When James Boddu and Ajlan Al Zaki, second-year medical students at the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), took over as editors of Fusion, the William H. Beaumont Medical Research Honor Society’s student-led publication, they wanted to do “something different” for Research Days, according to Robert Miller, Ph.D., senior associate dean for research, Vivian Gill Distinguished Research Professor, and professor of anatomy and regenerative biology at SMHS.
Miller and the two editors discussed various possibilities for the two-day event, which highlights the research endeavors taking place across GW’s 10 schools. The second day, in particular, focuses on research in the health and medical communities and traditionally features two keynote speakers. This year, thanks to Boddu, Al Zaki, and Miller, Research Days tipped toward student ambitions. “We decided over a series of discussions that it would be a terrific opportunity [for students] to hear what some of their colleagues have been doing as part of this Research Day,” Miller said. Al Zaki and Boddu created an application process for student researchers to submit proposals to Fusion; the student editorial board then assessed the abstracts and selected three as the winners of the prestigious William Beaumont Research Award. Those three — first-year M.D. program student Siyang “Charlie” Chaili and second-year M.D. program students Nicole A. Doria and Angeline Pham — presented at the March 30 session. “It’s a real privilege to help augment the research presence here at GW,” said Chaili. “As students, we really strive to be excellent in every way, to represent GW well.” Students also gave poster presentations on their projects, which varied from basic to translational science, and SMHS awarded the Donald H. Glew Prize to Alexa Lean, a second-year M.D. student. As Boddu explained, what the students have accomplished, including the three Beaumont winners, is a “great testament and a snapshot to what’s being done here at GW.”
