Simon Waldbaum CMC Leadville professor with his dog

Simon Waldbaum, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Biology
719-486-4269 | swaldbaum@coloradomtn.edu

Education

  • Post-Doctoral Fellowship, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
  • Ph.D. Biomedical Science, Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
  • B.A. Environmental Biology, Colorado College
  • Emergency Medical Technician, Wilderness Medicine Institute

Professional Awards

  • Colorado Mountain College Salida Faculty of the Year
  • Boettcher Foundation Award for Outstanding Teaching
  • TIAA-CREF Educational Outreach Award for Innovative Science Education
  • NIH/NCRR Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute Award
  • Epilepsy Foundation of America Post-Doctoral Fellowship Award
  • National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Research Service Award
  • National Institutes of Health Research Training Award
  • Colorado State University Molecular, Cellular, and Integrative Neurosciences Program Award

About

Dr. Simon Waldbaum brought an extensive background in scientific research and a life-long passion for science education when he joined the faculty at Colorado Mountain College. Simon began his research career in ecological sustainability with the School for Field Studies and International Field Studies Inc. and continued as a wildlife biologist at the Manomet Center for Conservation Science. Simon then turned his interests toward the biomedical science field holding research positions at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, University of Utah School of Medicine, Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus where he led a number of NIH sponsored research programs and shared his work internationally. Simon has held teaching faculty and program director positions at higher education and scientific non-profit institutions throughout Colorado and leads international scientific/adventure experiential education courses around the globe. He currently teaches a wide variety of courses including General Biology, General Chemistry, Anatomy & Physiology I & II, Microbiology, Introduction to Disease, Pathophysiology, Natural History of the Baja Peninsula/Sea of Cortez and Sea Kayak Touring Leadership as part of CMC’s Study Abroad Program in Mexico. Simon considers it a great privilege to have the opportunity to excite others about their own scientific interests, whatever they may be!

Simon is also passionate about the outdoors and holds certifications from the National Outdoor Leadership School and as an Emergency Medical Technician from the Wilderness Medicine Institute. Simon has worked with students throughout Colorado promoting and coaching outdoor education programs, mountain biking, strength and conditioning, and all-mountain skiing. Simon’s own wilderness expeditions have included extensive travel throughout Alaska’s Talkeetna Range, the Wasatch Range and canyon country of Utah, the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina, the San Juan Islands and Pacific Northwest, the U.S. and Canadian Rockies, Hawaii’s Big Island, Baja California, Bahamian Islands, Southern Alps of New Zealand, the Middle East, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. Simon is an avid cyclist and backcountry skier who enjoys exploring the mountains of central Colorado and beyond with his Bernese Mountain Dogs.

Publications

Waldbaum, S. (2022) Epilepsy: It’s Genetic and Inherited Manifestations. Women’s Health: Understanding Issues and Influences. Vol 1. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2022) Sickle Cell Disease: It’s Characteristics and Model for Single Gene Replacement Therapy. Women’s Health: Understanding Issues and Influences. Vol 2. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2021) Diphtheria: A Historical and Pathological Analysis. An International Encyclopedia of Health Indicators, Practices, and Issues in Cultural Context Vol 1. ABC-CLIO Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2021) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: A Model for Global Public Health. An International Encyclopedia of Health Indicators, Practices, and Issues in Cultural Context Vol 2. ABC-CLIO Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2018) Environmental Neurotoxicology. Environmental Health in the 21st Century: Vol. 1. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2018) National Toxicology Program. Environmental Health in the 21st Century: Vol. 2. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2018) Meningitis. Encyclopedia of Public Health: Principles, People, and Programs. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2015) Presynaptic Terminal Activity. The Brain, The Nervous System, and their Diseases: Vol. 3. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. (2015) The Role of Postsynaptic Potentials in Neuronal Communication. The Brain, The Nervous System, and their Diseases: Vol. 3. Greenwood Publishing.

Waldbaum, S. and Liang, L.P., Rowley, S., Huang, T.T, Day, B., Patel, M. (2012) Mitochondrial oxidative stress and epilepsy in SOD2 deficient mice: attenuation by a lipophilic metalloporphyrin. Neurobiol Dis 45: 1068-76.

Waldbaum, S., Liang, L.P., Patel M. (2010) Persistent impairment of mitochondrial and tissue redox status during lithium-pilocarpine-induced epileptogenesis. J Neurochem 115:1172-1182.

Waldbaum, S., Patel M. (2010) Mitochondria, oxidative stress, and temporal lobe epilepsy. Epilepsy Research 88(1):23-45.

Waldbaum, S., Patel M. (2010) Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress: a contributing link to acquired epilepsy? J Bioenerg Biomembr, 42:449-455.

Patel, M., Day, B., Huang, T.T., Waldbaum, S.,  Liang, L.P. (2010) A lipophilic metalloporphyrin antioxidant attenuates behavioral seizures and mitochondrial dysfunction in the B6D2 Sod2-/-mice. Mitochondrion 10:238-239.

Waldbaum, S., Dudek, F.E. (2009) Single and repetitive paired-pulse suppression: a parametric analysis and assessment of usefulness in epilepsy research. Epilepsia 50 (4):904-916. 

Pete, G., Mack, S.O., Haxhiu, M.A., Waldbaum, S., Gauda, E.B. (2002) CO2-induced c-Fos expression in brainstem preprotachykinin mRNA containing neurons. Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology 130:265-274.

Waldbaum, S., Hadziefendic, S., Erokwu, B., Zaidi, S.I.A., Haxhiu, M.A. (2001) CNS innervation of posterior cricoarytenoid muscles: a transneuronal labeling study. Respiration Physiology 126:113-125.

Tolentino-Silva, F.P., Haxhiu, M.A., Waldbaum, S., Dreshaj, I.A., Ernsberger, P.R. (2000) Alpha2-adrenergic receptors are not required for central anti-hypertensive action of moxonidine in mice. Brain Research 862:26-35.

Tolentino-Silva, F.P., Haxhiu, M.A., Ernsberger, P.R., Waldbaum, S., Dreshaj, I.A. (2000) Differential cardiorespiratory control elicited by activation of ventral medullary sites in mice. Journal of Applied Physiology 89:437-444.