Faculty Profile: Mary Tracy-Bee—Following in Her Father’s Footsteps
When
Mary Tracy-Bee, Ph.D., '90, was a student at Mercy College of Detroit, her
anatomy professor was her late father, Ed Tracy, who passed away March 3,
2004. “It was one of the toughest classes I took,” she remembers,
“I sure had to work hard in it.”
Apparently, the hard work paid off. Today she continues the legacy of education excellence in anatomy as a newly tenured associate professor of Biology at UDM.
“It must have been divine intervention that the year I finished my Ph.D. (from Wayne State University in 1999) was the same year that my father retired,” she says. “I had a handful of other job offers, but when I got the one from UDM, I knew that was where I was meant to be.”
Prior to joining UDM in 1999, she had a chance to team-teach anatomy with her father elsewhere. “It was a wonderful experience, and I learned so much. While some people consider anatomy to be a ‘dead’ science, my father’s intense passion for teaching really brought it to life for his students."
Since joining UDM’s faculty, she has published nine papers and received the “Most Outstanding Didactic Teacher” award. She also has chaired the University Faculty Development Committee and founded the annual Faculty Research Day. She is one of the youngest people ever to receive tenure at UDM.
“What I love most about UDM is that it is student centered,” she says. “My colleagues are an exceptionally intelligent and genuinely kind group. From the beginning, I felt like I was part of a big family here.”
In fact, her entire family has been involved with UDM. Brothers Ed, UDM’s director of User Services, and Michael, an international auditor, both received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University. Younger sister Susanne, a surgeon, and their mother attended classes at the University, and twin sister Jerri, a dentist, received her bachelor’s degree from Mercy College.
“I feel that I have a legacy to continue,” Tracy-Bee says. “It is to be the best anatomy teacher I can possibly be, as my father was. I love to share with students all the miraculous wonders that are in our bodies. It makes me so happy to see them get excited about the material and know they’ll use the information to save lives.”
Apart from UDM, she lives in her native Canada with her husband and infant son and serves as a lector at Old St. Mary’s Cathedral in Greektown.