October 22, 2025

Faculty and colleagues recently gathered to honor Kenny J. Simansky, PhD, professor emeritus of pharmacology and physiology, and psychiatry, who stepped down as senior vice dean of the Office of Research in July. For more than 40 years, Dr. Simansky’s visionary leadership, pioneering research and unwavering dedication to education made him a driving force behind the College’s evolution.

Dr. Simansky’s illustrious career was celebrated by his colleagues and mentees at a Festschrift event on October 7, 2025. The program featured presentations and remarks on his contributions to science, research, education, service and academic leadership.

“Dr. Simansky was instrumental in cultivating my passion for science and discovery, a principle I now instill in my own trainees,” says Nicholas V. DiPatrizio, PhD neuroscience ’08, who was mentored by Dr. Simansky and is now a professor of biomedical sciences and director of the Center for Cannabinoid Research at the University of California Riverside School of Medicine. “He is a kind and reliable advocate for his trainees' success. He is an exceptional mentor who continually challenges his trainees to critically analyze scientific problems, helping them develop into more proficient scientists.”

Dr. Simansky began his career here in 1982 as an assistant professor of pharmacology at the Medical College of Pennsylvania. Over the  decades, he rose through the ranks at the College of Medicine to become a tenured professor of pharmacology and physiology, and psychiatry, where his research helped define key mechanisms in neuroscience. His lab’s pioneering work on serotonin’s role in satiety and thirst, as well as opioid and cannabinoid receptor mechanisms in eating and reward, contributed key insights into obesity, addiction and behavioral disorders. He also contributed novel research on serotonin in spinal cord injury recovery mechanisms, to the work of the Marion Murray Spinal Cord Research Center. This research expanded the scope of his impact across multiple domains of biomedical science.

Throughout his career, he published 51 peer-reviewed journal articles, 112 conference abstracts, and seven reviews and book chapters. From 1985 to 2010, he was continually funded as a principal investigator on NIH grants, and he delivered 62 invited lectures on his research at institutions and symposia across the U.S. and globally. He was elected president of the international Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior and served as a chair of multiple NIH peer review panels.

Dr. Simansky’s influence extended beyond the lab. He had a significant impact on curricular development, developing or co-developing seven courses and directing or co-directing 12, including — with Barbara Schindler, MD, vice dean emerita, professor of psychiatry and pediatrics, and medical director of the Caring Together Program — the College’s first Translational Research in Medicine course for medical students. He mentored students at every level, from high school through doctoral training, serving on 27 thesis committees and chairing seven. His dedication to mentorship earned him multiple Golden Apple nominations, as well as the Graduate Teaching Recognition Award.

Dr. Schindler says of Dr. Simansky that “his strong interpersonal skills, his incredible knowledge of neuroscience and how best to teach it, his warmth and sense of humor, his ability to provide a rational perspective on challenges and ability to provide support when needed even if the outcome wasn’t what you hoped for.” She adds, “His optimism is contagious; his glass is always more than half full!"

In his leadership roles, Dr. Simansky guided the College of Medicine through pivotal moments, including serving as the associate dean for graduate studies during institutional bankruptcy. He was appointed vice dean for research in 2006 and also held key administrative positions as Drexel’s interim vice provost for research and director of multiple graduate programs. He also has a robust history of service contributions, sitting on 99 committees, 19 as chair, including 21 search committees and seven accreditation committees. In addition, he secured a $940,678 NIH Research Facilities Construction Grant to upgrade Drexel’s animal research facilities.

Dr. Simansky was instrumental in Drexel’s involvement with the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Care Center Consortium, co-leading efforts that culminated in the center’s designation by the National Cancer Institute as a Comprehensive Cancer Center in 2024, the highest recognition awarded by the NCI. As vice chair of the Board of Directors of Lazarex Cancer Foundation, founded by Dana Dornsife, he shape programs assisting cancer patients from health care-underserved communities to participate in clinical trials. He has been recognized with numerous awards, most recently a Lifetime Achievement Award from the consortium and the 2024 Daniel V. Schidlow Transformational Leadership Award from Drexel.

“Dr. Simansky has a legacy of advocacy, which includes being a staunch supporter of women and those who would not have otherwise had opportunity in the fields of science and medicine,” says Nancy Spector, MD, who serves as professor of pediatrics, Betty A. Cohen Chair in Women’s Health, senior vice dean for faculty, and executive director of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine® (ELAM) and Executive Leadership in Health Care (ELH) programs, and the Lynn Yeakel Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership.

“Dr. Simansky’s unwavering leadership and support for interdisciplinary, cross-campus and extramural collaboration have been a great asset to the College,” says Charles B. Cairns, MD, the Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg Dean of the College of Medicine, senior vice president of medical affairs at Drexel and senior vice president of Drexel Health Operations. “His impact on international initiatives; securing funding for state-of-the-art technology and facilities; and raising the profile of the College among peer institutions, federal and other grant-makers, and industry is truly unmatched.”