Monday, October 18, 2021

PhD Student Spotlight: Jithin Sam Varghese

Jithin Sam Varghese decided not to follow in his parents’ footsteps. "Both my parents are doctors, and I decided a life in medicine wasn't something I wanted,” Jithin says.

Instead, he craved variety and creative problem-solving. He directed his interests in engineering and modeling down a career path he felt would give him a chance to have a positive impact—public health.

A PhD student in the James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies studying Nutrition & Health Sciences, Jithin applies statistical models to large data sets tracking birth cohorts around the world. Working alongside Aryeh D. Stein, PhD, MPH, professor of global health at Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health, he examines how wealth, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, impacts nutrition and health. When he had an opportunity to apply his big data skills to Emory’s COVID-19 Health Equity Dashboard, a national dashboard to help visualize COVID-19 disparities, Jithin jumped at the chance.

The dashboard allows users to compare counties within the same state, aggregating key metrics that tell a story of a community’s social and economic health. Jithin’s role was to support the team with data management and code documentation. One of his primary goals was to ensure the data behind the dashboard is as easy to understand as possible.

Jithin’s ongoing research as a postdoc will focus on how difficult financial and psychological situations impact dietary choices, physical activity and stress levels.

“I want to help people who feel they are losing their place in society improve their health. I hope to join academia and collaborate with epidemiologists, behavioral scientists, biomedical engineers and clinicians to design some practical interventions.”

Read More Graduate Stories

Get the latest updates on COVID-19 info for the Emory community at Emory Forward and the LGS COVID-19 Resource Page.

Contents

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New! Events, Opportunities & Deadlines
Fellowships
Additional Resources

Upcoming Events, Opportunities & Deadlines

Urgent! Deadline for Flu & COVID Vaccine Compliancy

On Oct. 18, holds will be placed on registration for students who have not completed all vaccination requirements (including the COVID-19 vaccine) outlined on the Student Health Services (SHS) Immunization Requirements page . This deadline applies to all required vaccinations except the flu vaccination.

Oct. 29 is the deadline for receiving the flu vaccination. On Nov. 1, holds will be placed on spring registration for students who have not yet completed Emory’s Flu Attestation Form. The form must include the date when you received your flu vaccination. You may request a medical or religious exemption on the attestation form. Once the form is completed, the hold will be lifted.

For more information, visit here.

New! LGS-PDCP Career Coaching Program – Fall 2021 Availability

We are excited to announce that our career coaching program has a limited number of appointments available this semester for graduate students who wish to think through their career planning with a professional coach!

Please use the following Career Coaching Interest Form to request a one-on-one appointment!

New! Decolonizing/De-canonizing Your Syllabus and Curriculum

Decolonization means resisting and actively unlearning colonization's dangerous and harmful legacy, particularly the racist ideas that Black and Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) are inferior to white people. The Center for Faculty Development & Excellence is holding an online discussion on what decolonizing or de-canonizing looks like in a classroom and/or department. Using several different online tools, participants will work through the steps you can take to begin to decolonize your syllabus, curriculum, or field.

Date: Oct. 20
Time: 11:30 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
Register here.

New! Exploring Diverse Careers Workshop - STEM Fields

As a job candidate with an advanced degree in a STEM field, there are many industries to consider for your career. However, you need to be able to learn about and communicate with potential employers before you apply in order to advocate for yourself effectively. In this workshop, you will learn how to research potential employers of various types and communicate with individuals on the inside. This workshop is part three of the Exploring Diverse Careers Workshop Series.

Date: Oct. 25
Time: 4:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Register here .

New! JPE 610 Session

Please register for this limited-space in-person JPE 610 session titled “ Laboratory Animals in Biomedical Research: Ethical and Practical Considerations”. This session will focus on the ethical and practical considerations related to animal studies at Emory University.

Date: Oct. 28
Time: 2:30 - 4 p.m.
Register by: Oct. 25
Register here.

New! The Center for Faculty Development and Excellence and Emory Writing Program Present a Keynote Lecture and Faculty Workshop Hosted by Dr. Asao B. Inoue

Keynote: “Considering Antiracist Writing Assessment Ecologies”

During this keynote talk, Dr. Inoue will discuss ways to engage in antiracist writing assessment practices in courses across the disciplines. He offers a framework that can be used to redesign reading, responding, evaluating, and grading practices while still providing institutions of higher learning the things they demand of faculty, such as addressing learning outcomes and providing course grades.

