Robert Newman, PhD

Associate Professor, Biology, NC A&T University

Robert H. Newman is the Nathan F. Simms Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biology at North Carolina A&T State University. He received a B.A. in Biology and Biochemistry from McDaniel College in 1999 before earning his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2006. He then conducted postdoctoral research in the Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences in the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he examined the organization and regulation of cellular phosphorylation networks using a combination of live cell imaging and functional protein microarrays. Upon completion of his postdoctoral training, he joined the Department of Biology at North Carolina A&T State University where his lab uses a combination of biochemical, computational, systems, and synthetic biology strategies to better understand crosstalk between cellular signaling pathways involved in the etiology of a variety of disorders, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Since joining NC A&T in 2012, he has been awarded over $19M in extramural research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Department of Defense (DoD), published over 30 peer-reviewed articles, and mentored 70 undergraduate students, 25 graduate students, and 5 postdoctoral fellows. Importantly, many of his undergraduate and graduate students have gone on to pursue Ph.D. degrees and postdoctoral training at some of the nation’s leading institutions, including Johns Hopkins University, the University of Virginia, Washington University in St. Louis, Wake Forest University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Newman is also committed to excellence in the classroom, where he has developed both graduate and undergraduate courses to help students better understand and apply biological concepts. During his classes, one of his overarching goals is to help students successfully transition from passive to active modes of learning. To accomplish this, he strives to create learning environments where students not only receive information, but where they also develop the skills necessary to actively pursue knowledge. Over the years, he has received several awards for teaching and research, including both the NC A&T Outstanding Young Investigator Award and the NC A&T Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award in 2016, the NC A&T Interdisciplinary Research Award in 2018 and 2020, and the UNC Board of Governors’ Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2022.