Following a nationwide search, Karoly Mirnics, M.D., Ph.D., has accepted the position of director of the Munroe-Meyer Institute for Genetics and Rehabilitation.
Dr. Mirnics, pending approval of University of Nebraska President Hank Bounds, Ph.D., and the University of Nebraska Board of Regents, will begin at MMI this July. He replaces J. Michael Leibowitz, Ph.D., who retired in late 2015, and Wayne Stuberg, Ph.D., who has served in an interim role.
 |
Dr. Mirnics and his wife, Zeljka Korade, D.V.M., Ph.D., who also is joining UNMC faculty as a professor of pediatrics. |
“The Munroe-Meyer Institute is a very important part of UNMC’s mission,” said UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D. “Dr. Mirnics brings an extraordinary degree of experience to this important role, and under his guidance, I am sure we will see MMI expand on its already impressive accomplishments in research, education and clinical care. I am honored to recommend him to President Bounds and the Board of Regents for this prestigious leadership role.”
“We are excited to have such an accomplished leader and researcher taking the helm at MMI,” said Juliann Sebastian, Ph.D., dean of the UNMC College of Nursing, who led the search committee. “During his visits to UNMC’s campus, Dr. Mirnics impressed not only the search committee, but the staff of MMI and the wider campus community with his passion and commitment.”
What others are saying
“I look forward to working with Dr. Mirnics as the Munroe-Meyer Institute continues to lead the way with groundbreaking research, exceptional clinical care, and educating the next generation of researchers and clinicians. Dr. Mirnics will find a staff at MMI that is eager to help him make the institute an even stronger and more effective force, regionally, nationally and internationally, for helping those with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.”
– Wayne Stuberg, Ph.D., interim director, Munroe-Meyer Institute
“I was very impressed by Dr. Mirnics, and I think he brings a great deal to MMI. He is a leader who can coordinate the resources of the institute, especially its exemplary staff, to make MMI an even more effective presence in and collaborator with the community representing individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, both in Omaha and beyond.”
– Ann Bird, president of the Munroe-Meyer Board of Directors
Dr. Mirnics said he and his wife, Zeljka Korade-Mirnics, D.V.M., Ph.D., are looking forward to becoming part of the UNMC community.
“This is an amazing opportunity that comes around once in a lifetime,” he said. “MMI and UNMC are building something extraordinary, and Zeljka and I are excited to have the pleasure and privilege of becoming part of it.
“I am looking forward to further developing this already exceptional enterprise and to engaging the broader intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) community statewide,” he said. “I strongly believe that with our joint efforts MMI will become the national and worldwide leader of IDD-related patient care, education, outreach and research.
“Finally, I wish to thank you all for choosing me to lead this effort!”
Chancellor Gold expressed his gratitude to Dean Sebastian and the search committee for their dedication and the outstanding result. The committee, composed of med center and community members, worked through a meticulous process with many outstanding candidates.
“They did an effective, efficient and highly professional job,” Dr. Gold said.
Pretty exciting times for UNMC Munroe-Meyer Institute! Congratulations to the Search Committee on a job well done. You had a difficult task to fulfill, but an excellent team working together to complete it. I followed this rather closely, as MMI holds a very special place in my heart, and was pulling for Dr. Mirnics for multiple reasons. Looking forward to even greater things to come from MMI and missing my former co-workers/second family even more!
Again, congratulations, and thank you for all you have done for my family, and for people everywhere in the disability community who continue to struggle for better diagnoses, better therapies, and to be treated with dignity and equality.