Date: Oct. 28
Time: 12 - 1:30 p.m.

Faculty Workshop: “Bravely Challenging Our White Language Supremacy in Our Assessments of Student Writing”

This faculty workshop will challenge participants to bravely investigate their own classroom assessment practices, particularly their orientations toward student writing as embodied in their feedback to that writing. The workshop will consider white supremacy culture in classrooms, whiteliness, and Habits of White Language (HOWL) that inform assessment practices and teacher responses to student writing, with frequent moments of reflection for participants to engage in.

Date: Oct. 29
Time: 3 - 4:30 p.m.
Click here for more information.

New! Exploring Diverse Careers Workshop - Humanities and Social Sciences

As a job candidate with an advanced degree in the humanities or social sciences, there are many industries to consider for your career. However, you need to be able to advocate for yourself effectively on the job market. In this workshop, you will learn how to research potential employers of various types and communicate with individuals on the inside. This workshop is part four of the Exploring Diverse Careers Workshop Series.

Date: Nov. 3
Time: 4 - 6 p.m.
Register here.

New! Tips and Strategies for Serving as a Teaching Assistant in the U.S. Classroom

Graduate students who are new to the U.S. higher education classroom environment may have unique questions or concerns about what to expect in their role as a Teaching Assistant. The goal of this session is for participants to develop a firm understanding of the skills needed to ensure greater success with serving as a TA in the U.S. classroom.

Date: Nov. 4
Time: 5 - 7 p.m.
Register here.

New! Developing Your Own Personal Branding for Career Success

Being able to clearly articulate your unique strengths and abilities is crucial to career success. This workshop will focus on how to develop your own personal brand and what distinguishes you from the competition.

Date: Nov. 8
Time: 9 - 11 a.m.
Register here.

New! Strengths-Based Interviewing Workshop

On the job market? This workshop is designed to help you talk to potential employers about why they should hire YOU and not the competition. This workshop goes deeper than traditional interview workshops and empowers you with language to talk about your unique strengths, based on Gallup’s CliftonStrengths assessment.

Date: Nov. 9
Time: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Register here

New! Building a Resilient Humanist: Resisting Harmful Self-Talk

Rejection and professional setbacks are a predictable reality of academic life in the humanities and social sciences. Yet many scholars bring to their experience of setbacks internalized beliefs that frame rejection in ways that aggravate emotional response. This interactive workshop provides strategies for coping with professional setbacks by challenging ways of thinking about setbacks that are unique to communities of practice in the humanities and social sciences. This workshop is the final session of the Exploring Diverse Careers Workshop Series.

Date: Nov. 11
Time: 4 - 6 p.m.
Register here.

Pathways Beyond the Professoriate: CDC Careers

The Pathways Beyond the Professoriate Panel Discussion Series connects students with distinguished alumni who have chosen diverse career paths. At these events, alumni from a variety of fields return to Emory to network with our students and discuss their career paths and the unique ways that they have used their graduate training to succeed in positions that current students may never have considered. This session will include Emory alumni from the CDC.

Date: Oct. 19
Time: 12 - 1:30 p.m.
Register here.

NIH NRSA F30/F31 Workshop

The National Institute of General Medical Sciences provides predoctoral fellowships to eligible individuals who seek advanced predoctoral research training in basic biomedical sciences through the NRSA Individual Predoctoral Fellowships to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research (F31) and the NRSA Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD or Other Dual-Doctoral Degree Fellowships for Students at Institutions Without NIH-Funded Institutional Predoctoral Dual-Degree Training Programs (F30). These fellowships, which generally provide up to three years of support, promote fundamental, interdisciplinary and innovative research training and career development leading to independent scientists who are well prepared to address the nation's biomedical research needs.

NRSA F30/F31 Workshop Webinar

Date: Oct. 20
Time: 3 - 4 p.m.
Register by: Oct. 20, 10 a.m.
Register here.

2021 Kharen Fulton Award for Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement in Graduate Education Call for Nominations

The Laney Graduate School and LGS-EDGE are accepting nominations for the 2021 Kharen Fulton Award for Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement in Graduate Education. This Award is given annually and was created to honor the life and legacy of Dr. Kharen Fulton and her dedication to diversity in graduate education. The LGS Diversity Award is presented to one LGS doctoral scholar in acknowledgment of their personal and professional efforts towards diversity, inclusion, and community engagement at Laney. Award recipients will receive a framed citation and an award prize of $2,000. The award winner will be announced during the LGS-EDGE Annual Diversity Reception on Tuesday, Nov. 9. Award winner MUST be in attendance (will be contacted prior to reception).

