Brandeis Alum, Tepring Piquado, Running for California State Assembly

Tepring Piquado CampaignThe career track for Brandeis alumni can lead them in interesting directions. Brandeis Alumna Tepring Piquado is running to represent California’s 54th Assembly District. The seat’s former occupant, Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, resigned in December. She is one of the candidates vying for the open seat in a special election, to be held April 3rd. Among the candidates are experienced political directors and activists. Dr. Piquado, a political newcomer, is the only neuroscientist.

While at Brandeis, Tepring was a part of Arthur Wingfield’s Memory and Cognition Lab, defending in 2010. Her research at Brandeis focused on the effects of aging and its impact upon the cognitive abilities of the elderly. While at Brandeis, Tepring was active in the Brandeis chapter of SACNAS. She currently serves as co-chair for the SACNAS Diversity and Inclusion Forum.

She now is a Research and Policy Scientist at the RAND Corporation. In speaking with us, Tepring said, “I love my job as a policy researcher at RAND Corporation where I provide policymakers with the best available information to help make decisions; but I’m ready to stand up and take part in state government.  My experience and expertise, coupled with my ability to think critically and act compassionately, make me the best person to address issues affecting our community.”

While speaking at the March for Science LA on April 22, 2017, Tepring said “Evidence matters! Research and analysis are only the means, not the End. Science gives us a process to find the best available data to help us get closer to the truth. The sooner we understand the facts; the sooner politicians can discuss policy solutions.”

You can join #TeamTepring or visit www.voteTepring.com to subscribe to her newsletter.

3 Division of Science Undergrads Win 2015 Giumette Academic Achievement Awards

lab_imageThree of five Guimette Academic Achievement Awards were recently given to Division of Science sophomores, according to Meredith Monaghan, Academic Services.  Each award is worth $5000 per semester for the remaining four terms of study.  In order to qualify for consideration, applicants must be sophomores with at least a 3.50 GPA who are not already receiving other merit awards. All 2015 recipients have been named to the Dean’s list in every semester.

The Giumette Academic Achievement Award began in the 2004-05 academic year to recognize currently enrolled sophomores who have distinguished themselves by their outstanding scholarship and academic achievements at Brandeis. The Academic Achievement Awards have been re-named after Peter Giumette, in honor of his twenty years of service to Brandeis as the head of Student Financial Services.

The Division of Science Giumette recipients are:

Zoe Brown ’17 is double majoring in Neuroscience and Psychology and has worked as a research assistant in Professor Arthur Wingfield’s Memory and Cognition Lab. This experience led Zoe to an internship at McLean hospital, where she works in the Bipolar and Schizophrenia division. Zoe will be a Bauer Foundation Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow in the Wingfield lab this summer. After graduating from Brandeis, Zoe plans to enter a Ph.D. program in either neuroscience or psychology and hopes to work in clinical neuropsychology, research, or teaching.

Kahlil Oppenheimer ’17 is double majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics. He serves as both a Teaching Assistant and an Undergraduate Department Representative for the Computer Science department. He has worked as an intern for both Draper Laboratories and HP Vertica, where he has utilized his academic knowledge in a real-world setting. Kahlil will be a software engineering intern at Kayak this summer and hopes to continue to explore both applied and abstract mathematics.

Leah Shapiro ’17 is majoring in both Biological Physics and Mathematics. Leah has been conducting independent research with Professors Jané Kondev (Physics) and Jeff Gelles (Biochemistry), on an interdisciplinary project investigating gene regulation and expression.  This summer Leah will be participating in research at the Yang Laboratory at the University of Michigan.

See story on BrandeisNow.

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