ROI-NJ Honors Two More Influencers at NJIT: Treena Arinzeh and Angela Garretson

A month after ROI-NJ named five NJIT administrators Higher Education Influencers, the publication recognized Treena Livingston Arinzeh and Angela Garretson as 2020 ROI Influencers: People of Color.

Treena Livingston Arinzeh

Arinzeh is a distinguished professor of biomedical engineering known for her research in adult stem cell therapy. In particular, ROI-NJ cited her fellowship at the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering — “an honor given to less than 2 percent in the field” — and her roles as co-principal investigator and director of diversity at the National Science Foundation Science and Technology Center for Engineering MechanoBiology.

Arinzeh is recognized for mixing stem cells with biomaterials known as scaffolds to help regenerate bone and repair damaged tissue. She also has made a significant impact in the recruitment and mentoring of underrepresented minorities and women in biomedical engineering and other STEM fields. For example, she invites 40 to 50 teens from the Greater Newark community to her lab each summer, as part of the Project Seeds program supported by the American Chemical Society and other programs.

Arinzeh received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rutgers University in 1992, a MSE in biomedical engineering from Johns Hopkins University in 1994 and a doctorate in bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999. Upon receiving her Ph.D., Arinzeh worked for Baltimore-based Osiris Therapeutics as a product development engineer. Arinzeh also developed the first Tissue Engineering and Applied Biomaterials Laboratory at NJIT in the fall of 2001.

Angela Garretson

Garretson is the chief external affairs officer at NJIT and a Union County commissioner. In recognizing her, ROI-NJ noted that she “nearly singlehandedly led the drive to change the title of freeholder to county commissioner.” In fact, she was instrumental in forming NJ Nineteen, a coalition that united the state's black county-level officeholders and their allies to change their outdated freeholder title to county commissioner. 

Garretson has spent almost 20 years serving the public on policy, governmental and political issues in the higher education and government environments.

As chief external affairs officer and a member of President Joel S. Bloom’s senior staff, Garretson is responsible for the external relationships of the university locally, regionally and nationally with governmental and community-based organizations, with a particular focus on economic opportunities for partnerships with the university. 

Garretson received a B.S. in management from Syracuse University, earned a masters with honors in public administration from Rutgers University and is completing her dissertation research with a team of researchers from NJIT and Rutgers on a city, university and school district partnership that's modeled after a similar program she implemented during her first role in higher education, at the Eagleton Institute of Politics in New Brunswick. In addition, she is a member of the National Sorority of Phi Delta Kappa, Delta Pi Chapter. 

The NJIT administrators that ROI-NJ previously honored were President Bloom, Provost Fadi Deek, Martin Tuchman School of Management Dean Moshe Kam, New Jersey Innovation Institute CEO Simon Nynens and NJII President Donald Sebastian.   

For Garretson, who joined NJIT in 2014, the ROI Influencers recognition coincides with NJBIZ naming her one of the Best 50 Women in Business. That list celebrates “decision-makers, trendsetters and forward thinkers” who score highly in career accomplishments, leadership, vision, community service and mentoring.