Graduate education: The new dean welcomes new students

Dr. David Guzick, M.D., Ph.D.

October 29, 2008

This newsletter focuses on graduate education, welcoming Dr. Edith Lord as the new Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Education, and also welcoming our new graduate students, profiling a cross-section of five new PhD students. It is the last in the trilogy of newsletters on our new students and trainees, the previous two highlighting medical students (September 4) and residents and fellows (Sept 19). All told, we welcomed 81 new PhD students to our graduate programs this year, and now have a total of 440 PhD students, as well as 130 students in MPH and other masters programs.

Edith Lord, Ph.D.

It was my pleasure on July 22 to announce that Edith Lord, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and immunology and of oncology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, to be SMD's new Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Education.

On the SMD faculty for 30 years, Dr. Lord will direct the School's graduate programs. Since 2006, she has led graduate studies programs in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. She also directs the school's Post-baccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP), which encourages underrepresented minorities to pursue a research doctorate and prepares them for careers as scientists and leaders in the biomedical community. In her research, Dr. Lord focuses on the immune responses that can control tumor development and also studies the unique microenvironment present within growing tumors. She has authored or co-authored more than 100 scientific articles.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Kansas, Dr. Lord received her Ph.D. in biology from UC San Diego. She then took a postdoctoral fellowship at UC San Francisco, joining the SMD faculty as Senior Instructor in 1976. She was named assistant professor in 1978, associate professor in 1984 and professor in 1994.

On her appointment as Senior Associate Dean, Robert T. Dirksen, Ph.D., associate professor of pharmacology and physiology who chaired the search committee said: "Dr. Lord is a longstanding NIH-funded investigator who possesses an internationally renowned research reputation and an impressive track-record of excellence in graduate education and training. She exhibits a passion for graduate education, is a consensus-builder, and possesses the strength of character to act swiftly to do what will be in the best interest of our students, faculty, and the graduate programs."

"Edith brings a wealth of experience as an educator and a mentor to the position of senior associate dean for graduate education, including service as the director of one of our largest graduate programs and of our flagship minority student program, the NIH PREP program," said Stephen Dewhurst, Ph.D., the School of Medicine and Dentistry's Senior Associate Dean for Research. "She is a dedicated and caring individual who will give 110 percent to our students and postdoctoral trainees."

I had the pleasure of catching up with Edith last week, and interviewed her for this newsletter:

What attracted you to this position?: I've always enjoyed interacting with the graduate students in my own laboratory. They are young, enthusiastic and often have great ideas. Leading the graduate program in Immunology, Microbiology and Virology provided me experience with many of the issues in graduate education. The opportunity to make some changes to further enhance graduate education at the Medical Center was very attractive.
What are some of the best things about our graduate education programs?: The best things about our graduate education programs are our faculty and our students. I have been extremely gratified by the willingness of the faculty to address serious issues and to work to bring about some needed changes. The graduate program directors and the cluster leaders receive no additional compensation for their efforts yet they routinely do their jobs with skill and good humor. Another strength is the outstanding staff in the Office of Graduate Education. They field a constant stream of questions and make sure that the considerable paperwork gets accomplished in a timely fashion. They are always cheerful and ready to help solve any student's problem.; Of course, there's always room for improvement.
Can you share some ideas that you have for new initiatives, or changes to current programs?: We are working on several new initiatives. We are working to revamp the websites for each of the graduate programs so they will be more attractive to students considering the University of Rochester for their graduate education and to better serve students already in our programs. The core interdisciplinary courses are being re-evaluated to determine how they might better provide the fundamental knowledge needed by all students. In addition, we are planning several small workshop style courses to provide information on a wide range of topics to students at the time it is needed.
Where do you see biomedical science heading over the next decade, and how can we insure that our students will be well prepared?: I think technology will continue to be extremely important in every field and will help drive a lot of the science. Making sure that our students have access to this technology through the use of state-of-the-art core facilities is essential.
How do you see the balance between academic and industry positions evolving for our graduates?: Science will continue to be done in both academic institutions and in industry labs. The idea that science done by industry is somehow less pure is long since laid to rest. Hopefully government funding of research and the economy will once again begin to grow so that we can continue to be leaders in science and technology
Based on your own experience with graduate students in your lab over the years, what are the one or two 'secrets of success' that beginning graduate students should know?: I would hope that students would be passionate about their research. They need to take ownership of their projects as soon as possible, ask questions at every opportunity and interact with their advisors, other faculty and their fellow students as much as possible. Science can be incredibly stimulating and fun, but it does require a real commitment.
What do you like to do outside of your professional work?: I have a lot of outside interests. I grew up on a Kansas dairy farm so as a farmer at heart, I have a vegetable garden, fruit trees and several kinds of berry bushes in my yard. The textile arts are my avocation. I enjoy using all kinds of fibers (wool, silk, cotton, alpaca, llama, etc) to spin yarn that I use to knit or weave into garments or other fabrics. In the winter, I enjoy downhill skiing. This year I plan to try snowshoeing.

