Six Women Among Eight New UWI Professors

The UWI Regional Headquarters, Jamaica W.I. | Friday, May 29, 2026—The University of the West Indies (The UWI) has promoted eight of its senior lecturers to the distinguished rank of Professor.

Their appointments reflect excellence in scholarly work and sustained, practical contributions to fields spanning veterinary public health, econometrics, development economics, international relations, applied mathematics, clinical psychology, music, and psychiatry.

The newly appointed Professors are among the University’s top academics and have demonstrated a commitment to addressing challenges of Caribbean and global importance, including pioneering dementia research in low- and middle-income contexts, climate finance policy for Small Island Developing States, and the preservation and scholarly advancement of the steelpan art form.

The new Professors are:

Professor Michael Campbell (Cave Hill Campus), Professor of Psychology and Global Health

Professor Nagarani Ponakala (Mona Campus), Professor of Applied Mathematics

Professor Nadine McCloud (Mona Campus), Professor of Applied Econometrics

Professor Jeannine Remy (St Augustine Campus), Professor of Music

Professor Karla Georges (St Augustine Campus), Professor of Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology

Professor Theodor Tudoroiu (St Augustine Campus), Professor of International Relations

Professor Preeya Mohan (St Augustine Campus), Professor of Environment and Development Economics

The professorial appointments which became effective on March 12, 2026 were supported by recommendations from internal and independent external assessors who conducted a meticulous review of candidates’ research, publications, and other professional activities.

Dr Nelleen Baboolal (St Augustine Campus) was also retroactively promoted to Professor of Psychiatry, effective May 17, 2023. She retired on August 31, 2023.

MORE ABOUT THE NEWLY APPOINTED PROFESSORS

Professor Michael H. Campbell

Psychologist and global mental health scholar, Professor Michael H. Campbell has established a distinguished programme of scholarship focused on mental health in Small Island Developing States. Spanning psychometric validation, climate and disaster mental health, young adult and sexual minority wellbeing, and ethical research in vulnerable communities, his work sits at the intersection of psychology, global health, geography, and ethics.

Assessors note that Professor Campbell’s portfolio reflects both depth in psychometric validation and culturally grounded assessment research, and breadth across climate mental health, disaster preparedness, ethics, LGBTQ+ health, and medical education reform. His work is described as “original in its systematic engagement with the ecological and social realities of Caribbean populations”, with publications in high-impact international journals, including Nature Mental Health, Psychological Medicine, the Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Archives of Sexual Behavior, Frontiers in Psychiatry, and Cambridge Prisms: Global Mental Health. Professor Campbell’s research has been supported by funding from the Pan American Health Organization, the World Health Organization, and the World Bank.

Currently Deputy Dean for Graduate Studies and Research in the Faculty of Medical Sciences at The UWI Cave Hill Campus, Professor Campbell has served as the Faculty’s sole psychologist since his appointment in 2005. He holds a PhD in Counselling Psychology from the University of Florida and an MSc in Geography from Florida State University. He is a Chartered Psychologist of the British Psychological Society, a Licensed Psychologist with the Florida Board of Psychology, and a Registered Psychologist with the Barbados Paramedical Professions Council. His distinguished external appointments include Lecturer in Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine (2014–2024) and Senior Fellow at the International Institute of Geopsychiatry (2025–present).

His publication record includes 54 refereed journal articles, nine book chapters, and more than 60 other scholarly works. He has supervised over 20 graduate researchers at The UWI and delivered more than 100 presentations internationally. Professor Campbell co-edited The Cambridge Handbook of Psychology and the Planet: Environment, Climate, Sustainability, and Nature (2026), alongside special collections of papers in BMC Medical Education and Frontiers in Public Health.

Elected a Fellow of four divisions of the American Psychological Association—the Societies of Clinical, Counselling, General, and Global Psychology—and of the British Psychological Society, he serves as Co-Chair of the Caribbean Collaborative Centre for Geopsychiatry, Director of the International Centre for Applied Ethics and Public Affairs, and a member of the Standing Committee on Disaster Mental Health of the Caribbean Alliance of National Psychological Associations.

For his work, Professor Campbell has received the Principal’s Award for Excellence in University and Public Service (2021, UWI Cave Hill), the Faculty of Medical Sciences Dean’s Award for Excellence for ‘prolific research output and impactful service to the University and the public’ (2025, UWI Cave Hill), and the Citizen Psychologist Presidential Citation (2018, American Psychological Association).

