News & Posts
2023-2024 Volunteering Opportunities in and Around Boston
Throughout the year, and especially during the holiday season, there are thousands of people in need throughout the Greater Boston area. Many organizations exist in and around the city that are critical to meeting these needs, and many of them are accepting volunteers. Below is a list of organizations accepting help that you can volunteer with this holiday season and beyond.
Carryl Navalta, PhD, Receives HRSA Grant for Project EDUCATE
Carryl Navalta, PhD, a core faculty member in the Mental Health Counseling & Behavioral Medicine Program at Graduate Medical Sciences, was recently awarded a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Grant for Project EDUCATE (Education to Deliver and Utilize Child and Adolescent Treatment Effectively). Dr. Navalta is also a clinical associate professor of psychiatry within the Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. Project EDUCATE aims to train the next generation of mental health counselors to deliver culturally-informed and trauma-informed behavioral health care services to children, adolescents and young adults in medically underserved, urban areas. The project will partner MHCBM students with the TEAM UP initiative at Boston Medical Center, which integrates behavioral health care into primary care practices at community health centers. Ultimately, Project EDUCATE will work to expand student training opportunities, increase the current behavioral health care provider work force and improve access to and engagement in behavioral... More
First-Gen Student Spotlight: Valeria Oller (MAMS ’24)
Valeria Oller is a second-year student in the Master of Science in Medical Sciences (MAMS) program at Graduate Medical Sciences. Valeria is a first-generation student and a Community Catalyst Center mentor in the gFIRST (First-Generation) and gSOC (Students of Color) affinity groups. She is currently completing her thesis research at Mass General Hospital. Read more about Valeria below! Graduate Medical Sciences is publishing this Spotlight as part of the BU-wide First-Generation College Celebration Week, which recognizes the vast achievements and experiences of our first-generation community. Learn more here. Tell me about your journey to Boston University. What was the adjustment to Boston like for you? The adjustment to Boston was challenging. I am from Southwest Florida and haven’t lived in a city like Boston. Everything was so new to me, and adjusting to that along with school was hard. I was lucky enough to have moved here with one of my friends... More
Happy First-Generation College Celebration Week!
It is officially Boston University First-Generation College Celebration Week, which celebrates the success and achievements of first-generation students across our campuses. Boston University and the Newbury Center have marked the occasion with a week-long celebration program, full of events like workshops, social activities, seminars and networking opportunities. You can access a full list of the week's ongoing events here. To mark the week at Graduate Medical Sciences, we have compiled a list of resources for supporting our first-generation community, with additions from both on-campus and off-campus resources. We've also included profiles of our First-Generation mentors through the Community Catalyst Center gFIRST affinity group. Additionally, don't miss C3's upcoming First-Generation CV and Resume Workshop, where you'll have the chance to review your CV and/or resume one-on-one with a GMS faculty or staff member. Click here for more information and to sign up! Lunch will be provided. Please email Sarah Rowan at srowan@bu.edu if there is another... More
GMS Alumni Spotlight: Alina Bazarian (MAMS ’16)
Alina Bazarian is a 2016 graduate of the Boston University Master of Science in Medical Sciences (MAMS) program, one of the oldest Special Master’s Programs (SMPs) in the United States. Alina completed medical school in 2023 as part of the inaugural class of the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine and recently began her residency as part of the inaugural Family Medicine Residency Program cohort at Albany Medical Center - Saratoga Hospital. Alina is a first-generation bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral graduate, the first physician in her family and the daughter of immigrants – identities which have shaped her as a student and physician and continue to influence her journey. Learn more about Alina below! Tell me a bit about your educational journey. My educational journey started at Skidmore College, where I majored in neuroscience with a pre-health professions concentration. From a young age, my goal was to pursue medical school, but I wanted... More
STaRS, UROP and SPIN Scholars Present at GMS Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium
