Celebration of Science

October 17-18, 2024

TWU's Celebration of Science returns in the Scientific Research Commons (SRC) and the Ann Stuart Science Complex (ASSC)

This year's Celebration begins with the Dreyfus Public Lecture in the ASSC followed by the alumni reception and poster session on Thursday evening, Oct. 17, on the first floor of the SRC. Please RSVP for the alumni reception.

On Friday, Oct. 18, the Celebration moves to the ASSC. The symposium is free and open to the public. Please RSVP for the lunch.

Schedule

Dr. Mandë Holford

Dr. Mandë Holford is a professor of chemistry and the Anne Welsh McNulty Chair of Science Innovation and Leadership at Hunter College, one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York (CUNY). She also holds scientific appointments at the American Museum of Natural History, Weill Cornell Medicine and the CUNY Graduate Center, joint appointments that reflect her interdisciplinary research. Holford’s research focus is chemical and biological diversity, specifically, investigating venoms and venomous animals as agents of change and innovation in evolution and therapeutic development in pain and cancer. She is also cofounder of Killer Snails, LLC, an award-winning EdTech company that uses tabletop, digital and XR games as a conduit to advance scientific learning in K-12 classrooms.

Dr. Shaina Porter

Dr. Shaina Porter is the research operations manager for the Center for Advanced Genome Engineering at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn. Porter graduated Magna Cum Laude from TWU in 2006 with a BS in Biology with a research emphasis. She then completed her graduate studies at UT Southwestern Medical Center, earning a PhD in Cancer Biology in 2012. Her post-doctoral training was at Washington University in St. Louis studying leukemia and blood stem cells. In 2017, Porter moved to a research staff position at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. In honor of her numerous contributions to the sciences, Porter was selected for the Celebration of Science 2024 Distinguished Alumni Award.

Dr. Carolyn Young

Dr. Carolyn Young is a professor of entomology and plant pathology at North Carolina State University (NCSU) in Raleigh, NC, where she also serves as department head. Young is originally from New Zealand and spent 15 years as a scientist at the Noble Research Institute in Oklahoma before joining the faculty at NCSU. She is internationally recognized for her research on fungal endophytes and their impact on forage systems, and she was the founding editor-in-chief of the Phytobiomes Journal. She is passionate about mentorship and fostering the next generation of scientists.