Dean's Message - July 29, 2024

Dear GSBS Community,

Relays were held earlier this month and Team MD/PhD has taken the crown. Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all for participating. Students were able to demonstrate their athletic talents outside the lab and raise money for the Student Enrichment Fund, which supports student travel. Donations are still open and can be made here.

I had the pleasure of meeting our new MSTP students at the MD/PhD retreat last month, and meeting our new PREP, CTS, IMM and MMB MERGE-ID students at orientation at the beginning of July. It is always invigorating to meet so many enthusiastic students at the onset of their careers. I also met with our summer BDBS students to tell them about opportunities at GSBS for PhD and MD/PhD education. I hope that all our PREP and BDBS students are having a wonderful experience with us and will consider applying for further training in the not-too-distant future.

The GSBS office staff is working hard to prepare for September, when the rest of our incoming students join us. We are working on program guides, the course catalog, the student handbook, establishing timelines for thesis submission and graduation, ensuring that all students are meeting their program requirements and planning for student career development events. The next admissions cycle for MSTP students is already underway and we are also planning the next admission cycle for the other programs. We also are working hard on developing options for student health, well-being and career development, as well as new educational programs. Finally, we have organized the standing committee schedule for next year so that faculty appointments, course development, and general GSBS governance can proceed unimpeded. Special thanks to Dean Emeritus Naomi Rosenberg whose intimate knowledge of GSBS function and continued efforts to support the enterprise are especially appreciated.

In this space I often talk about GSBS news, function and administration but would also like to share how being a scientist and supervising a lab continues to bring me joy, through the success of my trainees and the impact upon the community. My former PREP scholar, Samia Ali, has a submitted manuscript that will likely be accepted after minor revision, which is great news before she enrolls in medical school next month. I am traveling, along with my former postdoc and current Research Associate Rahul Raghav, to the Barth Syndrome Foundation Biennial International Scientific, Medical and Family Conference as an invited speaker this week. I will give a typical scientific talk about our work finding new drug targets, developing enzyme replacement therapy and developing an enhanced gene therapy, but I have also been given a novel opportunity to meet with affected families to talk about our work in layman’s terms. It is such an honor and privilege to be invited to speak to families and their interest is a validation of the impact of the work that Dr. Raghav and others in my laboratory are doing. Presentation of our work to the lay public and conveying its importance is an essential skill that I hope to develop and foster within our community.

Michael Chin, MD, PhD, Dean ad interim