From the Co-Directors

It has been a strange year to be at the University. Usually a bustling hub of activity, the last fourteen months have seen the campus become serenely quiet. Few students walking from class to class, only occasional sightings of colleagues in the hallways, deserted coffee carts. For many there have been tragic losses and difficult challenges. With the help of a generous donor who provided matching funds, our alumni, faculty and staff raised a significant amount of emergency funding to support students who were struggling to make ends meet and continue their education during the pandemic. We are truly grateful to all those who donated.

The end of the academic year saw the clouds lift a little, allowing a bit of sunlight to shine through. Although much of the School of Biological Sciences undergraduate teaching occurred online this past year with the notable exception of several laboratory classes that were run in-person, we were able to celebrate the graduation of College of Science degree recipients with a convocation ceremony held in the spectacular setting of Rice-Eccles stadium. Students were safely arrayed in seats on the turf with parents and supporters cheering from the stands! It was a beautiful day and a fitting way to send off our graduates at the end of this unusually taxing year. At the conclusion of the ceremony, many students spontaneously tossed their caps in the air—a great memory.

In the afternoon, we honored our SBS advanced doctoral degree recipients with an in-person hooding ceremony. Academic regalia hails back to clothing worn by clergy from the 11th and 12th centuries. Hoods were worn by monks to keep warm in the cold monastical libraries where they studied, copied and preserved the record of written knowledge. Over time the hoods were embellished with colors and came to signify that the recipient had made original contributions to knowledge. It was a great pleasure to personally recognize each of our graduates. year to be a biologist— witnessing what we study and learn both in the classroom and research laboratories emerging from the pages and taking on a very real form. Understanding epidemiology, the biology of viruses, how messenger RNA vaccines are made and work, natural selection and the emergence of new variants, statistics–experiments–trials–control groups and evaluating data have all been at the forefront of understanding and beating back the pandemic.

We hope you enjoy this issue of Our DNA in which we feature Assistant Professor Talia Karasov—a new faculty member who works on the interactions between microbes and their plant hosts. We also celebrate the retirements of two of our esteemed colleagues, Professors Nalini Nadkarni and Franz Goller. In addition, we recognize our 2021 Distinguished Alumni award recipients, Dr. Reshma Shetty and Dr. Mitchell Aide.

We hope that by the next time we pen our Directors’ message a new normal will have emerged and many of the familiar aspects of university life will have returned. Meanwhile, have a terrific and safe summer.

Neil J. Vickers | Leslie E. Sieburth Professors and Co-Directors School of Biological Sciences

Co-Directors Leslie Sieburth and Neil Vickers