Postdoctoral scholars, fellows and faculty from the Penn State College of Medicine gathered on Tuesday, Oct. 20, for the eighth annual Data and Dine. This event is a combined poster session and social occasion designed to highlight the research accomplishments of postdoctoral trainees and to provide an opportunity for them to interact with faculty. The event stimulated intense scientific discussions around the posters on display.
The 2009 Outstanding Postdoctoral Award was presented to Patrice Fort, a postdoctoral scholar in the laboratory of Dr. Thomas Gardner (Ophthalmology). Fort has multiple publications from his postdoctoral studies on diabetic retinopathy. Rizwanul Haque and Amanda Nelson also received certificates acknowledging their accomplishments as postdoctoral fellows. Certificates for Best Poster Presentation, based on evaluations by faculty, were presented to Deepa Kolaseri Krishnadas and Mark Meadowcroft.
The 2009 Faculty Mentorship Award was presented to Robert Milner, professor of neural and behavioral sciences. In his role as director of the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, Milner is responsible for the oversight and professional development of postdoctoral scholars and fellows in the College of Medicine. In his acceptance remarks, Milner reminded the postdoctoral trainees in the audience that they alone were individually responsible for directing their own careers.
Data & Dine is hosted by the Penn State Hershey Postdoctoral Society and sponsored by the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs. The members of the executive committee of the Postdoctoral Society are Dr. Sam Dayawansa, Dr. Deepa Kolaseri Krishnadas, Vishkantha Murthy, Amanda Nelson and Patricia Silveyra.