Professor of Psychobiology
McLean Hospital
Pronouns: she, her, hers
What was the path to your current role?
As a child of immigrant parents who respected learning but lacked even an elementary school education, the path to my current role was unformed and unplanned. I watched as my peers pursued diverse careers, and even my sisters headed into the arts and law. I carved my own path in my teens, guided by an inner voice that steered me toward neuroscience.
What’s something you’ve learned about yourself during your time at HMS?
I have learned the meaning of resolve when pursuing an academic career: daunting tasks of grantsmanship, shepherding a multidisciplinary research team, writing manuscripts, teaching, reviewing, patents — all while simultaneously caring for children.
What experiences have shaped your time at HMS?
The quality, excellence, and kindness of faculty members and administrators and the brilliance of students has fostered my optimistic viewpoint.
What activities or experiences, outside of your job, inform who you are in your role at HMS?
Two appointments of service in the White House were formative. They provided in-depth understanding of the structure and function of federal government agencies; processes by which specific decisions are made in Washington; strategies one can devise to implement evidence-based public health programs; Americans’ diversity of views; how to listen and learn from a broader range of views than experienced in academia; and the challenges in speaking to the media.
What is your most treasured possession or HMS memento?
The 2022 licensing of my invention by a company 30 years after I had presented the data and received a rejection in 1992.