Inquiry, Development, Engagement and Advancement
IDEA Mission
The IDEA Committee was added to the Executive Board of the Cancer Biology (CB) graduate program in 2020. The Cancer Biology program is committed to taking a proactive stance in the creation of an academic environment that is welcoming and celebrates the groundbreaking contributions of scientists from all groups, both nationally and internationally. To this end, the IDEA Committee's specific charges are listed below:
- Building a strong and engaged community in the Cancer Biology Graduate Program
- Building an empathic culture which is responsive to the needs of all students and faculty
- Promoting a wide range of perspectives at CB events and seminar series
- Implementation of recruiting strategies aimed at recruiting the most competitive students nationally and internationally
- Development of innovative infrastructure to support all our students in the CB Program
- Investment into recruitment of local talent to our program starting at middle school and continuing through college
- Increasing knowledge of the current CB faculty and students to strengthen our shared sense of community
We look forward to creating an atmosphere where we utilize the talents of every individual who shares our passion of curing cancer. Importantly, the IDEA committee will work hard to ensure that we pursue our goals of celebrating humanity through our actions at the bench and how we interact with each other.
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Meet the Committee Faculty
Andrew L. Hong, MD
Andrew L. Hong, MD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Hong is a board certified pediatric oncologist at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Dr. Hong's work is at the intersection of genomics and functional genomics in childhood kidney and brain cancers to identify new therapeutics and mechanisms in pediatric cancers. In 2023, Dr. Hong took over for Dr. Henry as Chair of the IDEA Committee.
Anna M. Kenney, PhD
Anna M. Kenney, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Emory School of Medicine. Dr. Kenney is a member of the Cell and Molecular Biology Research Program at Winship Cancer Institute and Program Director of the Cancer Biology Graduate Program. Dr. Kenney's research focuses on cell cycle control in cerebellar development and medulloblastoma.
Sarwish Rafiq, PhD
Sarwish Rafiq, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology at the Emory School of Medicine. She is a translational scientist with expertise in the preclinical development of immune-based therapies for cancer. Specifically, Dr. Rafiq’s research aims to use mechanistic insight of immune effector cell function against cancer cells in the tumor microenvironment to inform the development of novel and effective cellular therapies.
