Yale School of Medicine Professor Valentina Greco has been awarded one of only two Yale Postdoctoral Mentoring Prizes as well as the Department of Genetics Mentoring Award. Both prizes celebrate the dedication of a faculty member to the growth of their lab members.
The Yale Postdoctoral Mentoring Prize is awarded each year to honor exemplary qualities of mentorship in faculty members. After nominations from postdoctoral students, the honoree is chosen by a committee assembled by the Provost for the “greatest positive impact on his or her postdoctoral appointees.”
Active mentoring has been a key part of Greco’s success as well as an inspiring force in her lab. “The establishment of these awards is part of an action towards the need of a more responsible leadership,” says Greco. “They celebrate the thoughtful and positive investment of faculty in their immediate lab members and members of their department and institution.”
At the root of Greco’s dedication to mentoring are her goals and values within her lab. “To me, success is when the process is capable of capturing all voices and ideas of my lab members while forming partnerships in our daily journey towards unknowns,” Greco explains. “When that happens, maximal growth occurs for both me and my lab members such that something new, something that is not simply the sum of the two parts but a new evolution, is created.”
But what exactly does Greco do as a mentor to drive progress in her lab? Navigating the potential negative effects of power differentials within the lab, she strives for a trusting atmosphere. “I continuously counteract the sense of entitlement that my longer experience gives me and aspire to stay grounded and invest in listening to my lab members. I am always flexible on changing my ideas and evolving a new strategy based on the input I receive from my lab members.”
It is undeniable that her actions towards a supportive research environment have contributed to greater successes in her lab. Greco was recently the recipient of the prestigious NIH Director’s Pioneer Award and has won numerous other awards as well, all of which she credits to her investment in nurturing and supporting her lab members. “I believe that our deliberate and ever-evolving work on mentoring is the tool that has enabled the scientific discoveries we have made, the productivity we have had and the strong scientists we have trained,” Greco reflects.