The Stowers Graduate School has welcomed its newest and largest class of 12 predoctoral researchers into its Ph.D. program. This program is designed to provide these early-career researchers with invaluable education and immersive experiences that will refine their skills, expand their intellectual horizons, and shape them into adept and accomplished scientists.

At the heart of the program lies a strong emphasis on cultivating critical thinking and fostering experimental expertise. These individuals will be challenged to identify a novel and significant biological question that will guide their intellectual explorations for the next several years.

Throughout this journey, these researchers will be mentored by some of the most distinguished scientists in the world and will have unrestricted access to technologies and state-of-the-art instrumentation to help propel them to the forefront of groundbreaking science.

The 2023-2024 Predoctoral Research Class

Front row (left to right):

Kelsey Scott, University of California, Santa Barbara

Erika Pinto, Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador and Technical Particular University of Loja

Francisco Guerra Garcia, Pablo de Olavide University

Middle row (left to right):

Fahad Kamulegeya, Makerere University

Graciela Monfort Anez, Pennsylvania State University

Yuri Iwamura, Nara Women’s University and Kyoto University

Hannah Kimbrough, Truman State University

Back row (left to right):

Wenhao Song, Tsinghua University

Siddharth Kurne, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Thiruvananthapuram

Samuel Campbell, University of Kansas

Logan Sabin, University of Missouri-Kansas City

Brandon Fagen, Harding University