This year’s Summer Training as Research Scholars (STaRS) cohort culminated their 10-week onsite internships with the Graduate Medical Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium held on Aug. 11. Hosted in Hiebert Lounge, the GMS Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium gave the STaRS scholars an opportunity to present their independent research projects to audiences of Boston University Medical Campus faculty, staff and students. The 2023 STaRS scholars are: Jacqueline Alford Stevia Coralie Nanfack Tsakem Jessica Oliveira Bacelar Chioma Okolo Matthew Jacob Byrne Elizabeth Myriam Puyo Jonathan Matthew Carnino Valerie Reyes Ortiz Malia Magnolia Cole Leila Alejandra Rivera Rosario Shira Maya Freilich Diana Esmeralda Rodriguez Arielle Gilliam Mikaili Zoe Senwah The cohort included six second-year undergraduates, seven third-year undergraduates, three fourth-year undergraduates and one Boston University medical student. The scholars come from colleges and universities across the continental USA and Puerto Rico. The faculty mentors for this year's STaRS cohort were: Joseph P. Mizgerd ScD Weining Lu, MD Francesca Seta, PhD José Rafael Romero, MD Sarah Mazzilli, PhD Jessica Levi, MD Andrew Wilson, MD Vickery Trinkaus-Randall, PhD Gareth Morgan, PhD Suryaram Gummuluru, More
MD/PhD Spotlight: Shen Ning ’24
Shen Ning is an MD/PhD student in her third year of medical school at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. She completed her Graduate Medical Sciences PhD training in the Graduate Program for Neuroscience, where she conducted her research at the Genetics and Aging Research Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital. Shen is the co-founder and CEO of INIA Biosciences, an award-winning startup, developing the next-generation smart wearable ultrasound device to reduce inflammation and treat autoimmune and chronic inflammatory disease. Tell me a little bit about your journey at Boston University. I’m a current MD/PhD student currently in my third year of medical school. I transitioned from the Graduate Program for Neuroscience for my PhD just last year and am now completing my MD training. The Graduate Program for Neuroscience was a truly amazing environment to develop my scientific acumen as well as my leadership skills. I feel that the MD experience... More
C3 Hosts First Ice Cream Social of Summer 2023
The GMS Community Catalyst Center brought its popular Ice Cream Socials back for Summer 2023! C3 hosted the first social on Thursday, June 22 in the C3 Suite (L-306). Students on campus for the summer -- as well as GMS faculty and staff -- gathered to take a break from the work day, catch up, and enjoy a sweet treat. The social featured four kinds of ice cream, as well as a toppings and fruit bar. The social was well attended by students across GMS Master's and PhD programs. The next two Ice Cream Socials will take place on Wednesday, July 19, and Wednesday, August 16. Both will be located in the C3 Suite from 12 to 1 p.m. You'll have the chance to meet your new C3 Peer Mentors for the upcoming academic year -- students chosen to be a point of contact for incoming and current students and help GMS to continue... More
Fourteen Students Join Summer 2023 GMS STaRS Program Cohort
Earlier in June, 14 students arrived to campus to begin their work in the 2023 Summer Training as Research Scholars (STaRS) Program cohort through Graduate Medical Sciences. The 2023 cohort includes six second-year undergraduates, four third-year undergraduates, two fourth-year undergraduates and two first-year medical students from Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. This year’s scholars are: Mikaili Senwah Spelman College Matthew Byrne Georgia Institute of Technology Shira Freilich Vassar College Chioma Okolo Howard University Jacqueline Alford McGill University Malia Cole University of Massachusetts Amherst Leila Rivera Rosario Universidad de Puerto Rico at Arecibo Valerie Reyes Ortiz University of Puerto Rico at Cayey Jessica Bacelar Brandeis University Arielle Gilliam Curry College Diana Rodriguez Bates College Stevia Nanfack Tsakem The College of New Jersey Elizabeth Puyo Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian SOM Jonathan Camino Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian SOM “Please join me in welcoming the 2023 STaRS cohort to GMS and BU,” said STaRS Director Isabel Dominguez, PhD. “The STaRS scholars are very excited to be here performing research and learning how to get ready for graduate school. I am... More
GMS Celebrates Pride at 2023 Red Sox Pride Celebration Game
Congratulations to the eight GMS students who won tickets to the Boston Red Sox Pride Celebration game on Tuesday, June 13! The raffle, held by the Community Catalyst Center, ran for one week between May 31 and June 7. The students who won the raffle included: Darby Gavin Mylene Gorzynski Varuna Jasodanand Ashley Mainville Anosha Khawaja-Lopez Jillianne Son Each student won two tickets -- one for themselves and one for a guest. The Red Sox played the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night's game. Ticket holders to the game received an exclusive Red Sox Jersey in Pride colors. They also had access to a Pride Party on the Sam Deck hosted by DJ Harlow Havoc, as well as the Big Concourse Block Party featuring celebrity DJ Jess King and a performance by Lilly Rose Valore. Thank you to Mylene Gorzynski for sending some photos! The Boston Red Sox Pride Night game is one of several ways... More