Professor Nagarani Ponakala

Professor of Applied Mathematics, Nagarani Ponakala specialises in physiological fluid dynamics, advanced mathematical methods, non-linear boundary value problems, and special functions of mathematical physics. For more than two decades, she has developed a substantial body of research applying sophisticated mathematical modelling to some of the most complex and practically consequential problems in biomedical science, ranging from the rheological behaviour of blood and other physiological fluids, and the transport of drugs and oxygen, to mathematical analyses of magnetic hyperthermia for cancer treatment. Assessors describe her work as demonstrating “a clear, coherent, and mature research identity”, with contributions that reveal “originality, creativity, scholarly impact, and continuing research vitality”.

Professor Ponakala’s research tackles difficult non-linear problems in complex geometries and is commended for extracting “meaningful insights using a combination of analytical methods in conjunction with advanced numerical techniques”. Her central focus has been the modelling of blood as a Casson fluid, addressing pulsatile flow, peristaltic mechanisms, solute dispersion, catheterisation effects, and boundary absorption. Her most recent work on oxygen transport efficiency, published in Physics of Fluids, bridges theoretical applied mathematics and biomedical engineering.

Head of the Department of Mathematics at The UWI Mona Campus from 2017 to 2023, Professor Ponakala holds a PhD in Applied Mathematics (Fluid Dynamics) from Sri Padmavati Women’s University, India.

Her academic record includes 36 refereed publications, comprising 28 journal articles, four book chapters, and four conference proceedings, with work appearing in respected publications, including Physics of Fluids, Acta Mechanica, The International Journal of Thermal Sciences, European Physical Journal Special Topics, and the Annals of Biomedical Engineering. She has presented at 48 international conferences across India, the UAE, and the Caribbean, and has served as a member of technical and advisory committees for several international symposia. Since 2007, Professor Ponakala has served as a peer reviewer for more than 35 journals, with an h-index of 11 and an i10-index of 13, reflecting a meaningful international footprint for a specialist researcher working within a regional university context.

Professor Ponakala has supervised seven graduate researchers and served as an independent examiner for six PhD candidates. At The UWI, she developed the BSc Double Major in Mathematics and Modelling Processes, alongside a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses. She also served on the Organising Committee for the 21st General Meeting and Conference of the Caribbean Academy of Sciences (2018).

Her honours include the Principal’s Research Award for Best Research Publication (2023–2024), appointment as a Fellow of the Caribbean Academy of Sciences (2023), the Bharat Ratna Indira Gandhi Gold Medal Award for Outstanding Achievement in Education and Research (2019), and recognition as a Distinguished Young Woman Scientist from Jamaica and the Caribbean by the Inter-American Network of Academies of Science (2015).

Professor Nadine McCloud

Professor Nadine McCloud is an economist whose scholarship is at the forefront of econometric theory and empirical macroeconomics. Assessors note that her work is characterised by three consistent features: “she poses exciting and challenging empirical problems in applied economics, designs elegant and theoretically grounded methodologies to address them, and translates these advances into high-value applications, particularly around the role of foreign direct investment, institutions, and economic growth.” They further describe her research as reflecting “sustained conceptual and empirical depth” and a “strong command of theoretical and empirical techniques”, deployed creatively to investigate pressing development issues.

Professor McCloud’s research portfolio reflects originality of the highest standard. Designing and applying advanced econometric methods, including Bayesian hierarchical modelling, synthetic control estimation, and semiparametric systems of equations, she examines complex interactions between macroeconomic policy, governance, and international capital flows. Assessors note that her work “stands out for its depth and technical sophistication, particularly in applying cutting-edge econometric methods to development-related policy questions”, with tangible impact on both academic literature and policymaking in the Caribbean. She has accumulated over 400 Google Scholar citations, with publications in International Economic Review, Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series A, Journal of Macroeconomics, Computational Statistics and Data Analysis, Journal of Applied Econometrics, and Economic Modelling.

A UWI alumna (MPhil, 2003; BSc, 1998), Professor McCloud also holds a PhD in Economics from the State University of New York at Binghamton (2008). She has lectured in the Department of Economics at The UWI Mona Campus since 2008 and served as Head of the Department from 2019 to 2023. She has held visiting appointments at Cornell University as a Fulbright Visiting Scholar, as well as at the University of Miami, Purdue University, Humboldt University of Berlin, and Xiamen University in China. Her research has been supported by various grants and fellowships, including from the US Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.

Her publication record includes 19 peer-reviewed journal articles, with a strong pipeline of work under review and in preparation. She has delivered more than 40 conference and invited presentations, including at the Latin American Meetings of the Econometric Society and at Cornell and Emory universities. Professor McCloud serves as Senior Co-Editor of Advances in Econometrics and sits on the editorial boards of the International Journal of Finance and Economics, the Journal of International Trade and Economic Development, and Empirical Economics. She has supervised five postgraduate researchers and reviewed for 25 international journals.

