Sherilynn Black

Last updated

Sherilynn Black
Sherilynn Black on Culturally Aware Mentorship.jpg
Black speaks on Culturally Aware Mentorship for the National Institute of General Medical Sciences in 2020
Born
North Carolina
NationalityAmerican
Alma materB.S. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Ph.D. and postdoctoral work at Duke University
Known forDeveloping programs to increase diversity and equity in graduate education
Awards
  • Samuel Debois Cook Society Award
  • Deans Award for Inclusive Excellence in Graduate Education
  • Morehead-Cain Scholar
Scientific career
FieldsNeuroscience, Education
InstitutionsDuke University School of Medicine

Sherilynn Black is an American neuroscientist. She is an associate vice provost for faculty advancement, as well as an assistant professor of the practice of medical education at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Black's research focuses on social neuroscience and developing interventions to promote diversity in academia. Black has been widely recognized for her commitment to faculty development and advancement and holds national appointments with the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, the National Institutes of Health, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the American Association of Medical Colleges, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, and the Society for Neuroscience.

Contents

Early life and education

Black pursued her undergraduate degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. [1] As a Morehead-Cain Scholar, Black majored in psychology and minored in biology. [1] After graduating with the highest honors, Black continued in academia and pursued graduate work at Duke University in neurobiology. [2] In 2002, Black became the first African American graduate student to pass the qualifying exam in that program. [3] While completing her Ph.D., Black simultaneously studied education at UNC at Chapel Hill. [2]

Black completed her graduate training in 2008 and stayed at Duke for postdoctoral training in the lab of Dr. Kafui Dzirasa from 2009 until 2012. [4] Under Dzirasa's mentorship, Black studied the cortical control of the neural circuits underlying emotion. [5] Black found that optogenetic stimulation of cortical projection neurons had an antidepressant effect on mice, and through multi-region neural recordings, found that this stimulation drives synchronous neural activity across multiple limbic brain regions implicated in emotional regulation. [5]

Career and research

In 2010, the Office of Biomedical Graduate Diversity was established at Duke University, and Black was recruited as its first director. [6] Black addressed issues such as imposter syndrome and the lack of role models for minority students by recruiting diverse students and faculty, and beginning recruitment early in undergraduate degrees. [7] Black created a multidisciplinary group and comprehensive program to begin to correct the gender and racial disparities in graduate education. [8] She also oversaw the development of programs geared towards addressing the challenges that underrepresented students often face in academia. [8] At the undergraduate level, Black ensured that students were given the opportunity to get involved in programs geared towards pursuing graduate school. She also made sure that faculty of all levels were involved in recruitment at events and conferences. [8] Black coordinated an annual retreat through the Office of Biomedical Graduate Diversity where all underrepresented graduate students have a chance to meet each other, develop friendships, and prepare for a successful Duke graduate school experience. [9] Black's efforts doubled the number of applications to biomedical programs at Duke [10] within the first 5 years, improving matriculation rates and student funding rates through fellowships. [7] [6]

In 2012, Black was appointed as assistant professor of the practice of medical education in the Ophthalmology and clinical science department at Duke University. [11] One year later, in 2013, she was promoted to assistant professor of the practice of medical education in the department of medical education at Duke's School of Medicine. [11] During this time, she conducted research to identify common variables leading to success in higher education in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) student-development programs. [1] She also developed computational models to predict the success of higher education programs. [1] Black then became the co-principal investigator of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded BioCoRE, or the Duke Biosciences Collaborative for Research Engagement. [1] In this role, Black promoted both graduate and undergraduate research and the holistic development of biomedical scholars. [12]

As of 2017, Black was promoted to associate vice provost for faculty advancement. [13] She serves as a faculty affiliate for the Duke Center for Science Education, a member of the President's Council on Black Affairs, a member of the Leadership Advisory Council on Underrepresented Minority Faculty, a member of the Advisory Council for Sexual and Gender Diversity, and the co-Advisor for the Duke Chapter of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). [14] [1] [15]

In 2023, Black was named co-chair of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Initiative, a new measure designed to better understand the "intersections between mentorship, professional development, and well-being across academic career stages." [16]

Awards and honors

Appointments

Publications

Kumar, Sunil, Sherilynn J. Black, Rainbo Hultman, Steven T. Szabo, Kristine D. DeMaio, Jeanette Du, Brittany M. Katz, Guoping Feng, Herbert E. Covington, and Kafui Dzirasa. "Cortical control of affective networks." J Neurosci 33, no. 3 (January 16, 2013): 1116–29. [5]

