Moffitt Innovators of Tomorrow Symposium April 2024
The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs (OPA) hosted the third Moffitt Innovators of Tomorrow (MIOT) Symposium on April 22-23, 2024. At each MIOT Symposium event, the OPA invites 10 competitively selected predoctoral students and recent doctoral graduates to visit Moffitt, present their research, meet with faculty and learn about postdoctoral training opportunities.
The most recent MIOT cohort included Dr. Jean Bikomeye (Medical College of Wisconsin), Kofi Khamit-Kush (Clark Atlanta University), Ali Khan (University of Iowa), Joshelli Llavona-Ortiz (Pennsylvania State University), Sarina Murray (University of Iowa), Dr. Elliot Rodríguez-López (Ponce Health Sciences University), Kellie Scotti (University of Florida), Devyani Sharma (University of Cincinnati), Kristina Stuckey (University of Southern California), and Quiana Wilkerson-Vidal (University of Alabama in Huntsville). This bright group of scholars presented fantastic research spanning population, quantitative, and basic science and engaged in compelling conversations with faculty and other peer researchers.
The group hit the ground running on the first day of the event beginning with their research presentations, followed by a networking lunch with Moffitt postdocs and faculty, and a tour of select shared resource core facilities. They ended the day with dinner in downtown Tampa at the Columbia Café accompanied by a few Moffitt postdocs.
The second day the group had the opportunity to participate in a professional development workshop, attend faculty research talks, attend a networking lunch with Moffitt’s Postdoctoral Association (MPDA) and have individual networking meetings with faculty.
Overall, the first Moffitt Innovators of Tomorrow Symposium of 2024 proved to be a great success in acquainting these soon-to-be postdocs with the various ways Moffitt researchers are contributing to the prevention and cure of cancer. Summarizing her experience, Joshelli Llavona-Ortiz said, “MIOT was phenomenal! Thanks to everyone at Moffitt for inspiring us, welcoming us and allowing us to learn more about the amazing work everyone is doing.”
A big thank you to all the faculty, staff and current postdocs who participated and helped make this a successful event. MIOT has proven to be an important opportunity to cultivate connections between Moffitt and the next generation of cancer researchers nationwide and we look forward to watching our most recent cohort of innovators’ careers take off!
The next MIOT Symposium is scheduled for October 17-18, 2024, and the OPA is currently accepting applications until July 31. Learn more about the MIOT Symposium program.