A complete nomination (self-nominations welcome, but must include supporting documentation from faculty) must be received.

Deadline: Oct. 20 at 5 p.m .
Reception: Nov. 9
For more information and to apply, please click here.

Challenging Negative Career Beliefs: Discovering What Could Be Holding You Back

Negative thoughts can impact our beliefs about our own self worth and result in anxiety and depression. This workshop will focus on identifying those beliefs that may be holding you back, challenging them, and reframing them in a more positive way.

Date: Oct. 21
Time: 9 a.m. - 11 a.m.
Register here.

CFDE Teaching Webinar on Student Support

The CFDE is hosting a fourth webinar on pandemic teaching. The focus of this webinar will be on how instructors can support students in isolation, quarantine, or who are otherwise absent from class. Briefly, the CFDE recommends that all instructors plan ahead for how to handle student absences, especially related to exams. As a reminder, Emory wants anyone who has COVID symptoms to stay home from class (instructors included!). Our panelists will discuss ways Emory’s schools support students in isolation or quarantine, and offer advice for instructors on supporting those absent students. The panelists are:

Joanne Brzinski (Senior Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, Emory College)
Wesley Longhofer (Associate Professor, Goizueta Business School)
Valerie Molyneaux (Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Oxford College)
Jeffrey Staton (Senior Associate Dean, Laney Graduate School)

There will be plenty of time to answer your questions at this webinar. We will record the webinar, and the recording will be posted on the CFDE website within a day or two after the webinar (as has been true for our other recent webinars).

Date: Oct. 27
Time: 2:30 - 3:30 p.m.
Register here.

2nd Annual Research Symposium on Racial and Social Disparities, Inequities, and Injustice

The Office of EDGE (Emory Diversifying Graduate Education) in the James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies invites you to join the 2nd Annual Research Symposium on Racial and Social Disparities, Inequities, and Injustice. LGS scholars conducting research related to racial and/or social inequities are encouraged to submit an abstract. The symposium will feature 10-minute “speed talks” from LGS students, a keynote speaker, and panel discussions from faculty across Emory’s campus.

Date: Nov. 5
Time: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Find more information here .
Abstract deadline extended: Oct. 22
Submit here.
Register to attend by: Oct. 28
Register here.

Forty Under Forty featuring Laney Alum

Meet 40 trailblazers, problem solvers, and industry leaders. Emory University’s newest class of 40 Under Forty represents some of the most accomplished young alumni who continue to make waves in business, research, leadership, and philanthropic endeavors.

Some featured alumni are:

Kari Brown '06C, '11M, '11G, Senior Medical Director, Aimmune Therapeutics, Chapel Hill, NC

Roxana Chicas '16N, '20G, Assistant Professor, Research Track, Emory University, Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Atlanta, GA

Jasmine Clark '13G, Lecturer, Emory University, Lilburn, GA

Joanna Galaris '15G, Strategy Implementation & Resource Mobilization Advisor, Partners In Health, Kigali, Rwanda

Learn more here.

Emory Helpline

Emory Helpline offers peer-run telephone support nightly from 8:30 p.m. - 1 a.m. during the academic year. Students may call the Helpline at (404) 727-4357 (HELP) for non-urgent support. The line is typically closed for all major student holidays. This year, the line will close for this semester on Nov. 23.

Events with Office for Racial and Cultural Engagement

Office for Racial and Cultural Engagement presents Grad Writing Series and Grad Student Mixers- Fall 2021: Fellowship Food and Fun!

Seven Week Grad Writing Series: A Writing Group for Graduate Students of Color

When: Friday Mornings
Time: 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Dates: Until Nov. 19
Registe r here or here.

Southeast Life Sciences (SLS) AdvanSE Conference

Southeast Life Sciences is a regional non-profit industry association dedicated to advancing the commercial acceleration of medical devices & biopharma in the southeast. Their flagship event, the AdvanSE Life Sciences Conference, highlights the research strengths in the region, fosters high-level dialogue, and facilitates engagement and partnerships.

LGS has worked with the organization to provide complimentary registration for virtual attendance.

Dates: Oct. 27 - 29
Use Comp Code : 2021StudentComp
Register here.