It has been a true pleasure to work with Dr. Lord in the several months since she's been appointed. I look forward to working with her for many years to come as we face the challenges confronting graduate education at a time of constrained support for biomedical research. We both have great optimism for the future, mainly due to the excellence and enthusiasm of our graduate students. Here are a few of the stories of entering students:

Fiona Dubuss

My journey to graduate education did not follow the straight and narrow path, but rather had some interesting twists along the way. I first discovered my love of neuroscience as an undergraduate at Lehigh University. To me, this field answered one of the fundamental questions in life: why are people the way they are? Both my research and classroom experiences strengthened my desire to someday pursue a future in neuroscience, but instead of making the transition straight out of college I needed to do a little more searching.

In March of my senior year, having finished my honors thesis and credit requirements, I took an extended trip to Eastern Europe. Traveling almost exclusively by thumb and staying with people met on the road as often as not, my eyes were opened to the overabundance of opportunity we, as Americans, often take for granted. The generosity and hospitality I experienced was staggering, especially considering how little my hosts often had to give. Equally striking was their immense pride at hosting me in their homes; my picture was taken for family photo albums, we ate the meat from their finest livestock, and their children were alternately paraded and shooed. It was an incredible experience.

After my return stateside and subsequent commencement, I moved to the Adirondacks in upstate New York. I lived and worked there for 3 years, during which time I benefited from friendships with people from all walks of life. While I genuinely enjoyed my time there, I felt that something was missing. My interest in neuroscience never flagged, and I realized that I needed to pursue a career through which I could possibly make a difference in other people's lives.

Having embraced my future in academia at last, my decision to pursue a Ph.D. at the University of Rochester was not a difficult one. Of all the schools I visited, none made me feel more at home. The neuroscience graduate program is exceptional and Rochester is a great place to live. The city and Western NY have so much to offer in terms of culture and outdoor adventure that I knew I would find the right balance.

I strongly believe that teachers are among the most important role models one can have. A good teacher will compel a student to challenge deep-rooted ideas about the world and what is possible in it. In my eventual career, I hope to make an impact through both research and teaching and extend educational opportunities to the corners of our country where they are not so easily reached.

Matthea Levin

My favorite poet, Rainer Maria Rilke, with whom I may have a slightly unhealthy obsession, once wrote: "As once the wingèd energy of delight/carried you over childhood's dark abysses,/now beyond your life build the great/arch of unimagined bridges." I know this because I spent most of high school not taking science classes and dreaming of research, but scribbling secret verse into my notebooks, and these were the lines that were emblazoned on one of their covers.

I have changed in many ways since I began college, and in many ways, my life did not turn out the way I, or anyone else, expected, though I still read Rilke. But ultimately, the passion that drove me then is what got me to graduate school, and what made me seek out a grander, more "unimagined" path for myself.

