BUFFALO, NY – The Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences (BSNS), which governs both the Buffalo Museum of Science and Tifft Nature Preserve, today announced the appointment of six members to its Board of Managers for three-year terms. During the BSNS’s 159th Annual Meeting, Ann M. Bisantz, PhD, Jessica L. Copeland, Keith D. Lukasik, and Mo Sumbundu were elected to the board by voting members. During the Board meeting that followed, Cynthia Hoover, PhD, and Saurin R. Popat, MD, MBA, FRCSC, FACS, were elected by the Board to fill existing vacancies. The Annual Meeting was originally scheduled for March 2020 but was postponed due to concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Board of Managers has also re-elected current members Randy Burkard, Dave Busch (Board Chair), Joe Lombardo, and On Rattanaphasouk to second terms. Dr. Ted Egan was re-elected to a third term.
Ann M. Bisantz, PhD, is the Dean of Undergraduate Education and Professor of Industrial & Systems Engineering at the University of Buffalo. She holds a PhD in Industrial and Systems Engineering, with a minor in Cognitive Science, from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a BS and MS in Industrial Engineering from the University of Buffalo.
Jessica L. Copeland is the Co-Chair of the Cybersecurity Practice Group and member at Bond Schoeneck & King. Copeland earned a B.A. from New York University and a Juris Doctor degree from the St. John’s University School of Law.
Cynthia Hoover, PhD, is the VP of Engineering at Linde Engineering America’s. Hoover has a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from SUNY College at Fredonia and a PhD degree in synthetic organometallic chemistry from the University at Buffalo. She also serves as the co-chair of the University at Buffalo Chemical and Biological Engineering Advisory board.
Keith D. Lukasik is the Chief Strategy Officer at the Erie County Medical Center (ECMC). He holds a Master of Business Administration with distinction from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. He graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in engineering, with a concentration in bioengineering, from the University of Pennsylvania. Lukasik is currently the Vice Chair of the Neighborhood Health Center, a four-site Federally Qualified Health Center in the Buffalo area.
Saurin R. Popat, MD, is the Director of the Comprehensive Head and Neck Center at Delaware Medical Group. Popat is also the Clinical Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology at the University at Buffalo. He received his M.D. from the University of Western Ontario and completed his general surgery residency at the UCLA Medical Center and an otolaryngology residency at the University of Toronto. Popat also serves as the co-chair of the Cancer Committee at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC).
Mo Sumbundu is the Assistant Director of the Regional Economic Development Council of Western New York, Empire state Development. He holds a B.A.in Political Science and a Masters of Public Administration from SUNY Buffalo State.
Bisantz, Copeland, Hoover, Lukasik, Popat and Sumbundu join the BSNS Board of Managers as two members, Ronald J. Tanski (2014-2020) and Raymond C. Vaughan (2011-2020), end their service.
The Society’s Board of Managers can be found at https://www.sciencebuff.org/about-us/.
For additional information about the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences, the Buffalo Museum of Science, and Tifft Nature Preserve, visit www.sciencebuff.org.
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ABOUT THE BUFFALO MUSEUM OF SCIENCE
Rooted in the belief that science creates opportunities and shapes our world, the Buffalo Museum of Science is a non-profit educational institution dedicated to providing relevant science programming to learners of all ages in the Buffalo Niagara region. Through interactive science studios and exhibits designed for multi-generational learning, the Museum showcases its extensive collection of more than 700,000 specimens and artifacts representing all facets of the natural world with an emphasis on Western New York. With a focus on raising the science literacy in the Buffalo Niagara area and beyond, the Museum offers hands-on workshops, camps, panel discussions, guided tours and enhance learning opportunities for its guests and community. Opened in 1929 in Buffalo’s Olmsted-designed Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, the Museum recently installed its eighth interactive science studio marking the completion of the Museum’s 9-year-long transformation of its guest experience. The Buffalo Museum of Science is governed by the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences alongside Tifft Nature Preserve in South Buffalo, a 264-acre urban wetland preserve on reclaimed former industrial land. Learn more at www.sciencebuff.org.
ABOUT TIFFT NATURE PRESERVE
Tifft Nature Preserve is a 264-acre urban wetland preserve and wildlife refuge on reclaimed former industrial land in South Buffalo’s Outer Harbor. A leader in environmental conservation and a regional birding destination, Tifft provides year-round outdoor recreation and educational programming for children and adults. Governed by the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences alongside the Buffalo Museum of Science, the Preserve features five miles of beautiful trails, diverse habitats, boardwalks and a newly-renovated Herb & Jane Darling Environmental Education Center. For more information, please visit www.tifft.org.
