Thanks to the generous philanthropic support of friends and alumni, the Department of Biology continues its rich tradition of excellence in both education and research in biological sciences. Dr. Edward M. Scolnick, has recently given a generous gift to the Department to establish the Child Care Portable Benefit Initiative. The Department is very excited about this program.

Sponsoring Child Care Benefits
for Young Faculty

Edward M. Scolnick, Director of the Psychiatric Diseases Program and the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at the Broad Institute, recently made a generous contribution to the Department of Biology Child Care Portable Benefit Initiative. The program will help early-career professors balance the demands of being a scientist and a parent by giving them an opportunity to obtain quality childcare. Once the program is established, eligible junior faculty (untenured) will receive $5,000 annually to defray the cost of child care for their first child and $2,000 annually for each child thereafter.

Beginning his career as a postdoc at NIH, Ed worked on stop signals in the genetic code. Realizing that the life of his project was nearing its end, he found a position at NCI. He spent the 1970s at NCI, researching the cellular origin of sarcoma virus oncogenes in mammals, successfully defining specific genes that cause human cancer. From 1982-2003, Ed was president of Merck Research Laboratories (MRL), as well as holding several other senior positions. At Merck, he rebuilt the virology program. In his current research at the Broad Institute, he works closely with principal investigator Pamela Sklar towards identifying risk genes for bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

According to Ed, the key to his three successful careers was a combination of hard work, timing, and, of course, a little luck. As for his career in research science, his advice to young scientists is to find a complex problem and, in working on it for five to seven years, learn as much of the process as possible and get the very best training available. "Don’t give up," he says, "Science is a process and not just random talent."

Experiences at Merck are a considerable influence on Ed’s choice to make a gift to MIT. In the 1980s, Merck was recruiting highly talented scientists who were usually part of a dual-career couple. Inevitably, child care became an issue for them. Merck has a large subsidized program at several sites, but the daycare was never quite adequate to parents’ needs. Ed has personal experience with this issue himself: he and his wife had to balance their careers and three children of their own. Even so, Ed believes that finding this balance is somewhat easier in industry than academia: "I think it is a bit more difficult here at the Institute, with writing grants and teaching commitments," he says.

Ed sees his gift as a "seed" that can be nurtured and grown at the Institute. If we take a lead role in developing child care solutions for its faculty, MIT will be in an even better position to recruit first-rate young scientists.

Giving to the Department of Biology

All gifts to the Department of Biology are greatly appreciated. Naming opportunities exist for graduate fellowships, endowed professorships, and research fund.

Deferred gifts and other tax planning approaches can often make more substantial gifts possible. Through a planned gift, alumni/ae can give assets to MIT while retaining the income. Bequests can be made in the form of a specific gift of cash or property, or a percentage of an estate.

Contributions to the Department of Biology provide critical support by way of graduate fellowships, supplies, and important seeding for new programs. If you would like to make a gift or pledge over the telephone, or for more information on how to contribute to the important work taking place every day in Biology, please contact Linda K. Earle, Resource Development Coordinator, (617) 324-2297, lkn [at] mit.edu.

Gifts in all amounts are invaluable to the following funds:

• Frank Solomon Graduate Student Aid (2733731): Contributing to the Frank Solomon Graduate Student Aid fund strengthens the overall graduate experience. The Frank Solomon fund continues to provide assistance with expenses for student travel to various conferences. Additionally, this fund helps defray the costs of special seminars, speakers and receptions that are a strong component of graduate student life.
• Graduate Student Events Fund (2892801): Giving to the student events fund will provide much-needed support for graduate students in the Department of Biology. The support will help build the foundation both socially and scientifically, giving students the opportunity to interact with faculty and their peers as they pursue their research careers.
• Biology Discretionary Fund (3838900): When you give to the biology discretionary fund, the Department has the opportunity to use the funds where they are most needed at the time.

Major funding of research in MIT's Department of Biology is provided by a variety of grants from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.