A Scientist by Trade, A Leader by Example
When it comes to supporting science, the work of past Academy President Fleur L. Stand is never done. Even in retirement she continued to advance science for the public good.
Published September 1, 2008
By Adelle Caravanos
Academy Contributor
Contribute. Revitalize. Innovate. Used as a call to action in The New York Academy of Sciences’ (the Academy’s) first ever Comprehensive Campaign, these three words can easily describe the modus operandi of Academy Past President Fleur L. Strand. A member since 1950, the distinguished professor of biology and neural science became the second female Academy president in 1987. But Strand’s dedication and deep involvement with the organization did not end there. More than 20 years later she remains an active member and generous supporter.
Born and raised in South Africa, Strand came to New York in 1945 and earned both her undergraduate and doctoral degrees in biology at New York University. She continued her work at the Free University of Berlin and the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. Strand’s research at the time showed that adreno-cortical hormone (ACTH) has a direct effect on neuromuscular activity—a finding that was considered blasphemous, as it required ACTH to bypass its usual intermediary, the adrenal cortex. Unable to get her research published, Strand became discouraged.
Fortunately, it was around that time that she met David De Wied, the father of neuropeptide research, at an International Physiological Society meeting in Munich. De Wied encouraged her work; his own had demonstrated the same effect of neuropeptides on the brain and on behavior—now a universally accepted concept, basic to this field of research.
Ascending the Academic Ranks
Strand returned to NYU in 1961 and worked her way up the academic ranks to her present position as the Carroll and Milton Petrie Professor Emerita of Biology and Neural Science, following her retirement in 1966. She is the recipient of the school’s Distinguished Teaching Award and has chaired the Mayor’s Award for Science and Technology committee. She has authored several textbooks, including one for which she won the American Medical Writer’s Award. Strand was selected as Outstanding Woman Scientist by the New York Chapter of the Association for Women in Science in 1987. She also served on the New York State Spinal Cord Injury Board, from which she reluctantly resigned when she moved to Colorado.
For 58 years, Strand has been an active Academy member, attending and organizing meetings and editing more than eight Annals volumes. She also worked with the editors on The Sciences, “particularly in the choice of the wonderful art that characterized that magazine,” she says. Strand is a lifetime member of the Academy and was elected a Fellow in 1976. Her participation in so many facets of the Academy’s activities culminated in her inauguration as Academy President at the 170th Annual Dinner.
“After I was inaugurated, I was honored to give Surgeon General C. Everett Koop the Presidential Award,” she says. “This was at the beginning of the realization of AIDS as an important social and political issue, and Dr. Koop was one of the first to call for an alliance of American social, political, and medical organizations.” Then, as now, the Academy was the unique, neutral meeting ground where these alliances could be forged, with science at the center of the discussion, she adds.
Madam President
During her tenure as President, Strand was particularly interested in bringing “new young blood” into the Academy, and attempted to do so by initiating a founding group of active student leaders. Although this program did not succeed during her presidency, she is pleased to support the great success of the Academy’s current program, the Science Alliance for Graduate Students and Postdocs. Strand adds that she has kept in close contact with many of her own doctoral students, most of whom are deeply involved in academic or research positions. She says they report on their current research and projects at an annual neuropeptide conference at Strand’s upstate New York home.
Earlier this year, Strand reached out to former Academy leaders, inviting them to support the new Comprehensive Campaign: “Sustainability through Science and Technology.” She called for the creation of a “Past President’s Fund” which boasts remarkably high participation.
Katie Thibodeau, the Academy’s major gifts officer, praises Strand’s dedication to the Academy. “Dr. Strand answered our call to action with enthusiasm,” Thibodeau says. “Her passion and commitment to science and to the Academy’s essential role in shaping science is inspiring and truly valued.”
In addition to her work with past Academy presidents, Strand has pledged her continued support of the Science Alliance, the program for which she planted the seeds more than 20 years ago. Through this and other programs, she predicts that the Academy will continue to strengthen its function as an important, neutral convening organization for scientists, business leaders, and policy makers.
Also read: Scientific Community Mourns Fleur L. Strand
About the Author
Adelle Caravanos is a freelance science reporter living in Queens, New York.
