Penn has been named a founding partner institution for a program that will address scientific issues through interdisciplinary approaches.
Emerging Leaders in Science & Society is a competitive fellowship that, in its inaugural year, will be open to graduate and professional students at four campuses across the United States.
The program, which is sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science — the publisher of the research journal Science — will select fellows from Purdue, Stanford, the University of Washington and Penn to make a one-year commitment to the program starting in January 2014.
ELISS fellows will be organized into cross-institutional teams, focused on one of two themes: health and well-being or energy and education. Topics could range from child obesity to stem cell research.
The four founding partner institutions were selected based on the volume of signatures they collected during a signature drive in October and November of 2012. More than 110 institutions participated.
Samantha White, a doctoral candidate in neuroscience at Penn and a liaison for the program, initiated the effort to bring ELISS to Penn. White approached the Graduate and Professional Student Association and the deans of the 12 graduate and professional schools to ask for support. “I had everyone sending out links,” she said.
According to White, Penn had the second-highest number of signatures at the conclusion of the drive.
“We tried to be egalitarian in how we chose campuses,” said Melanie Roberts, who co-founded ELISS and is the program’s director.
Roberts received her Ph.D. in neurobiology and behavior from the University of Washington in 2005. While studying there, she co-founded the first chapter of the Forum on Science Ethics and Policy, which she cites as the precursor to ELISS.
According to its website, the mission of the FOSEP chapters is to “promote civic dialogue about issues at the intersection of science and society.”
“All of the people that I cofounded [FOSEP] with feel like its sort of one of the most important things we’ve done with our lives,” Roberts said.
After conceptualizing ELISS, she invited two of her collaborators from FOSEP, Bree Mitchell and Kate Stoll, to work on the program with her.
Together, the women drafted the framework for ELISS based on the challenges they faced in finding funds for interdisciplinary graduate research.
“The current system is too divided into boxes and people are working in their box,” Roberts said. Conversely, she wants ELISS to be “almost like a national think tank.”
Both White and Chief Program Director for the Center of Science, Policy, and Society Programs at AAAS Edward Derrick noted that they want this program to extend beyond emerging leaders solely in the sciences.
“I’m really hoping to see participants drawn from all [parts of] the institution,” Derrick said.
Fellows will be expected to have completed three things by the end of their year with the program: creating an interactive website for the next generation of fellows, planning a community event and making a presentation in Washington, D.C. to national policymakers.
“The students will ultimately be responsible for generating what they work on,” Derrick added.
However, due to a lack of funding, Penn is currently offering four of five possible fellowships allowed by the program. GAPSA provided the funding for two spots while the Office of the Vice Provost provided funding for the other two. White and Reuther are seeking a sponsor for the final position.
Derrick said that AAAS is contributing time to the program but is seeking “the largest part of direct funds … from outside sources.” Fellows will not receive a stipend but will be eligible to apply for professional development funds after completing their year.
Penn is still seeking additional liaisons and funding. Pre-applications for the program will be accepted until June 14.
Down the road, Roberts would like to see ELISS expand to other campuses and and see graduates of the program act as consultants to policymakers.
However, Roberts remained optimistic about ELISS’s future at Penn.
“I am most excited in the response from students. It’s not a selfish motivation,” she said. “I know [Penn has] won awards for civic engagement and there really seems to be an awareness of engaging the community.”
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