Her public contributions are equally distinguished. An appointed member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Jamaica (2021–present) and a Director on the Board of the Planning Institute of Jamaica, Professor McCloud is also co-founder of the Jamaican Economy Panel, a joint initiative with the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office. She led the establishment of the Caribbean’s first Fiscal Research Centre at The UWI Mona Campus. She received the UWI Mona Principal’s Research Award for Best Research Publication (2023–2024 and 2019–2020), the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Award (2011–2012), and the Mona Research Fellowship (2011–2013).

Professor Jeannine Remy

Professor Jeannine Remy is known for her remarkable decision to leave a coveted tenured position at Idaho State University to move to Trinidad and Tobago in 2003. This bold move, to immerse herself in the music and culture of Trinidad and Tobago and the world of steelpan, led to academic and professional success. Today, she is recognised as the first foreign and female arranger for large-format steel bands competing in Panorama and other music festivals—a distinction that speaks to both her artistry and her commitment to the steel band tradition she has adopted as her own.

Her creative work spans four primary areas: composing and arranging for steelpan and percussion ensembles, performance, clinician and lecturer engagements, and scholarly publications. Since joining The UWI, she has created over 800 compositions, arrangements, and adaptations committed to score, including ten professional arrangements for Panorama and the World Steelband Music Festival. Assessors describe her as “continuously and steadily engaged with her chosen discipline since the 1990s”, producing a “distinguished” and “original” body of work.

Two works of particular note are the suites The Rainmakers (2007) and Dancing on Steel (2024), celebrated as “impressive in their scope, structure, harmonic language, and inventiveness”. The Rainmakers had its international debut at the 2008 Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), the world’s largest gathering of percussionists. Professor Remy returned to PASIC as a featured performer in 2022. Her compositions for performers at all levels have had a significant impact, providing repertoire for steelpan soloists and ensembles worldwide.

Professor Remy holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Arizona (1991), and both a Master of Music and a Bachelor of Music from Northern Illinois University. She was a Fulbright Lecturer at The UWI St Augustine Campus from 2000 to 2001, an appointment that first brought her to Trinidad to research and archive Trinidadian steelpan music. Since 2003, she has served as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Creative and Festival Arts.

Her publication record includes two authored books—Bands for South/Central and The Saga of Milton “Wire” Austin and the Fonclaire Steel Orchestra—along with two co-authored books: Invaders Steel Orchestra: The History of a Legendary Trinidad Steelband (2015) and Pan in Education: A History of the Northern Illinois University Steelband (NIU Press, 2017). She has also published nearly 20 articles in percussion and pan-focused publications reaching a global audience.

Professor Remy has held eight invited artist residencies at universities across the United States and has produced five recordings of solo and ensemble pan performance. She serves as a musicologist commentator for media organisations in Trinidad and Tobago and continues archival projects, including the Steelpan Newspaper Clippings collection and the Collection of Oral Interviews, both vital to the preservation of steelpan’s historical record.

Professor Karla Cecile Georges

Professor Karla C. Georges believes that animal health, human health, and the environment are inseparable. An acclaimed veterinary epidemiologist and public health scientist, she has, for more than two decades, integrated veterinary epidemiology, vector-borne and foodborne zoonoses, and One Health approaches across the Caribbean, consistently translating scientific findings into policy, practice, and regional capacity.

Assessors commend the “real-life application” of her research, noting that her application of the One Health approach in Trinidad and Tobago and the wider Caribbean “is in alignment with new developments in the field of veterinary public health”. Her contributions to society range from strengthening public health policy frameworks, to improving the detection and surveillance of vector-borne zoonotic pathogens in livestock and wildlife, and advancing One Health approaches in antimicrobial resistance research and mitigation. One assessor described her body of work as providing “compelling evidence of sustained and impactful research across several major thematic areas”.

Director of the School of Veterinary Medicine at The UWI St Augustine Campus since 2018, Professor Georges holds a PhD in Epidemiology from The UWI (2010), a Master of Science in Veterinary Epidemiology and Herd Health from Utrecht University, the Netherlands (2000), a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (1995), and a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Zoology (1990), both from The UWI. She joined the academic staff in 2001 and served as Head of the Department of Basic Veterinary Sciences from 2015 to 2018 before her appointment as Director.

Her peer-reviewed journal articles, manuals on food safety and meat hygiene, and multiple technical reports reflect a publication record of both depth and practical reach. Her research has attracted over USD 273,000 in grant funding, including support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).

