Lea Vacca Michel

Lea Vacca Michel, Ph.D., is a Full Professor in the School of Chemistry and Materials Science at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and serves as the College of Science's Director of Access and Belonging Initiatives. She holds a B.A. in Physics and Math from Colgate University (2002) and a Ph.D. in Biophysics from the University of Rochester (2007), with postdoctoral training at Cornell University. Her leadership roles include chairing ASBMB's Maximizing Access Committee and directing RIT's HHMI-funded Inclusive Excellence research strand.

Michel's research focuses on:

• Protein roles in disease pathogenesis
• Bacterial extracellular vesicles as diagnostic biomarkers for sepsis
• Vaccine development against nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae
• Crystallin protein interactions in cataract formation

She employs biochemical, structural, and microbiological approaches across these domains.

Her publications emphasize bacterial pathogenesis, vaccine design, and inclusive science education. Recent work explores antibiotic-induced vesicle release in E. coli (2025) and sepsis biomarker discovery (2022). Michel maintains strong industry collaborations with Sartorius and NIH-funded projects on nanopocket membrane technology.

Honors include:

• 2024-25 Eisenhart Award for Outstanding Teaching (RIT's highest faculty honor)
• 2023 ChemCUR Outstanding Mentor Award
• 2022 ASBMB Early-Career Leadership Award
• Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mentoring Finalist (2024)

Michel leads an active research group with 20+ current students and has mentored over 100 trainees since 2009. Her NIH R21 grant ($417,032) supports sepsis diagnostics research, while HHMI funding ($1M) advances inclusive excellence. She directs laboratory initiatives for deaf/hard-of-hearing students and collaborates with Rochester General Hospital on vaccine development.