The annual Sanford-Burnham faculty retreat was held in beautiful Carlsbad, Calif., May 19-20. Attended by more than 70 faculty from La Jolla, Calif., and Lake Nona, Fla., the retreat was an opportunity for attendees to learn more about each other’s research, share ideas, and to engage in strategic discussions related to the Institute’s 10-year vision to become a preeminent medical research institute that combines cutting-edge fundamental research with robust drug discovery.
The retreat was the first held under the leadership of Perry Nisen, MD, PhD, our new CEO who joined in August of 2014. The event began with brainstorming sessions on ways to enhance Sanford-Burnham’s discovery research, implement translational research, and form more strategic partnerships—all key initiatives that will take Sanford-Burnham through the next decade of medical research.
On day two, faculty had the opportunity to choose from more than 30 scientific sessions, defined by scientific themes including cancer, degenerative diseases and aging, epigenetics, metabolic signaling diseases, stem cells, and infectious diseases and inflammation.
A major highlight of the retreat was the announcement of faculty promotions. Congratulations to:
- Marcus Kaul, PhD, promoted to associate professor in the Immunity and Pathogenesis Program
- Lorenzo Puri, MD, PhD, promoted to professor in the Development, Aging, and Regeneration Program
- Alessandra Sacco, PhD, promoted to associate professor in the Development, Aging, and Regeneration Program.
The retreat was organized by Liz Schwarzbach, PhD, chief of staff; Alessandra Sacco, PhD, associate professor; and Ranjan Perera, PhD, scientific director, Analytical Genomics and Bioinformatics, and associate professor in the Metabolic Disease Program.
And a good time was had by all…
