A Summer Like No Other: Meet the Class of 2020 NYSCF Interns

“Incredible.”

“Eclectic.”

“Life-changing.”

These are just a few words that the 2020 class of NYSCF interns have used to describe their summer. These 22 talented high school and college students joined NYSCF’s research and programmatic teams (either in-person or virtually) for six weeks of hands-on projects and learning – everything from growing brain tissue in a dish to creating educational resources for students. 

While each intern dedicated their summer to a different aspect of science, they all left with a renewed passion for their work and a deeper understanding of what makes progress in biomedical research possible.

“It was important to us to offer the program this summer, with special measures for COVID-19 safety,” said NYSCF CEO Susan L. Solomon, JD. “Our interns are mission critical. These are the young minds that will make future big discoveries and enable new solutions for patients. They make integral contributions to our work here, and I am continually impressed by their many successes.”

Stepping Foot in the Lab

Laboratory interns were still able to complete their internships onsite at the NYSCF Research Institute, with special precautions taken for safety. For many interns, spending the summer in the lab reaffirmed their belief in NYSCF’s mission to find lifesaving treatments and cures.

“Working in the lab during COVID didn’t feel as strange as I expected,” noted high school student Isabel Corb, who worked on NYSCF’s diabetes team. “There was a real emphasis on safety, and being there right now really demonstrated to me the importance of NYSCF’s work. It can’t stop just because there’s a pandemic. It needs to keep going because it’s going to help people.”

For Kira Berman, who worked on the bone and tissue engineering team, this internship set a high bar as far as how a lab operates and works together.

“This is actually my first time working in a lab, and I feel like I’m getting used to the greatest lab ever!” she laughed. “I also enjoyed all the presentations and admired that there was a weekly lab meeting where everyone, even scientists from different research areas, came together to share their work, which I imagine not every lab has.”

NYSCF’s labs are unique in that all of its disease teams, engineers, and data scientists work under one roof,  giving NYSCF a ‘team science’ approach to research.

“At NYSCF, I saw engineers working alongside scientists, and I don’t think I’ve seen that anywhere else,” remarked Blossom Akagbosu, a student at CUNY College of Staten Island. “That was really exciting.”

The interns are integral members of NYSCF’s team who make important contributions to its research.

“Having the next generation of scientists working in the NYSCF labs has a significant impact since they bring new and exciting points of view and always ask really challenging questions,” remarked NYSCF Senior Vice President of Scientific Operations Rick Monsma, PhD.

Contributing to Cures from Afar

For interns on NYSCF’s programmatic teams, projects were carried out virtually, but the impact was as strong as ever.

“This summer has been incredibly fulfilling despite the current situation, which I think is impressive and speaks to NYSCF’s ability to transform the program from something intended to be in-person to something remote and still have it be an amazing experience,” expressed Kat McKinnis, a scientific communications intern who studies at John Jay College.

“Going into this internship this summer, I wasn’t exactly sure how it was going to go and how I would adapt to it. But I’m happy to say that this internship was the best one I’ve ever had,” agreed Yianni Papageorgiu, a student at The City College of New York who interned on NYSCF’s legal and business development teams. “And the NYSCF team really did an amazing job coordinating it. They made sure that all the interns felt comfortable and safe and that they were able to continue their projects and work with their mentors in a meaningful way.”

For some, the remote aspects of the internship provided hope that online learning can be effective and inspirational.

“This internship has made me hopeful, especially during COVID-19,” reflected Raina Mittal of the University of Pennsylvania, who worked remotely on NYSCF’s Parkinson’s disease team. “I just found out all my Fall classes will be online, and I’m less worried about this now that I know I can still have interesting and enjoyable virtual experiences like I did this summer, and I can still make meaningful connections.”

“The interns showed outstanding engagement and communication skills, which is incredibly impressive given the program’s partly virtual format this year,” noted NYSCF Associate Vice President of Scientific Outreach Raeka Aiyar, PhD. “These students are so committed to learning and improving, and they made a huge impact on our work here.”

Beyond the Bench

Science is more than a person in a white coat doing experiments at a lab bench. It’s business, communications, outreach, and so much more. NYSCF has team members across various fields, all of whom make groundbreaking research possible, and interns meet and hear from all these groups, often redefining what they consider possible within science.

“I’ve realized that even though I’m a senior and committed to a certain major and career trajectory right now, there are many different paths in science, and I can continually redefine where I want to end up,” said Hannah Czeladko, a student at the University of Chicago. 

“This internship has taught me that you don’t necessarily have to have a career at the bench,” added Kat. “You can do so many things with science, and there are countless avenues I have the opportunity to go down.”

“What I learned about myself through this internship was that there’s a lot of opportunities out there and that I shouldn’t be beholden to one point of view or to one career aspiration that I may have thought was best for me,” agreed Yianni.

The Power of Community

Interns leave the program with a lot of hands-on experience and new skills, but for most, the highlight of the summer is the community they join.

“I thought my favorite part would be the science, but my favorite part was actually the connections that I made,” remarked Hannah. “Networking scares me and I like to pretend like I don’t need it, but the community here made me feel that I could reach out to anyone.” 

“I originally visited NYSCF with my school, and when I walked into the Research Institute I was completely blown away,” recalled Yianni of his first visit to NYSCF last year. “And over the course of that day, we got to tour the laboratory and listen to different guest speakers talk about their positions at NYSCF. I immediately knew that I wanted to intern there. It was such an open, welcoming environment with smart people that wanted to collaborate and innovate. I knew that I wanted to be a part of that team.”

“I went back to school when I was 27,” said Kat. “I’ve worked in a lot of different settings, and I can honestly say this community and these people are far and beyond the most friendly, welcoming, intelligent people I’ve ever been around in a workplace setting.”

Isabel agrees that NYSCF’s collaborative nature and emphasis on inspiring the next generation of scientists makes her optimistic.

“I believe that young girls will develop a passion for science because of the types of people like those at NYSCF who are so willing to teach and take the time to spark that interest in a young person,” she noted.

Looking to the Future

Across the board, the 2020 intern class left the program hopeful that they will reach new career goals, continue their contributions to science, and bring about groundbreaking treatments.

“Working on my project has really made me realize how much is possible within stem cell research and that what I’m working on is part of something far bigger,” said Kira. “There’s so much to be explored. It has given me hope that many diseases can be cured, and there are a lot of talented, budding scientists like my fellow interns working toward this.”

“Thanks to the NYSCF Academy for Science and Society, I’ve had the most interesting and diverse experience this summer,” agreed Nidhi Bhaskar, a Brown University student who interned in the Office of the CEO. “I learned a lot about stem cells, but even more about the kind of work I want to do and the kind of people I want to work with, and that has been incredibly valuable.”