Janice Froehlich, PhD, a Professor Emerita in the IU School of Medicine Department of Medicine, died the week of Sept. 23, according to friends and family.
Dr. Froehlich was a dedicated researcher, who committed her career to better understanding the development of alcoholism and addiction. She focused on the hormonal, neurochemical, behavioral, and genetic factors that contribute to the disease; and she directed preclinical and clinical studies on brain neuroendocrine and neurotransmitter systems that mediate many of the effects of alcohol as well as on the development of medications for the treatment of alcoholism.
She served as the Scientific Co-Director of the Indiana Alcohol Research Center at IU School of Medicine, and, in 2005, she was appointed the Interim Vice Chancellor for Research and Interim Associate Vice President for Research at IUPUI (now Indiana University Indianapolis).
Dr. Froehlich was a graduate of the University of California. She earned a master’s degree and PhD from Syracuse University before completing her postdoctoral fellowship in anatomy at the University of Oregon School of Medicine. She joined the Department of Medicine as an assistant professor in 1985 and earned her full professor title in 1998. She also held appointments in Cellular & Integrative Physiology and Medical Neurobiology.
As a faculty member, Dr. Froehlich served on numerous school committees for the Indianapolis campus as well as at the university and national levels, including faculty governance groups. She often acted as a liaison between IU School of Medicine and other schools within Indiana University, which “stimulated interdisciplinary research programs and has helped to shape both undergraduate and graduate educational offerings and research opportunities,” according to IU.
Dr. Froehlich worked on the editorial boards of several national journals and was a member of the Alcohol and Toxicology study section of the National Institutes of Health. She authored many papers, book chapters, and review articles.
She was also a dedicated educator and mentor. She supervised many graduate students and postdoctoral fellows over the course of her career and directed trainee workshops for the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
David Kareken, PhD, is the Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Neurology. He worked with Dr. Froehlich through the Indiana Alcohol Research Center, where he now serves as director.
He called Dr. Froehlich a dedicated friend and ally. Her feedback helped him to secure his own first NIH grant, and her continued advice and support were critical in sustaining the Alcohol Research Center through its recent renewals.
“Even in retirement, she continued to attend center meetings remotely, calling later to offer me valued advice and support,” Kareken said. “Jan was a true original who cannot be replaced— animated, full of life and ideas, and loyal to the end. I will miss her dearly.”
