CEO Howard Lipman on the FIU Foundation’s pivotal role advancing the university progress

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–By Todd Ellenberg MS ’91 In this issue of SOAR, we spoke with FIU Foundation CEO Howard Lipman on the growth of the FIU Foundation and its pivotal role in advancing the university’s progress. How has the FIU Foundation evolved since Next Horizon was launched, and how has it been instrumental to the campaign’s success? […]

Participation matters: Alumni challenge gift made by two Panthers

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FIU alumni and students at a basketball game
–By Todd Ellenberg MS ’91 Panthers challenging Panthers. It’s helped encourage and inspire the pursuit of excellence at FIU over the decades. And now, a Panther couple has made a bold challenge to fellow graduates to step up and do their part for FIU. The alumni, who have chosen to remain anonymous, made a historic […]

Endowments build excellence while providing financial stability

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–By Todd Ellenberg MS ’91 The nation’s most prestigious universities are consistently assessed by the size of their endowments, which are the financial bedrock of a university’s drive to develop and sustain excellence. They provide the vital margin to fund transformational scholarships, recruit and retain distinguished faculty, and support important programs, thereby elevating the excellence […]

Ignite co-founder Stephen Fain reflects on a decade of impact

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In this issue of SOAR, we speak with Stephen Fain, Ed.D., the founding director of Ignite, founding member of the FIU faculty, and professor emeritus in the former College of Education (now the School of Education and Human Development). Since its creation in 2011, Ignite has become the most successful faculty and staff fundraising campaign […]

Mellon Foundation grants address inequities of vulnerable, marginalized communities

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Vulnerable communities are often disproportionately impacted by disasters such as hurricanes, floods and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. Often, these same communities’ voices have been silenced or marginalized when history is preserved.   Now, thanks to major grants from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Florida International University is addressing these inequities through two innovative programs that draw upon the talent and expertise of multiple academic areas […]

Forging the future: Developing personalized treatments for cancer patients

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The leading-edge research of FIU faculty member Diana Azzam is advancing the field of personalized cancer treatment. But were it not for a project when she was an undergraduate chemistry student in her native Lebanon, she may not have pursued her current work.  “I got involved in an observational study of incidences of cancer in a mountain area versus the city,” she recounted. “We found there was a higher incidence of […]

Jorge Mas and family make $5 million lead gift to CasaCuba at FIU

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On behalf of the Mas family, Jorge Mas, one of the most prominent Cuban American business leaders in the United States, has made a $5 million lead gift to CasaCuba at Florida International University. A founding member of the CasaCuba Board of Advisors and chairman of the Board and co-founder of MasTec, his gift will support the mission and […]

Medical enterprise responds to help community during pandemic

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Florida International University’s academic medical enterprise, with its many health care disciplines and strong community orientation, swiftly responded to the COVID-19 pandemic, furnishing a variety of frontline medical services. Through a partnership with Miami-Dade County, the Florida Department of Health and the Miami-Dade County Fair & Exposition, FIU has staffed and operated a COVID-19 test […]