Education

  • 1991 B.A., Honors in Mathematics & Biology, Transylvania University, Lexington, KY
  • 1998 Ph.D., Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
    • Dissertation: The aortic root-aortic valve relationship in the normal, diseased, and surgically repaired states.
    • Advisor: Karyn S. Kunzelman, Ph.D.

Positions

  • 1998-2000 Postdoctoral Fellow, Biomedical Engineering, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
  • 1999-2003 Instructor (1999), Graduate Faculty (2001), and Adjunct Faculty (2002), Department of Chemical Engineering, Graduate Program in Applied Biomedical Engineering, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH
  • 2000-2003 Project Staff, Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
  • 2002-2003 Joint Appointment in Cardiovascular Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
  • 2003-2008 Assistant Professor, Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX
  • 2008-2013 Associate Professor, Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX
  • 2013-present Professor, Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX
  • 2014-present Isabel C. Cameron Professor, Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX

Adjunct Positions

  • Department of Cardiology, UT Houston Medical School, Houston
  • Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
  • Director of Heart Valve Bioengineering, Methodist Hospital Heart Valve Institute, Houston, TX

Funding Sources

  • National Science Foundation
  • March of Dimes
  • Pfizer Atorvastatin Research Award
  • Oak Ridge Associated Universities Ralph Powe Award
  • Human Frontiers Science Program
  • NIH, NHLBI, NIAID, and NIBIB
  • American Heart Association
  • The Whitaker Foundation
  • Cleveland Clinic Foundation Lerner Research Institute
  • Rice University Institute for Biosciences and Bioengineering
  • Simmons Collaborative Fund
  • NASA
  • Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas
  • Gulf Coast Consortia

Professional Society Memberships

  • American Association for the Advancement of Science
  • American Heart Association
  • American Society for Engineering Education
  • Biomedical Engineering Society
  • Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society
  • Houston Society for Engineering in Medicine and Biology
  • Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers
  • International Society for Applied Cardiovascular Biology
  • Society for Biomaterials
  • Society for Experimental Mechanics
  • Society for Heart Valve Disease

grande @ rice.edu
Faculty page