Excellence in Faculty Scholarship & Sandra C. Palmer Excellence in Teaching

Sarbani Ghoshal, MS, MPH, PhD, is an academic researcher and educator specializing in biology, epidemiology, and public health. As of 2026, she serves as an Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences and Geology at Queensborough Community College (CUNY), where she is actively engaged in teaching and mentoring students in research.

Dr. Ghoshal earned her Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Kentucky and her PhD in Biology from the University of Calcutta. She completed her postdoctoral research in the University of Kentucky and The Scripps Research Institute, Florida. Her research focuses on cardiometabolic and vascular diseases, with particular emphasis on the molecular mechanisms underlying these conditions. She has contributed to more than 30 peer-reviewed publications addressing metabolic regulation, obesity, and related biochemical pathways.

Since joining Queensborough Community College in 2018, Dr. Ghoshal has secured multiple grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Research Foundation of CUNY. These grants have played a significant role in supporting student mentorship and advancing undergraduate research initiatives within CUNY. In 2022, she was awarded CUNY’s Feliks Gross Award in recognition of her contributions to research and education.

Among her funded projects, the NIH-supported T34 Bridges to the Baccalaureate Program is particularly noteworthy. As Program Director, Dr. Ghoshal provides students with hands-on research experience and supports their transition to four-year institutions and careers in biomedical research. She also serves as a peer reviewer for NIH and other scientific journals, reflecting her expertise and recognition within the academic community. Her work demonstrates a sustained commitment to scientific inquiry, education, and student development.

Dr. Kevin Kolack is a tenured doctoral lecturer in the QCC chemistry department. Kevin earned a B.S. in chemistry at The University of Virginia and a Ph.D. at Indiana University, and taught at both. The winner of the 2021 NYACS Outstanding 2-year College Chemistry Teaching Award, Professor Kolack joined the full-time faculty at QCC after 16 years as an adjunct professor at The Cooper Union as well as time at St. Joseph's University, Yeshiva University, and Hunter College. His goals in teaching are to enable students to understand the material and put it into practice in the laboratory, to help them improve their ability to communicate their understanding to peers and others, and to encourage them to use their education as a springboard for furthering a critical understanding of the world. The creator of the online Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (in use by more than 230 colleges around the world) and English-language editor of more than 400 peer-reviewed publications, Professor K has a highly eclectic background including a reasonably successful acting career, 10 years as a firefighter/EMT, licenses for NYC taxi, ambulance, fire truck and helicopter, professional puppeteer experience, he competed at the Olympic level in smallbore rifle, and he really enjoys indoor skydiving in a vertical wind tunnel. Dr. Kolack is the lead author of "Introductory General Chemistry Experiments" and also wrote and starred in “The Professor K Show,” a topical, environmental, educational TV program. Dr. Kolack and his amazing wife and incredible son live in Queens.