I first got a taste of what medical research might entail at age seven, after I pleaded for a book I had seen on "early health and medicine." Ostensibly a book on the pioneer days, it detailed many early advances in medical science, such as Salk and the polio vaccine, and the discovery of treatments for smallpox and diphtheria. I was instantly hooked, and delighted in telling (and retelling) my family about the details of 19th century tuberculosis treatments, and outbreaks of cholera.

When I reached college, I struggled to pick a major that would unify my sometimes disparate interests; although I still loved science, I also read anything I could get my hands on, so I wondered if I should instead major in English Literature. I stayed up late arguing political points; maybe public policy was right for me? Then again, I had excelled in mathematics in high school; perhaps that was what I should study? Ultimately, I chose to major in psychology, and it seems poetic that the study of the mind, and above all, the nervous system which is itself responsible for integration, has been responsible for integrating my abundance of passions.

University of Rochester was an intuitive choice for a student whose course of study has been as interdisciplinary as mine. I was drawn here by the vast opportunities for research, as well as the striking variety of scientific inquiry taking place; knowing that I would have the opportunity to do three different research rotations was appealing as well. But really, it was an easy decision; I think ultimately, even as a seven-year-old, I knew I was meant to be a medical researcher. And as Rilke speaks of the "wingèd energy of delight" carrying one over the darker places in childhood, so will my enthusiasm for knowledge and research carry me through the academic challenges inherent in graduate studies.

Amanda Lucas

A routine three hour drive from Austin, where I was attending the University of Texas, back home to Dallas changed the course of my career in science. At the time, I was volunteering at a local hospital as an undergrad and was required to be tested annually for tuberculosis. This particular trip was solely to visit my former pediatrician in order to receive an injection of PPD, have him sign the necessary paperwork, and be on my way back to school. A couple of days after the initial visit to the doctor, an induration of 11 mm remained around the injection site. Since I spent a significant amount of time volunteering in the hospital, concern was raised about the size of the swelling and my doctor opted to diagnose the result as latent tuberculosis. I took isoniazid for nine months, "just to be safe" as I was told by the medical professionals.

This incident piqued my already growing interest in infectious diseases and also brought to my attention the public health significance of drug resistant pathogens. Throughout college, I anticipated attending medical school after graduation and applied my free time to the typical pre-med extra-curricular activities. For a time, I was so completely enthralled in the notion that I would become a physician that I never stepped aside to consider my other options. Fortunately, toward the end of my undergraduate career I began to explore the possibilities.

The semester after finishing my B.S. in Human Biology, I was offered a public health internship through the Travis County Department of Health and Human Services. The internship was an epidemiological investigation of pertussis in Austin/Travis County, Texas. Through this experience, I learned how to organize an investigation, create and administer surveys, and to evaluate and interpret data. Upon conclusion of the internship with the city health department, I accepted a position as a laboratory technician with the state health department. A few months later, I was given the opportunity to become part of the Tuberculosis Reference team at the Texas Department of State Health Services – a position that I sought since my original encounter with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. As a microbiologist, I was responsible for identifying clinical mycobacterial isolates by morphology and subculturing these isolates to various media. In addition, I performed and interpreted drug susceptibility tests on two Mycobacterium species, M. tuberculosis and M. kansasii. Once a week and often more frequently, the lab would detect a drug-resistant specimen. Pathogen evolution of drug resistance is a major public health concern; pathogens undergo selective pressures in response to the antimicrobial drugs, and the effects of these drugs in fighting infection become limited.

While applying to graduate school, my immediate goal was to be accepted to a prestigious school of public health for a master of public health degree. The internship I completed had enticed me with the option of applying to a PhD program in epidemiology, so I decided to pursue this as well. The Epidemiology program at the University of Rochester was quite appealing since it had such great success in the short amount of time since its establishment. I chose this program in part because of the welcoming atmosphere, but also for the high level of interdepartmental collaboration.

