the underlying mechanisms of degenerative diseases and for creating novel antibodies. These antibodies are instrumental in advancing the field and could transform the clinical landscape through their use as biomarkers or immunotherapies for Alzheimer's and other dementias. Dr. Kanaan's ultimate goal is to improve the lives of people affected by these devastating diseases. Learn more about the Kanaan Lab.

Steve Ondersma headshot.Steve Ondersma, PhD

C.S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health

Steve Ondersma is a Clinical Psychologist and Professor at the MSU College of Human Medicine's Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology. His research focuses on promoting maternal and child health and healthy birth outcomes using high-reach technology-delivered brief interventions. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (Division 37), a former editor of the journal Child Maltreatment, and a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers. He is an investigator with the NIH Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) initiative and a member of the Board of Scientific Counselors for the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. He also leads an open science initiative that enables researchers worldwide to develop and share digital health interventions without coding. Learn more about Ondersma's work.

Kurt Zinn headshot.Kurt Zinn, PhD

Hickman Family Endowed Chair in Oncology

Kurt R. Zinn is a professor in the Departments of Radiology, Biomedical Engineering, and Small Animal Clinical Sciences, director of nuclear medicine, and investigator at the Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering (IQ). Zinn conducts research in the field of molecular imaging, including as part of cancer diagnosis and therapy and neuroimaging of drug delivery to the brain. With experience in more than 12 Phase 1 clinical trials, he expects to conduct clinical trials in both human and veterinary medicine and use radionuclides from the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB).