Santiago Acero Bedoya
Second Year
Lab: Still rotating!
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia/
Lexington, OH
Undergrad: Otterbein University
Fun Fact: The summer after high school I was (and still am) a knives salesmen
Why CCB: All the prestige and rigor of other top institutions, but with a more collaborative and supportive community. I felt welcomed from the first time I visited the program through Discover UChicago.
Stephen Arnowitz
Sixth Year
Lab: Lucy Godley/Fotini Gounari
Hometown: Dayton, OH
Undergrad: Northwestern University
Fun Fact: I interviewed for my technician job the day before my PI got the presidential medal of freedom from Obama.
Why CCB: My favorite thing about CCB is the combination of a very diverse community with a high degree of interest in collaboration across fields and expertise to address interesting questions.
David Banks
Third Year- MSTP
Lab: James LaBelle
Hometown: Jacksonville, North Carolina
Undergrad: University of North Carolina- Greensboro
Fun Fact: I can't taste wasabi or other TRPA1-foods.
Why CCB: I came to UChicago for the unique training environment it offers. Pritzker emphasizes equity and advocacy in healthcare while research labs across the BSD emphasize rigor and translational impact.
Chufan Cai
Second Year
Lab: Alex Muir
Hometown: Anhui, China
Undergrad: China Agricultural University & Purdue University
Fun Fact: Love tacos and dogs
Why CCB: I like the flexibility of the program, and also the support for students
Juan Apiz
Third Year
Lab: Alex Muir
Hometown: Caguas, Puerto Rico
Undergrad: University of Puerto Rico at Cayey
Fun Fact: My grandma is from Lebanon. Lebanese pita bread is the best bread and I will fight anyone on this. And you can get in in Hyde Park Produce!
Why CCB: I came to UChicago, instead of other places, because of the strong community in the sciences and the university. There's always somebody to answer my questions, hear my thoughts, support my ideas and encourage me to go further. That's cool.
Briana Banks
Second Year
Lab: Still rotating!
Hometown: Olympia Fields, IL
Undergrad: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Fun Fact: I've lived in Illinois all my life, and I love food....2 facts :)
Why CCB: I love the sense of community among CCB. I was also super interested in GRIT!
Eric Bueter
Fifth Year
Lab: Russell Smulewitz
Hometown: South Bend, IN
Undergrad: Wake Forest
Fun Fact: I have traveled to over 40 national parks
Why CCB: Great school, great city
John Cao
Seventh Year
Lab: Lucy Godley
Hometown:
Undergrad:
Fun Fact:
Why CCB:
Chang Cui
Sixth year
Lab: Lev Becker
Hometown: Beijing, China
Undergrad: Penn State
Fun Fact: Wine lover
Why CCB: People care
Jess Fessler
Sixth year
Lab: Tom Gajewski
Hometown: Farmington, NY
Undergrad: MIT
Fun Fact: I own a one-eyed orange tabby named Odin
Why CCB: I was drawn to the small, close-knit cancer program over some of the larger umbrella programs I applied to. The faculty know the students, and they want them to succeed!
Maria Evers
First Year
Lab:
Hometown: Pleasant Hill, OH
Undergrad: Ohio University
Fun Fact: I have a cat named Kiwi
Why CCB: I decided to come to Chicago because the culture felt drastically different than other top institutions in the country; I knew I would thrive both on an academic and personal level. Students and faculty are (In addition to brilliant😉) uplifting, supportive, and genuine.
Robert Gruener
Sixth year
Lab: Geoffrey Greene
Hometown: Oak Creek, WI
Undergrad: University of Wisconsin - Madison
Fun Fact:
Why CCB: Chicago is great, good vibes from the people I met, great program.
Katrina Hawley
Fifth Year
Lab: James LaBelle
Hometown: Glendale, AZ
Undergrad: Princeton University
Fun Fact: Has the goal of running the six Abbott World Marathon Majors (has run four so far - Berlin, Boston, Chicago, NYC)
Why CCB: My favorite part of CCB is the welcoming community of faculty and students.
Juan Ibarra
Second year
Lab: Shannon Elf/Scott Oakes
Hometown: Zacatecas, Mexico
Undergrad: Aurora University
Fun Fact: Enjoy convos and wine dates with my plants
Why CCB: The strong and collaborative academic and research culture from across departments and medical center, all immersed in a city that has something to offer for everyone
Matt Jotte
Third Year- MSTP
Lab: Megan McNerney
Hometown: Denver, CO
Undergrad: Washington University in St. Louis
Fun Fact: Would like to be a Rock n Roll drummer
Why CCB: The heme malignancy program has an illustrious history (ie Janet Rowley) and continues to have a strong impact on the field (ie Michelle LeBeau, Richard Larson, Lucy Godley). Also, Chicago is a great city to live in/near
Rosie Huggins
Fourth Year
Lab: Geoffrey Greene
Hometown: Oak Park, IL
Undergrad: University of Massachusetts- Amherst
Fun Fact: I brew my own kombucha
Why CCB: I liked the range of options and research in CCB and I love Chicago
Patrick Jonker
Second Year
Lab: Still rotating!
Hometown: Grand Rapids, MI
Undergrad: Calvin University
Fun Fact: I've played the cello for 15 years
Why CCB: CCB is small enough to feel familial. The small number of students allows everybody to know everybody else, and gives a sense of 'togetherness' to working towards a PhD.
Manisha Krishnan
Fifth Year
Lab: Megan McNerney
Hometown: Abu Dhabi, UAE
Undergrad: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Fun Fact: I am part of a graduate student a cappella group called The Histones!