Mays, Alfred, Angela Byars-Winston, Antentor Hinton, Andrea G. Marshall, Annet Kirabo, Avery August, Bianca J. Marlin, et al. 2023. “Juneteenth in STEMM and the Barriers to Equitable Science.” Cell 186 (12): 2510–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2023.05.016.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Hockfield</span> American neuroscientist

Susan Hockfield is an American neuroscientist who served as the 16th president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 2004 to 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences</span> United States federal government university in Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) is a health science university and professional school of the U.S. federal government. The primary mission of the school is to prepare graduates for service to the U.S. at home and abroad as uniformed health professionals, scientists and leaders; by conducting cutting-edge, military-relevant research; by leading the Military Health System in key functional and intellectual areas; and by providing operational support to units around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tufts University School of Engineering</span> One of the ten schools that comprise Tufts University

The School of Engineering is one of the ten schools that comprise Tufts University. The school offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in several engineering disciplines and computer science fields. Along with the School of Arts and Sciences (A&S) and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, the School of Engineering is located on the university's main campus in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. Currently, the engineering school enrolls more than 800 full-time undergraduates and 600 graduate students. The school employs over 100 full-time and part-time faculty members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine</span> Medical school in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US

The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is a medical school of the University of Pittsburgh, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The School of Medicine, also known as Pitt Med, encompasses both a medical program, offering the doctor of medicine, and graduate programs, offering doctor of philosophy and master's degrees in several areas of biomedical science, clinical research, medical education, and medical informatics.

The Duke University School of Medicine, commonly known as Duke Med, is the medical school of Duke University. It was established in 1925 by James B. Duke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tri-Institutional MD–PhD Program</span> Academic program in New York City

The Tri-Institutional MD–PhD Program is a MD–PhD degree program based in Upper East Side, New York City. Introduced in 1991, the current program is operated by Weill Cornell Medicine, Rockefeller University, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center's Sloan Kettering Institute.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michigan State University College of Natural Science</span> MSU College for the natural sciences

The College of Natural Science (NatSci) at Michigan State University is home to 27 departments and programs in the biological, physical and mathematical sciences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VCU School of Medicine</span> Medical school of Virginia Commonwealth University

The Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine is the medical school of Virginia Commonwealth University, a public research university in Richmond, Virginia. It is the largest and oldest continuously operating medical school in Virginia. The school traces its beginnings to the 1838 opening of the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, which in 1854 became an independent institution known as the Medical College of Virginia (MCV). In 1968, MCV joined with the Richmond Professional Institute to form Virginia Commonwealth University. The School of Medicine is one of six schools on VCU's MCV Campus, which includes the VCU Medical Center and Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UC Riverside School of Medicine</span> Medical school of UC Riverside

The University of California, Riverside (UCR), School of Medicine is the graduate medical school of the University of California, Riverside, acting as one of six University of California medical schools. It enrolled its first class in 2013, with the first class of 40 medical students receiving their degrees on June 9, 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CUNY School of Medicine</span> Medical school of the City University of New York

The CUNY School of Medicine (CUNY Medicine) is the medical school of The City University of New York (CUNY). Founded in 2015 on The City College of New York (CCNY) campus, CUNY Medicine became the only public medical school in Manhattan and the first medical school to open in New York City since 1860.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences</span> Medical graduate training school

The Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences is one of the schools of higher education within the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. It offers graduate training in the biomedical sciences with programs for Ph.D., M.D.-Ph.D., and master's degree-seeking students. In addition, Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences offers summer undergraduate research fellowships and post-baccalaureate research opportunities.

Joan Y. Reede is an American physician. She is Harvard Medical School's inaugural dean for diversity and community partnership in the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Partnership. She is also a member of the National Academy of Medicine. She is known for creating programs that mentor and support minority physicians and female physicians. Alumni of her programs have created a 501(c)(3) organization called The Reede Scholars in her honor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valerie Ashby</span> African-American polymer chemist

Valerie Sheares Ashby is an American chemist and university professor who currently serves as president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She was the Dean of Trinity College of Arts and Sciences at Duke University from 2015 to 2022 and formerly chair of the chemistry department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2012 to 2015. With her research group, she holds ten patents. On April 4, 2022, it was announced that Ashby would assume the position of president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lola Eniola-Adefeso</span> Nigerian-American chemical engineer

Omolola (Lola) Eniola-Adefeso is a Nigerian-American chemical engineer and incoming Dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Chicago.

