Our Philosophy and Values

        Respect and Support. We commit to promoting a supportive and inclusive culture, with the understanding that our diversity of backgrounds and experiences makes us stronger. Although challenges and disagreements are part of life, we treat everyone with courtesy, dignity, honesty, and respect. We understand the importance of mental and physical health and encourage members to prioritize this to bring their best to the lab. We support and encourage each other, collaborate, acknowledge all contributions, and celebrate our successes as a team. Science can be challenging, and we shouldn’t have to go through those challenges alone. 

·       Equity and Inclusion. We celebrate our individual differences and the experiences of each member of our lab community, committing to creating a welcoming environment inclusive of all races, ethnicities, ages, identities, personalities, religions, disability status, sexual orientations, abilities, relations, and socioeconomic status. We strive to foster a safe and healthy work environment, and acknowledge the need for ongoing thoughtfulness, dismantling of our own implicit and institutionalized biases, and a commitment and willingness to continually grow. We seek to challenge systemic racism and bias in our institutional/community procedures and protocols.

·       Responsibility and Growth. We are proactive in seeking opportunities to learn and grow, and accept the responsibility to have difficult conversations, educate ourselves, and enact change. We are committed to lifelong learning and mentorship at all levels, both within our lab and the greater institutional and scientific community. We value the cultivation of a culture of curiosity, continued initiative, and active participation in all facets of our community. Throughout our time with this lab, we commit to sharing and supporting each other in our collaborative and individual goals.

·       Honesty and Integrity. We understand that holding ourselves to the highest standards of personal and scientific integrity is imperative, and requires honesty, willingness to admit wrongdoing, and understanding that truth can be relative to one’s lived experience. We are willing to stand up for what is right regardless of who is looking, and regardless of the difficulty.

·       Communication and Collaboration. We are dedicated to maintaining open and honest communication between all members of the lab and understand that this is an ongoing task. Building a safe and collaborative environment requires our honesty, our openness to giving and receiving feedback, and our kindness towards one another. We are willing to share our expectations and goals and to have constructive conversations about the lab environment and future directions. How we navigate our interpersonal interactions impacts our ability to perform the highest quality scientific research, and our commitment to helping and learning from one another is a bedrock of our collaborative lab environment.