Why CCB: Everyone seemed very friendly, and the faculty I interviewed with seemed very invested in student success and development
Chris Lee
Fourth Year
Lab: Ray Moellering
Hometown: San Jose, CA
Undergrad: University of California, San Diego
Fun Fact: My favorite UChicago alumnus is Indiana Jones.
Why CCB: The multidisciplinary committee system opens up many research direction choices.
Jimmy Lee
Fifth Year
Lab: Xiaoyang Wu
Hometown: Taipei, Taiwan
Undergrad: Tzu Chi University
Fun Fact: When asked to give a fun fact about myself, I always lie.
Why CCB: I heard that the place was famous for studying nuclear reactions, which I assumed was a form of genetic regulation at that time.
Weihan Liu
Third Year
Lab: Megan McNerney
Hometown: Taiyuan, China
Undergrad: University of California Berkeley
Fun Fact: I have a cat named H3K27ac
Why CCB: Intellectual freedom, resources in cancer research
Jean Lee
Fifth Year
Lab: Sasha Chervonsky
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Undergrad: University of Chicago
Fun Fact: I like to be sad
Why CCB: Great people
Rosy Liao
Fourth Year
Lab: James LaBelle
Hometown: Boston, MA
Undergrad: University of Mighican
Fun Fact: I lived in Switzerland for 3 months when I was four! Sadly the only things I remember are watching Sailor Moon in French and a playground on top of a grocery store
Why CCB: Loved the community feeling of CCB during my interviews and I love that they have the myChoice program!
Wenchao Liu
Fourth Year
Lab: Yingming Zhao
Hometown: Dongyang, China
Undergrad: Peking University
Fun Fact: I cannot stand the taste of Dr. Pepper
Why CCB: The people! Scientists here care about each other, in addition to each other’s research.
Yue Liu
Fifth Year
Lab: Steve Kron
Hometown: China
Undergrad: Tsinghua University
Fun Fact: You'll find it on my computer screen ;)
Why CCB: Summer is not hot here, but I didn't imagine the winter is so long until I came here.
Ben Nicholson
First Year
Lab:
Hometown: Lancaster, MA
Undergrad: College of the Holy Cross
Fun Fact: I ran the 2018 Boston Marathon
Why CCB: As an incoming student, I was drawn to CCB's emphasis on the well-being of its students as well as the priority of preparing students to become leaders in their field as graduates.
Logan Poole
Seventh Year
Lab: Kay Macleod
Hometown: Cedar Rapids, IA
Undergrad: University of Northern Iowa
Fun Fact: I once went on a date with Lizzo’s makeup artist (I guess this isn’t really about me, but I’m not very interesting...)
Why CCB: I chose to join CCB at UChicago because the students in the program were so supportive and friendly. I made lifelong friendships on day one.
Colin Sheehan
Second Year
Lab: Still rotating!
Hometown: Geneva, IL
Undergrad: University of Notre Dame
Fun Fact: Repeat failed fish parent
Why CCB: First, I met many awesome faculty members whose research I was very seriously interested in. Second, I appreciated the strong sense of community and graduate-student-focus within the CCB, and university as a whole.
Julian Lutze
Fifth Year
Lab: Steve Kron/Megan McNerney
Hometown: San Jose, CA
Undergrad: University of California, Los Angeles
Fun Fact: I have sold a piece of art for real money
Why CCB: In my interview weekend, I felt at home in the program
Mat Perez-Neut
Sixth Year
Lab: Yingming Zhao
Hometown: Strong Island, NY
Undergrad: University of Illinois at Chicago
Fun Fact: I'm 5'6 but only epigenetically.
Why CCB: Being a first-gen & coming from a huge state school, I appreciate the structure of our program. Advancing in the program is straightforward, and there is always someone available to help you along the way.
Jill Rosenberg
Fifth Year
Lab: Jun Huang
Hometown: Boston, MA
Undergrad: Tulane University
Fun Fact: I went to 10 concerts my first summer in Chicago
Why CCB: MyChoice!!!
Sravya Tumuluru
Fifth Year
Lab: Justin Kline
Hometown: Memphis, TN
Undergrad: Northwestern University
Fun Fact: I lived in India until I was 8
Why CCB: Sense of community
William Wagstaff
Fifth Year- MSTP
Lab: Melody Schwartz
Hometown: Buffalo, NY/Atlanta, GA
Undergrad: Stanford
Fun Fact: I won a hot dog eating contest
Why CCB: I came to UChicago because of how supportive the MSTP/CCB faculty are
Peter Yang
Fifth Year
Lab: Marsha Rosner
Hometown: Xi'an, China
Undergrad: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Fun Fact: I enjoy skydiving and flying airplanes.
Why CCB: One of the reasons that made me join the program is the MyChoice program. Thanks to the various workshops and seminars, I'm better prepared for my career after graduating from UChicago.
Emma Wilkinson
Second Year
Lab: Still rotating!
Hometown: Woodridge, IL
Undergrad: Loyola University Chicago
Fun Fact: I had perfect attendance throughout all of high school.
Why CCB: I liked how close the CCB students were; not just acting as peers, but as friends. I also liked how CCB integrated both basic and translational research and is greatly integrated with the Cancer Center.
Anqi Yu
Second Year
Lab: Lixing Yang
Hometown: China
Undergrad: Peking University
Fun Fact: Always speak slowly
Why CCB: I like people here in CCB and the great academic atmosphere of UChicago
Allen Zhu
Fourth Year- MSTP
Lab: Chuan He
Hometown: Kansas City, KS
Undergrad: University of Chicago