College of
MARINE SCIENCE
gle “Diversi-teas” conversation run as part of the mentoring culture at the college; these address everything from racism to imposter syndrome. Students know he doesn’t have to do that – but showing up matters, especially now.
Samyntha Francis
Gary Mitchum
Assistant Director of Academic Affairs
David Naar Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Samyntha “Sami” Francis and David Naar operate as a kind of Leia and Luke at the College of Marine Science – relentlessly shining their light to improve processes and morale during tough times while fighting off any dark forces of confusion or isolation. Sami doesn’t just do her job, she serves her community. One student struggling with grief this year said Sami called her up every two weeks to check in and provide a “non-judgmental, safe voice of reason” – making all the difference in this student’s ability to succeed. When the pandemic hit, David also stepped up – providing information and support around the clock. When the visa status of international students was uncertain, he worked tirelessly with USF administration to find a solution while keeping the college community informed every step of the way. He is also known to routinely attend – and really be present for – every sin-
Associate Dean The pandemic took root as the college was hiring a new dean, making life more hectic than usual for Associate Dean (then Interim Dean) Gary Mitchum. Gary’s cool demeanor introduced calm through the frenzy of new information, COVID-19 related protocols and leadership transition. His daily walk-throughs among campus buildings have been a welcome comfort, and his profound commitment to student success is celebrated. When COVID hit, many students felt their research and career paths ground to a halt. Oceanography careers often depend upon spending time at sea but cruises stopped for months, and COVID disrupted the rhythm of lab work. But, said one student, the fact is that progress has NOT stopped thanks to Gary’s fierce, if quiet, work behind the scenes, often late into the night. He’s kept protocols clear and safe. This student was able to safely embark on a critical research cruise in Tampa Bay with Gary’s help, “and you can probably multiply my experience by about 100 over the past six months,” he said. Perhaps fitting for this ocean physicist, while COVID exerted all of its forces of oppression on the typical life of a graduate student, Gary was on the other side of the equation, providing the necessary opposing forces of calm, cool action to ensure momentum in careers and livelihoods.
USF Health
MORSANI College of MEDICINE Kami Kim Professor and Director of Division of Infectious Disease and International Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine As the world watched COVID-19 infection rates grow, physicians and researchers scrambled to find effective treatments. Dr. Kami Kim was on the frontline for USF Health and Tampa General Hospital at the start of the pandemic and quickly helped review, evaluate and launch more than 20 clinical trials that tested medications we all hoped would ease the severe and life-threatening reactions patients experience with this virus. In March, she was awarded USF Health/TGH’s very first COVID
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UNIVERSITY of SOUTH FLORIDA
trial: an anti-IL6 (anti-inflammatory cytokine) drug, funded by Regeneron. With her breadth of knowledge for infectious diseases as a medical doctor and her accomplished career as a basic science researcher, she continues to help coordinate trials. Her efforts have included trials for Remdesivir, dexamethasone, Regeneron, hydroxychloroquine, among many others – work that is providing much-needed data that will tell the world what works and what is ineffective for fighting this virus. Across the pandemic, she has also organized teams of physicians on using stringent protocols that ensured uniform patient care, continued to mentor junior faculty on how to conduct clinical trials, played a key role in testing the USF-patented 3D-printed nasal swab that helped impact the worldwide swab shortage in COVID-19 testing kits, and initiated a COVID biorepository to study relevant biology, pathogenesis, and serology of COVID-19 on residual blood/serum and nasopharyngeal samples and investigate correlations with patient clinical data.