2019 Yale Genetic Mentoring award Recipient: Valentina Greco, PhD

Highlights from the nomination letter:

"Dr. Greco is unabashedly dedicated to furthering the goals of not only her immediate lab trainees, but also the goals of trainees in the department, School of Medicine, Yale, and beyond”

“In departmental or topical training seminars, Dr. Greco always asks insightful questions and humbly asks the presenters to “educate” her. This trains us to think deeply about how we communicate and craft our detailed science to an audience, a necessary skill for any researcher”

“Though she makes it appear seamless, it is obvious that Dr. Greco is relentlessly and constantly putting in the hard work. Even juggling so many responsibilities, she has never failed to support and value me or departmental postdocs (and graduate students) in our endeavors, both by responding almost impossibly quickly to our messages, and often looping back even months later to check in on our progress and needs”

“Valentina is also a vocal advocate for inclusion and diversity in science that I as a woman and a student on a visa, have felt to be completely genuine”

“Every time I see her, I am inspired to work a little harder, to be more open and generous, and basically, be the best possible scientist and human being that I can be. I met her at a time, when the pressures of this very competitive way of life (research) had crushed my spirit a little and left me slightly cynical. Seeing her with her well-deserved success and the way she uses it to make her lab, her department, and her community be a little more open-minded, welcoming and nurturing, was exactly what I needed to regain my love for science and the scientific process again”