Half a step forward, two steps back: after hiring an interim president recently, the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine is losing its chief scientific officer, Arlene Y. Chiu. She'll step down at the end of October "to return to her home in Los Angeles," and continue consulting for the institute for at least six months. She said in a press release:
I joined the CIRM with twin goals: move stem cell research forward in an environment where funding was difficult, and work with Dr. Zach Hall to build a new granting agency. Both goals have been met. With the end of the litigation that delayed our funding, CIRM enters a new phase, as do I. It’s a good time to return to my Los Angeles home and pursue new professional directions. After I leave my day-to-day responsibilities, I have committed to working with Dr. Murphy to continue building on the CIRM’s scientific momentum, by recruiting new additions to our scientific team and developing a strong scientific agenda for 2008.
Insiders suspect Chiu's resignation is at least partly related to frustration over the difficulty the agency has had in finding a permanent president. After an unsuccessful seven-month search for a permanent replacement for former president Zach Hall, CIRM hired Richard Murphy as interim president earlier this month.
UPDATE: Dale Carson, the communications director at CIRM just sent a statement from Zach Hall that makes it even more clear what a big loss Chiu is:
Persuading Dr. Arlene Chiu to come to CIRM from NIH was one of the most important accomplishments of my presidency. As the senior CIRM scientist during its first three years - a time of constrained resources, Arlene recruited, mentored and led the scientific team responsible for awarding the first $200 M in grants for stem cell research in California - a remarkable legacy. She has a deep understanding of stem cell research, expert knowledge of grants administration, and extraordinary personal qualities of integrity, grace and a passion for the mission of CIRM. Arlene has left her mark on the DNA of CIRM. She will be hard to replace.
