2026 New Students Orientation Agenda
BGS New Student Orientation - Kelley Research Building Lobby and Auditorium
Monday, August 10, 2026 - Welcome!
Arrive and Check In - Light Breakfast
Welcome Remarks from Program Leaders and School Representatives
Dan Kessler, PhD - Slides
Associate Dean for Graduate Education, Perelman School of Medicine
Director, BGS
Ravi Radhakrishnan, PhD - Slides
Chair of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science
Chris Lengner, PhD
Chair of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine
Matthew Weitzman, PhD
Arthur Vincent Meigs Endowed Chair in Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Kristy Shuda McGuire, MS, PhD - Slides
Dean of Biomedical Studies, The Wistar Institute
Donita Brady, PhD
Assistant Dean and Research Trainee Affairs Director, Perelman School of Medicine
Lunch
Tuesday, August 11, 2026 - Connections in the Lab and Beyond
Student-Led Mentorship Case Studies
(Small groups will be set up in lobby, KRB 251, 252, and 253)
Graduate Student Organizations Panel
- Biomedical Graduate Student Association - Slides
- E.E. Just Biomedical Society - Slides
- LTBGS - Slides
- SACNAS - Slides
- Penn Graduate Women in Science & Engineering - Slides
- Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group - Slides
- Penn Biotech Group - Slides
- Trainee Advancement Alliance - Slides
- Penn Graduate Consulting Club
- Pharm4Good - Slides
- Venture Lab - Slides
Lunch
Wednesday, August 12, 2026 - BGS and University Resources
Graduate School Logistics (Welcome from the Staff)
Judy Jackson
BGS Administrative Director
Kyle Brown
BGS Registrar
Carol Reich
BGS Payroll Manager
University Resources Panel Session
- Wellness General
- Wellness Counseling
- Weingarten Learning Resources Center
- Graduate Student Center
- Public Safety
- Penn Libraries/Holman Commons
- Recreation and Athletics
Embedded BGS Counselor
Chelsea Minsky, MS, LPC
Wellness Counselor
Lunch
Laptop Pickup (by appointment only)
Thursday, August 13, 2026 - Building Inclusive Culture
Introduction to Research Trainee Affairs and the Trainee Advancement Alliance (TAA)
Donita Brady, PhD
Assistant Dean and Research Trainee Affairs Director, PSOM
Kellie Jurado, PhD
Assistant Director, Research Trainee Affairs, PSOM
Restorative Conflict & Communication Skills
Imani Hester, MSW
Associate Director for Training and Community Building, Restorative Practices@Penn
Building Cultures of Excellence in Research Spaces
Donita Brady, PhD
Assistant Dean and Research Trainee Affairs Director, PSOM
Student-Led Inclusive Culture Case Studies
Lunch
Laptop Pickup (by appointment only)
Student Organizations Ice Cream Social
Friday, August 14, 2026
Graduate Group Specific Activities
Monday, August 17, 2026 - Science at Penn
Scientific Discovery at Penn
Dan Kessler, PhD
Associate Dean for Graduate Education, PSOM
Director, BGS
Kelly Jordan-Sciutto, PhD
Vice Provost for Graduate Education
Jonathan Epstein, MD
Dean, PSOM
Michael Ostap, PhD
Senior Vice Dean and Chief Scientific Officer, PSOM
Scientific Talk by Alum
Glennis Logsdon, PhD
Assistant Professor, Genetics
"My path from BGS graduate student to PI at Penn”
Scientific Talks by Current Students
Cecelia (Cece) Petruconis
Student in Pharmacology
"The Motors Behind Movement: Kinesin-1 Interactions in Health and Disease”
Mark Bray
Student in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Chemical Biology
"Design & characterization of de novo peptide inhibitors against an Ebola VP35 IID cryptic pocket"
Lunch
Tuesday, August 18, 2026 - Lab Notebooks and Documentation
Lab Notebooks Overview
Ben Voight, PhD
Professor, Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics
Student Perspectives on Lab Notebooks
Data and File Organization - Lauren Lee
What’s an e-Notebook? - Jafar Bhatti
Work in Computational Areas - Jimmy Kelliher
Hands-On Training: Lab Archives, Benchling, OneNote
Lab Notebook Exercises (Participants should bring laptop)
Lunch
Laptop Pickup (by appointment only)
Wednesday, August 19, 2026 - Doing Science Well
PSOM Core Facilities & Computing Resources
Yale Cohen, PhD
Assistant Dean for Research Infrastructure and Strategy, PSOM
Li-San Wang, PhD
Associate Dean for Computing, PSOM
Responsible Conduct of Research
Kurt Engleka, PhD
Director of Curriculum, BGS
Ready, Set, Experiment!
Kurt Engleka, PhD
Director of Curriculum, BGS
Student-Led Experimentation Case Studies
Lunch
Laptop Pickup (by appointment only)
Thursday, August 20, 2026 - Career Development
Introduction to Careers/Career Paths Mentorship Program
Marisa Bartolomei, PhD
Program Director, Cell and Molecular Biology Training Grant
Emily Daley
CPMP Co-Director and Student in Cell and Molecular Biology
Certificate Programs
Graduate Training in Medical Sciences
Public Health
Community Engaged STEM
Environmental Health Sciences
One Health
Grad Student Union Leaders
Nicolai Apenes
Vice President, GET-UP/UAW and Student in Immunology
Grace Bukowski-Thall
Co-Lead Steward for BGS and Student in Cell and Molecular Biology