Info Session: GRAD 700 Seminar

Please join Profs. Benjamin Reiss (English) and Thomas Rogers (History), along with recent and current graduate students Sadie Warren (Philosophy) and Sophia Leonard (English) for an information session about this interdisciplinary seminar, which will be offered in Spring 2022. The seminar is open to students in any program and at any stage of their graduate career.

Date: Oct. 28
Time: 4 - 5 p.m
Deadline to register: Oct. 27
Register here.

LGS-EDGE Annual Diversity Reception

Please join LGS-EDGE for the Annual Diversity Reception! This event is designed to celebrate and acknowledge the diverse excellence of LGS Graduate Students, current and former. This event will highlight the Laney EDGE Fellow and Ambassadors along with naming the recipient of the 2021-2022 Kharen Fulton Diversity Graduate Award. To attend this event, you must register. This is an exciting moment for LGS, and we hope to see you there!

Audience: The LGS Community (students, alumni, faculty, and staff)
Date: Nov. 9
Time: 5 - 8 p.m.
Location: Miller-Ward Alumni House
Questions: amandamariejames@emory.edu
RSVP and register here.

The Sum of Us: An Emory Community Conversation with Heather McGhee

Emory University campus partners that include Laney Graduate School, Goizueta Business School, Emory Alumni Advancement and Engagement, Emory Global Health Institute, the Law School, the School of Medicine, and Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing will host a virtual conversation with Heather McGhee, The New York Times bestselling author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together. The themes explored in her book demonstrate the benefits we all gain as Americans and global citizens when people come together across race to build an equitable future. Following Ms. McGhee’s talk, Jill Perry-Smith, Professor of Organization & Management and Senior Associate Dean of Strategic Initiatives at the Goizueta Business School, will moderate a conversation exploring the economic, education, health, climate, and civic engagement topics central to the Emory community. The event will close with Q&A from attendees.

Audience: The entire Emory Community, which includes students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community partners
Date: Nov. 10
Time: 5:30 - 7 p.m.
Find more information here.

COVID-19 Response: Celebrating the Contributions of Emory Graduate Students

The Emory Community has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in many ways, with much of the work being done by Emory graduate students. We are excited to announce a symposium to recognize the many contributions from Emory graduate students to the pandemic response. Oral and poster presentations highlighting the COVID-related research conducted by Emory graduate students will be featured. Keynote speakers: Drs. Carlos Del Rio, MD (Emory University) and Michael Mina, MD, PhD (Harvard University).The symposium will be held in-person and virtually. Compliance with COVID-19 safety protocols will be required. This free event is sponsored by the Laney Graduate School, Office of the Provost, Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the M2M Program.

Date: Nov. 12
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Location: Emory Student Center
Submit an abstract for an oral or poster presentation here.
Register here.

Federal Emergency Financial Aid Grants

In accordance with the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA), and as a participant in the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF II), Emory will provide Federal Emergency Financial Aid Grants to graduate and professional students.

In alignment with U.S. Department of Education guidance, Emory will prioritize students with exceptional need and distribute these grants to Title IV aid-eligible students with a federal expected family contribution (EFC) of $7,000 or less. Each recipient must be currently enrolled in Fall 2021.

For the Fall semester only, Emory will make HEERF II funds available to students who meet the eligibility requirements outlined above as determined by information provided in the FAFSA.

To complete a FAFSA, click here. Once your FAFSA is received, the Office of Financial Aid will review it to determine if you are eligible for any HEERF funds.
If you have any questions, please contact your financial aid advisor.

Office of Health Promotion Offers a Place to Connect
The Office of Health Promotions is offering space for any students in recovery or looking for change. Connect with fellow Emory students.

When: Weekly on Fridays
Time: 5 p.m.
Location: AMUC Suite 237

Return to the list.

Fellowships

Vanderbilt-Emory-Cornell-Duke (VECD) Fogarty Global Health Fellowship

The Vanderbilt-Emory-Cornell-Duke Fogarty Global Health Fellows and Scholars Program provides supportive mentorship, research opportunities and a collaborative research environment for early stage investigators to enhance their global health research expertise and their careers. This outstanding program offers a year-abroad opportunity for US and LMIC postdocs and doctoral students to develop research skills in a global health research setting. For complete information on the program, eligibility and application process, visit here.

Deadline: Nov. 1 for fellowships beginning July 2022
- (flexible start date if impacted by COVID pandemic)
If interested in applying for Emory-related research sites, contact Mark Hutcheson ( mhutch3@emory.edu).
Find more information here.