Assessors describe Professor Georges as “a proven leader in academic administration, distinguished in research with international impact, and a dedicated educator and mentor”, who has made “significant contributions to public and professional service at national, regional, and international levels”. She has supervised or co-supervised eight postgraduate students to completion, including two PhDs, with three PhD and three MPhil candidates currently under her supervision.

Named President-Elect of the Society of Tropical Veterinary Medicine in 2024, Professor Georges has chaired the CaribVET Vector and Vector-borne Diseases Working Group since 2016, coordinating disease surveillance across member states. She has contributed to disaster response efforts aimed at alleviating animal suffering following the volcanic eruption in St Vincent and the Grenadines (2021) and Hurricane Beryl (2024).

In 2024, she and her team received a Principal’s Research Award for Hurricane and Earthquake Alleviation Research (HEAR). In 2025, she received the National Veterinary Stalwart Award from the Committee of CARICOM Chief Veterinary Officers (CCCVO), in honour of exemplary service and dedication to the advancement of animal health in Trinidad and Tobago. She received the CCCVO Award again in 2026 for Veterinary Research and Education Excellence, in recognition of excellence in veterinary research, education, and impactful contributions to regional development.

Professor Theodor Tudoroiu

Over a career spanning three decades, Professor Theodor Tudoroiu has worked extensively across the Caribbean, China, Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, and the Middle East, building a substantial body of work examining questions of geopolitics, democratisation, development assistance, political psychology, and the politics of globalisation. Assessors describe him as an internationally acclaimed political scientist and international relations scholar, noted for his intellectual coherence and for pairing a “strong conceptual framework and methodological basis” with rigorous empirical analysis.

His most significant recent contribution is a comprehensive examination of China’s role in the Global South, comprising seven monographs and one edited volume that collectively assess various aspects of the Belt and Road Initiative, China’s international socialisation of political elites, its development assistance conditionality, and the “globalisation from below” driven by Chinese entrepreneurial migrants. Between 2016 and 2026 alone, he published eleven books with Routledge, Springer, and Palgrave Macmillan—an impressive testament to his productivity.

Professor of International Relations in the Department of Political Science, Faculty of Social Sciences at The UWI St Augustine Campus, Professor Tudoroiu holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Montreal (2006) and a Master of Arts in European Political and Administrative Studies from the College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium (1993). Before joining The UWI, he taught at the University of Ottawa; the University of Montreal; Bishop’s University, Sherbrooke; and Laval University, Quebec City. He joined The UWI in 2012 and served as Coordinator of the International Relations Unit from 2016 to 2019, contributing to the development of a major in International Relations. He has supervised graduate students at The UWI, taught a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, and served as an external programme assessor for the Department of Government at the Mona Campus.

Professor Tudoroiu’s publication record includes eleven books, 25 peer-reviewed journal articles, five book chapters, two encyclopaedia entries, and more than 40 conference presentations, with a Google Scholar citation count exceeding 1,000. He reviews manuscripts for 12 journals and two academic presses, and holds membership in the American Political Science Association, the International Studies Association, and the Canadian Political Science Association.

He has held postdoctoral fellowships from both the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Quebec Fund for Research on Society and Culture, and received a NATO fellowship for research on European security conducted at the French Institute for International Relations in Paris.

Professor Preeya S. Mohan

One of the youngest professors ever appointed at the University, Professor Preeya S. Mohan is a development economist and challenge-led researcher whose scholarship addresses some of the most pressing questions facing Small Island Developing States. Her work examines the economic impacts of climate events, extreme weather events, and policy interventions in the Caribbean, applying advanced quantitative methods to generate findings that are, as assessors note, “both academically robust and practically meaningful”. Her contributions span development economics, finance, entrepreneurship, regional studies, and climate-related research, reflecting what one assessor describes as “significant intellectual versatility”.

As Professor of Environment and Development Economics, her research portfolio is marked by originality. Applying advanced statistical models, including Synthetic Control Methods, big data analytics, and night-time light imagery, to assess the economic impacts of external shocks such as climate events and COVID-19 in the Caribbean, Professor Mohan has demonstrated a rare ability to bridge climate data and socio-economic development policy. Her publication record includes over 60 refereed journal articles and thirteen book chapters, with work appearing in high-impact publications such as Nature Climate Change, Energy Policy, Food Policy, the Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, WIREs Climate Change, and the Journal of Environmental Management. Her most cited paper on natural disasters and the banking sector has accumulated 192 citations. Assessors describe her published work as “impactful” and “internationally excellent”, noting a “remarkable consistency” of focus on research with clear economic development policy relevance for Caribbean and other Small Island Developing States.