Last year I fulfilled the required first-year coursework in Epidemiology and spent the summer completing an internship at the Monroe County Department of Public Health where I investigated the most recent influenza epidemic in the region as part of the Emerging Infections Program though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. After one year in the Epidemiology program, I realized that in order to achieve my fullest potential as a PhD student, I needed to get back into a laboratory setting and begin doing research. I discovered the newly offered program in Translational Biomedical Science and elected to find out as much information as I could before the fall semester began. This program was consonant with my academic goals and I decided to take my education and career down a divergent path that incorporates public health with basic biomedical research, and embraces the clinical aspects of science. I am certain that with this program I will be prepared to conduct research in the infectious disease arena which became an interest of mine several years ago as a college volunteer. The "bench to bedside" approach of translational research is fascinating and I feel that there is tremendous potential for this new program at the University of Rochester.

Cong Shen

Have you ever felt that you were an abandoned kid of God? That you were at the corner that God always forgets? That you were at the bottom of an abyss that sunshine will never reach? That you were in a vacuum space through which no sound can pass?

I still remember that miserable afternoon in August. I could do nothing but to sit besides my father's bed, hopelessly, watching the life ebb from him. Until now I can still see the tears on his face; hear his groaning around me, feel the pain he had suffered. Later that afternoon, my father passed away from stomach cancer. His death before my eyes is etched deeply in my mind. However, I am still grateful, in a sense, for his fate. It encouraged me not to surrender to such a destiny and made me determined to change my career goal to become a medical scientist rather than a pure doctor.

Both of my parents worked in medical field and they instilled in me a refreshing and professional perspective about what life is and what we can do to save it. At Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), I pursued clinical medicine as my major and obtained a solid academic background in medicine. My outstanding performance in medical school led me an opportunity to study biological science as my second major in Wuhan University whose biological sciences department is among the top-ranked in China.

The experience of studying clinical medicine and biological sciences at the same time not only awarded me opportunities to manage a crazy life schedule, but more importantly triggered my interest in research at the interface of biology and medicine. I took every chance to participate in research projects for the exposure to cutting-edge concepts and techniques in biomedical sciences. Although I was overwhelmed by the death of my father, I continued my study and had an opportunity to do an internship at the Prince of Wales Hospital where the first severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) patient was identified. I had the opportunity to discuss with Dr. Joseph J Y Sung, who dealt with the first case of SARS crisis in 2003, about symptoms and treatment of SARS. I was again deeply impressed by the contribution from biomedical research to medicine and became determined to pursue a career in the field of immunology.

Two years ago, I was admitted by the interdisciplinary biomedical science PhD program of Wayne State University School of Medicine. I took serial graduate courses that rewarded me with a detailed picture of developing biomedical science as well as a more advanced understanding in the fields of immunology, virology and microbiology. In addition to the busy curriculum, I rotated in three labs as a graduate research assistant. Besides a variety of research techniques, I learnt more about research project development and experimental design. Rotations and seminars also provided me with good opportunities to communicate with faculty and colleagues. However, once I clarified my research interest as cancer immunology, I found the research carried by the faculty in the Wayne State program not matching what I wanted to pursue. Therefore, I decided to pursue the right program and environment where I can pursue my professional goals. I mined the literature on the topic of cancer immunotherapy and was particularly attracted by the research of Dr. John Frelinger and Dr. Edith Lord from the immunology, microbiology and virology program of School of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Rochester.

Although my father lost his battle against cancer and I had no chance to change his fate, I still want to devote my career to the battle against cancer. After attending the interview, I was deeply moved by the fantastic research environment and the harmonious research atmosphere here. I do believe the doctoral study in the immunology program of University of Rochester will offer me excellent training on my way to being a successful medical scientist.

