Cynthia M. Bauerle is an American molecular biologist and college administrator. They are currently the interim vice provost for Faculty and Curriculum at

James Madison University James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, the institution was renamed Madison Coll ...

Early life and education

Bauerle is from

Charlottesville, Virginia Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen ...

. They completed a B.A. in biology at

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with College admission ...

in 1984 and a Ph.D. in molecular biology at

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

in 1990. Bauerle was a postdoctoral fellow at

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

where they researched molecular biology. They were a

Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

scholar at

University of Dar es Salaam The University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) is a public university in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It was established in 1961 as an affiliate college of the University of London. The university became an affiliate of the University of East Africa (UEA) in 1 ...

from 1999 to 2000.

Career

Bauerle, a molecular biologist, was a professor of biology and women's studies at

Hamline University Hamline University is a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1854, Hamline is known for its emphasis on experiential learning, service, and social justice. The university is named after Bishop Leonidas Lent Hamline ...

for 12 years before joining

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman r ...

where they were a professor and department chair of biology. Bauerle moved to

Howard Hughes Medical Institute The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is an American non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded in 1953 by Howard Hughes, an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, f ...

(HHMI) for seven years as a senior program officer and later, the assistant director of Precollege and Undergraduate Science Education. They were also the assistant director in undergraduate and graduate science education at HHMI. They managed the science education portfolio of grants, fellowships, and special initiatives. Bauerle oversaw multi-institutional initiatives to improve science education and student persistence in

STEM Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushr ...

and coordinated the NEXUS project. On July 1, 2016, Bauerle became a professor of biology and dean of the

College of Science and Mathematics, succeeding David Brakke. Their research background is in cellular and molecular biology, with an early focus on the transport of

thylakoid Thylakoids are membrane-bound compartments inside chloroplasts and cyanobacteria. They are the site of the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis. Thylakoids consist of a thylakoid membrane surrounding a thylakoid lumen. Chloroplast thyla ...

proteins and translocation of

plastocyanin Plastocyanin is a copper-containing protein that mediates electron-transfer. It is found in a variety of plants, where it participates in photosynthesis. The protein is a prototype of the blue copper proteins, a family of intensely blue-colored ...

precursors in

chloroplasts A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it i ...

. Some of their subsequent research focused on

ATPase ATPases (, Adenosine 5'-TriPhosphatase, adenylpyrophosphatase, ATP monophosphatase, triphosphatase, SV40 T-antigen, ATP hydrolase, complex V (mitochondrial electron transport), (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase, HCO3−-ATPase, adenosine triphosphatase) are ...

and genetics in yeast.

Awards and recognition

Bauerle is a HERS Leadership Institute alumni from 2013 and was elected as an

AAAS Fellow Fellowship of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (FAAAS) is an honor accorded by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to distinguished persons who are members of the Association. Fellows are elected ...

in 2016. They were a 2018 Partnership for Undergraduate Life Sciences Education (PULSE) ambassador and a 2019 AAAS Council Delegate for the Section on Education.

Personal life

Bauerle identifies as

gender-queer Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...

. They are a parent and are in a multi-racial and same-sex relationship.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bauerle, Cynthia Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Scientists from Virginia People from Charlottesville, Virginia University of Virginia alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Hamline University faculty Spelman College faculty James Madison University faculty 21st-century American biologists 21st-century American women scientists American molecular biologists American women molecular biologists LGBT people from Virginia American LGBT scientists American non-binary people American university and college faculty deans Women deans (academic) Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Fulbright alumni 21st-century American LGBT people Non-binary scientists Biologists from Virginia