JoAnn Trejo is an American pharmacologist, cell biologist, a professor, and also an assistant vice chancellor in the department of health sciences faculty affairs in the Department of Pharmacology at the School of Medicine at University of California, San Diego. She is also the assistant vice chancellor for Health Sciences Faculty Affairs. Trejo studies cell signalling by protease-activated G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). She is also actively involved in mentoring, education and outreach activities to increase the diversity of science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elba Serrano</span> Professor of Neuroscience

Elba E. Serrano is a neuroscientist and biophysicist who holds a position as a Regent's Professor of Biology at New Mexico State University.

Elizabeth G. Loboa is an American biomedical engineer, inventor, researcher and academic administrator currently serving at Southern Methodist University (SMU) as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine</span> Medical school in California, USA

The Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine is a medical school associated with the Kaiser Permanente health system and located in Pasadena, California. The school matriculated its inaugural class of 50 students in July 2020. In November 2019, the school was renamed in honor of late Kaiser Permanente Chairman and CEO Bernard J. Tyson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farah Lubin</span> American neuroscientist

Farah D. Lubin is an American neuroscientist and Professor of Neurobiology and Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham within the Heersink School of Medicine. Lubin is the Principal Investigator of the Lubin Lab which explores the epigenetic mechanisms underlying cognition and how these mechanisms are altered in disease states such as epilepsy and neurodegeneration. Lubin discovered the role of NF-κB in fear memory reconsolidation and also uncovered a novel role for epigenetic regulation of BDNF during long-term memory formation and in epilepsy leading to memory loss. Lubin is a champion for diversity at UAB as the Director of the Roadmap Scholar Program and as a faculty mentor for several institutional and national programs to increase retention of underrepresented minorities in STEM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gilda Barabino</span> American biomedical and chemical engineer

Gilda A. Barabino is the president of the Olin College of Engineering, where she is also a professor of biomedical and chemical engineering. Previously, she served as the dean of The Grove School of Engineering at the City College of New York, and as a professor in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Chemical Engineering and the CUNY School of Medicine. On March 4, 2021, she became the President-Elect of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Sherilynn Black". serc.carleton.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 "Black, Sherilynn | DukeAHEAD". dukeahead.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Always Asking 'Why?'". today.duke.edu. April 11, 2016. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Laboratory for Psychiatric Neuroengineering". Laboratory for Psychiatric Neuroengineering. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 "Cortical control of affective networks. | Scholars@Duke". scholars.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  6. 1 2 "Sherilynn Black Named New Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement". today.duke.edu. October 23, 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Programs Combat Bias, Boost STEM Success for Targeted Students". American Association for the Advancement of Science. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 "Diversity Speaker Series launches with Duke's Sherilynn Black (Environmental Factor, March 2018)". National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Number of Underrepresented Minority PhD Applicants Continues to Increase | Duke School of Medicine". medschool.duke.edu. Archived from the original on April 8, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Number of Underrepresented Minority PhD Applicants Continues to Increase | Duke School of Medicine". medschool.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  11. 1 2 3 "Sherilynn Black | Scholars@Duke". scholars.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  12. ↑ "BioCoRE Program | Duke School of Medicine". medschool.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  13. ↑ "Sherilynn Black Named New Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement | Duke School of Medicine". medschool.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  14. ↑ "Sexual and Gender Diversity Advisory Council Members | Duke School of Medicine". medschool.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  15. ↑ "Leadership Advisory Council on URM Faculty | Duke School of Medicine". medschool.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  16. ↑ "A New Look at Mentorship, Professional Development and Well-Being to Help Scholars Succeed". Duke Today. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Damon Tweedy headlines NIEHS Diversity Speaker Series (Environmental Factor, March 2019)". National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Graduate School Honors 2017 Dean's Award Winners | Duke Graduate School". gradschool.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Cook Society Honors Lives Led in Service at Duke and in the Community". today.duke.edu. February 12, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  20. ↑ "HHMI Awards 39 Gilliam Fellowships to Support Diversity in Science". HHMI.org. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Committees - GREAT". AAMC. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  22. ↑ "Sherilynn Black | Duke Black Think Tank". blackthinktank.duke.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  23. ↑ "Project: Reshaping Graduate STEM Education for the 21st Century". www8.nationalacademies.org. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.