Bethany N. Winans

I became inspired to take action and improve the world around me while I was an undergraduate chemistry major at the University of Pittsburgh. I participated in a spring break service trip to Tennessee, and for a week of my life I put aside my chemistry classes and helped to renovate the house of an elderly gentleman living in rural Appalachia. Although I had an awareness that there existed those in need, it had never occurred to me that I could take ownership in doing something about it. With this in mind, I became more and more active with Pitt's chapter of Habitat for Humanity and learned that decent, quality housing could have a life changing impact on America's working poor.

These experiences had nothing to do with chemistry—at least I didn't think so at the time. I didn't see how I could pursue both a graduate science education and a career in community service. So after graduating I joined Americorps, whose motto "Getting Things Done" appealed to my sense of youthful enthusiasm and allowed me to put my idealism into action. Continuing my work with Habitat, I trained groups of people volunteering their time to help build affordable housing in their local community. After only a few months work with volunteers and the future homeowners themselves, grassy lots were turned into houses, and I helped transform a community into a safe place for families to settle and raise their children.

I got married shortly after my Americorps year, and my husband and I decided that the perfect honeymoon would be a tour of service in the Peace Corps. We were off to teach in the former French colony Burkina Faso, one of the poorest nations in the world. Prior to joining the Peace Corps I hadn't studied a word of French, but after about a dozen weeks of language training I found myself standing in front of a classroom, nervously making my way through my math lesson in what must have been horrible French, just hoping the students couldn't tell how scared I was. I calmed down after a bit, my French improved greatly and I set about teaching my students critical thinking skills that they could use in their everyday lives. The conditions were very difficult for the kids lucky enough to be sent to school. A hundred or so students were crammed into a classroom meant for only 40. Few students' families could afford textbooks, and most students had to help out their families for hours at home and in the fields. But against these hardships there were a handful of students who were really inspired to learn, and these were the kids that would come knocking at my door most afternoons. My husband set up an impromptu blackboard in our courtyard, and my students and I spent many hours together working on solving math problems.

When I returned from Burkina, my desire to help the world was confronted with the reality of having to make a living. It seemed necessary to consider a career path for myself, but I didn't want to set aside my desire to make a difference in the world. I began working as a technician in Dr. Kevin Walter and Dr. Eleanor Carson-Walter's lab, studying the molecular basis of angiogenesis in brain tumors. I quickly fell in love with the research. I believed that our lab was making small steps towards improving the lives of people diagnosed with this fatal form of cancer, and I felt challenged by the lab techniques used to study this disease. I had finally found an avenue to combine my interest in science and my desire to help others. To develop in my career and become an independent researcher myself, I needed the education and experience that graduate training could provide. About a year after the birth of my son Kai, I made up my mind to pursue my graduate studies.

I am just starting in the Toxicology Training Program here at URMC, and am interested in studying the impact that environmental toxicants have on human health. When interviewing with Dr. Ned Ballatori, the Tox Training Program Director, he challenged me further by suggesting that if I wanted to have the most impact, I should consider a career not just as a researcher, but as a policy maker who can regulate the use of toxins. This suggestion has been quietly taking root in my mind as I consider the important decision every new graduate student must make: which lab to join and what type of research to do. I look forward to the next few years as a graduate student and my career as a scientist ahead, confident that the path I will pursue will in some small way be making the world a better place.

In the last newsletter ("Celebrating excellence at home in a time of global uncertainty," October 14, 2008) I expressed the sentiment that, in the midst of a global economic crises, we still have a job to do—and tha we continue to be recognized for the excellence with which we do this job. I think you will agree that with graduate students like those profiled here, whose educational programs are in the capable hands of Dr. Lord, the School of Medicine and Dentistry will continue to graduate scientists who will be able to change the world through their focused commitment and research.

Next week, I will start a series on the implications of the general economic environment for the medical school.

Meliora,

David S. Guzick, MD, PhD
Dean, School of Medicine and Dentistry
University of Rochester

Dean's Newsletter

Posted May 28, 2009:
A Fond Farewell to the University of Rochester

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