A Fellow and MPhil/PhD Programme Coordinator at the Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies (SALISES), The UWI St Augustine Campus, Professor Mohan holds a PhD in Economic Development Policy (2014), an MSc in Economics, and a BSc in Economics and Finance, all from The UWI. She previously served as Academic Coordinator at the United Nations Development Programme and as a postdoctoral Research Fellow at SALISES.

Her research has attracted significant grant funding from the Inter-American Development Bank, the International Development Research Centre, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, including a CAD 1.5 million flood resilience project and a CAD 122,640 climate finance scoping study. She has supervised ten MPhil/PhD students and served on advisory committees for nine others, including in a co-supervisory role with the University of Malta’s Islands and Small States Institute.

Professor Mohan’s international standing is reflected in her appointment as Lead Author for Chapter 6 on Adaptation Finance of the IPCC Seventh Assessment Report, placing her among the world’s leading experts on climate finance. She is also a member of the International Finance Expert Working Group for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. She received the Saleemul Huq Memorial Scholarship for Loss and Damage Research (2024), the Principal’s Research Award for Most Outstanding Researcher of the Centre/Institute/Unit, The UWI St Augustine (2024), and the Young Economist Award from the Inter-American Development Bank (2014).

Professor Nelleen Baboolal

Professor Nelleen Baboolal’s appointment as Professor of Psychiatry marks the culmination of a distinguished career defined by academic excellence, visionary leadership, clinical expertise, and transformative contributions to mental health care and medical education.

A respected psychiatrist, educator, researcher, and mentor, Professor Baboolal has devoted more than three decades to advancing psychiatry in Trinidad and Tobago and across the Caribbean. With 45 years in medicine and 35 years as a specialist psychiatrist, she has built a legacy that has profoundly influenced psychiatric practice, dementia research, and the training of generations of physicians.

Assessors of her appointment praised her exceptional accomplishments, describing her career as setting “a new gold standard for integrating clinical service, research, teaching, and administrative leadership”, while commending her pioneering dementia research as “a unique contribution for low- and middle-income countries”.

Professor Baboolal’s scholarship has made a significant impact on psychiatry, public health, epidemiology, and medical education, with particular emphasis on dementia and biomarkers associated with cognitive decline. Her landmark Trinidad National Survey of Ageing and Cognition established the first national dementia prevalence rates for Trinidad and Tobago, creating a critical evidence base that has informed national health policy and strengthened public awareness of ageing, cognitive health, and mental illness. This groundbreaking study remains one of the most influential pieces of dementia research in the Caribbean.

Her distinguished academic portfolio includes 33 journal publications, 27 of which are peer-reviewed, six book chapters, and more than 50 conference presentations delivered regionally and internationally. Her research has appeared in internationally respected journals, including PLOS ONE, Neuroscience Letters, PeerJ, the Journal of Public Health, and the British Medical Journal. She has secured seven competitive research grants and collaborated extensively with regional and international institutions. Her expertise has also received international recognition through her service as a reviewer for both the World Health Organization and PLOS ONE on dementia-related research.

Professor Baboolal joined The UWI, St Augustine Campus, in 1996 as a Lecturer in Psychiatry in the Department of Clinical Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences. She earned the Doctor of Medicine (DM) in Psychiatry from The UWI, in addition to a Diploma in Psychiatry and the MBBS degree, graduating with Honours in Medicine and Therapeutics and Biochemistry. Her outstanding academic performance earned her both the MBBS Gold Medal and the prestigious Cross-Campus Prize in Surgery.

Throughout her distinguished academic career, Professor Baboolal demonstrated exemplary leadership in both academia and clinical service. She served as Head of the Department of Clinical Medical Sciences from 2015 to 2021 and as Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex. Her regional contributions also extended through the Pan American Health Organization’s Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP), through which she delivered psychiatry training for primary care physicians in the region.

Professor Baboolal has taught and influenced more than 3,000 undergraduate medical students. She coordinated The UWI’s Doctor of Medicine (DM) Psychiatry Programme for 15 years and contributed to the training of more than 40 psychiatrists who now lead psychiatric services in Trinidad and Tobago and beyond.

Her exceptional contributions have earned multiple accolades, including The UWI–National Gas Company Faculty Research Awards for “Best Research Team” and “Most Productive Research Department”, as well as the Faculty of Medical Sciences Research Award for a “Research Project with Significant Future Potential”.

Although officially retired in 2023, Professor Baboolal continues to serve with distinction through ongoing teaching, mentorship, postgraduate supervision, and academic engagement.