STEM Events and Workshops | Fall 2025
September 9, 1–2 p.m. | Novel gene editing tools and their application to genetic disease
Guest Speakers: Cian Schmitt-Ulms (MIT), Christopher Fell (Mass General Brigham)
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-329
Cian Schmitt-Ulms is a PhD student developing RNA and DNA editing technologies for the treatment of neurological disorders, working in the lab of Omar Abudayyeh and Jonathan Gootenberg at the Gene and Cell Therapy Institute of Mass General Brigham. He is a member of the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department at MIT.
Many inherited diseases are amenable to treatment with genetic editors, which restore function by correcting mutated genes. While existing tools can address some of the editing space, not all types of changes are possible, and each approach has its caveats and tradeoffs. Cian will present their work on a new type of RNA editing tool that aims to correct genes by hijacking natural splicing machinery.
Christopher Fell, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow researching novel gene editing tools and their application to genetic disease in the lab of Omar Abudayyeh and Jonathan Gootenberg at the Gene and Cell Therapy Institute of Mass. General Brigham. He is a research fellow of the Simon Center for the Social Brain at MIT.
Treating human genetic disorders remains a large, unmet need. Gene editing technologies are rapidly advancing to clinics but are limited in the scale of edits that they can make. In this talk, Christopher will present recent advances in the emerging gene editing modality called Programmable Gene Integration (PGI), which may be able to treat genetic diseases through gene replacement or supplementation.
September 11, 4–5 p.m. | Volunteering, Biotech Mentorship, Community Engagement
Guest Speaker: Natasha Baptiste, Science Club for Girls
Join via WebEx: https://bhcc.webex.com/bhcc/j.php?MTID=m907fcfb18a4c4461e79aa2ee76aea501
September 18, 1–2 p.m. | Chemical Engineering, Manufacturing & Industry Workforce Career Path
Guest Speaker: Jules Thiery (CEO, Gencores) & team
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-329
September 30, 1–2 p.m. | Pathways to Public Health: Voices from Emerging Scientists
Panel discussion: Representatives from the T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-329
October 2, 1–2 p.m. | Preparing for a Career in Healthcare
Guest Speaker: Kim Mace, MGH Institute of Health Professions
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-329
October 7, 4–5 p.m. | Biomechanics & Orthopedic Research (Musculoskeletal System)
Guest Speaker: Prof. Karen Troy, WPI
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-329
November 6, 1–2 p.m. | Pipeline, Drug Development, Intern Research Projects of Biogen BHCC interns
Guest Speaker: Representatives from Biogen
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-329
December 4, 1–2 p.m. | Spring Registration, Transfer Prep, Summer 2026 Internship Opportunities
Guest Speakers: BHCC staff members
Join via WebEx: https://bhcc.webex.com/bhcc/j.php?MTID=mf96a253cb989a30dc7e63516de609a4d
October 30, 1-2 p.m. | STEM Halloween Party
Costumes Encouraged! Join STEM faculty and staff members for on-the-spot advising and Halloween treats! Hosted by Professor Libby Dunphy.
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, D-310
November 5, 10:30 a.m. | From Anesthesia to Transplants: AI in the Next Generation of Drug Discovery
Guest Speaker: Megan Sperry, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Computational Biology, Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University. Hosted by Professor Belinda Kadambi.
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, B-336
STEM Week | October 20-23
Monday, October 20, 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m., | Open Engineering Lab: Intro to ENR Lab
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, Room B-331
Tuesday, October 21, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., | STEM Career Pathway Event
Hosted by Internship and Career Development
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, D-Lobby
Tuesday, October 21, 1 – 2 p.m., | STEM Club Open House STEM Study
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, Room E-223
Wednesday, October 22, 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m., | Open Engineering Lab: Electrical ENR Lab
Hosted by Prof. Erik Siggelkoe
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, Room B-331
Thursday, October 23, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., | Transfer Fair
Join in person: Charlestown Campus, Gymnasium
Thursday, October 23, 4 – 5 p.m. | STEM Week Guest Speaker: Yan Lin, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Geography
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
Co-hire, Social Science Research Institute (SSRI)
Pennsylvania State University
Join via Webex