The Knoebel Institute for Healthy Aging (KIHA) Transition 

Dear DU Community,  

The University of Denver is proud to provide interdisciplinary research opportunities to our faculty and students through the Knoebel Institute for Healthy Aging (KIHA). Today, we are sharing with you details of the next chapter for KIHA, one that will expand the institute’s focus.   

After many years of distinguished service, Lotta Granholm-Bentley will embark on her next professional adventure with CU-Anschutz. Dr. Granholm-Bentley will continue to work as a partner with DU, which is great news for DU and our continued efforts to partner with like-minded entities in the region.   

Dr. Granholm-Bentley has been on the leading edge of Alzheimer’s research, securing millions of dollars in grant funding to propel this critical research forward, and her support during COVID has been invaluable, serving on an advisory board to help Governor Polis navigate the impact on elderly residents, donating countless medical supplies, and supporting the development of a revolutionary COVID antibody test. On behalf of the entire University, we thank Dr. Granholm-Bentley and wish her well in this next chapter.   

While the University of Denver appoints an interim director and begins the national search for our next high-profile director, KIHA will undergo a transition, moving under the Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science (RSECS) for administrative and grant purposes. This is a natural fit, as RSECS focuses on interdisciplinary collaboration with the goal of improving human lives through the promotion of better technology. RSECS impacts fields ranging from cardiac health to healthy joints, cybersecurity, and beyond, making it the ideal partner for KIHA.  

Most exciting is the work on “healthy bodies” that RSECS brings to KIHA’s current focus on “healthy minds,” thereby furthering KIHA’s founding commitment to “healthy aging,” including interdisciplinary research on “aging and age-related conditions.”   

One day, the University of Denver will proudly open a new biomedical research building. In the meantime, NSM faculty holding joint affiliations with KIHA will continue to enjoy biomedical wet lab space on the fifth floor of the RSECS building, alongside other KIHA researchers, and the office space on the fifth floor will continue to be used by KIHA.  

Please join me in thanking Dr. Granholm-Bentley for her service and in welcoming this exciting next chapter for KIHA.  

With best regards,  

Mary Clark  

Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor