By Kay Labella
For Pride Month, the PSPDG blog is collaborating with students from LTBGS and Lambda Grads for a series of posts highlighting the LGBTQ+ community and related matters at Penn and beyond.
Dr. Ben A. Barres (MD/PhD) was born September 13, 1954, in West Orange, New Jersey. After graduating from Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a B.S. in Biology, he went on to obtain his medical degree from Dartmouth Medical School in 1979. While in his neurology residency at Weill Cornell Medicine, Barres found himself intrigued by neurodegeneration and glial cell function; he subsequently resigned his residency to pursue a PhD in neurobiology at Harvard Medical School so that he might pursue research into these subjects. In his time as a postdoc and later heading his own lab at Stanford University, Barres remained at the forefront of scientific discovery. His lab published numerous critical studies expanding upon our understanding of the role of astrocytes, microglia, and the blood-brain barrier, as well as how synapses form within the brain, among other topics. As a PI, he was well-loved and dedicated to the success of his trainees.
Read moreBy Maxwell Pisciotta
For Pride Month, the PSPDG blog is collaborating with students from LTBGS and Lambda Grads for a series of posts highlighting the LGBTQ+ community and related matters at Penn and beyond.
It is no secret that if you’re looking for a gender-neutral restroom on the University of Pennsylvania campus, they are often difficult to find. The difficulty, of course, depends on your department, the buildings which you occupy, the age of those buildings, and the school that owns those buildings. Ultimately, this is to say, that yes, there are gender-inclusive restrooms throughout campus, but if you happen to be in a building that does not already have one, you may have to go as far as two or three buildings over to locate one. For faculty, staff, and students who do not have to leave their “home” building often or who spend hours in lab, this can pose a substantial inconvenience.
Read moreBy Kay Labella
For Pride Month, the PSPDG blog is collaborating with students from LTBGS and Lambda Grads for a series of posts highlighting the LGBTQ+ community and related matters at Penn and beyond.
Founded in 2022 by Dr. José Bauermeister, the Eidos LGBTQ+ Health Initiative was created to address persistent health disparities facing LGBTQ+ communities. PSPDG, in collaboration with LTBGS, was fortunate enough to interview Kevin Schott, Eidos’ Director of Engagement, about this fantastic partnership that aims to streamline turning academic research into social impact.
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