Training the Next Generation of Scientific Talent: Q&A with Eric Liao, MD, PhD

Dr. Eric Liao with CRISSP and RISES students.

Eric Liao, MD, PhD, joined Children's Hospital of Philadelphia just two years ago, but the founding director of the Center for Craniofacial Innovation can already count a host of young scientists at CHOP as his mentees, from high school students to university undergraduates.

Like many CHOP leaders, Dr. Liao wears several hats. Between a busy routine of building the Liao Lab, investigating craniofacial anomalies, and caring for his patients, Dr. Liao participates as a faculty mentor, including two unique and important pathway programs developed by the Office of Academic Training and Outreach Programs (ATOP).

The CHOP Research Internship for Scholars and Emerging Scientists (CHOP-RISES) offers local high school students from diverse and often underrepresented communities hands-on lab experience, one-on-one mentorship, and career exposure. Meanwhile, the CHOP Research Institute Summer Scholars Program (CRISSP) provides college undergrads a transformational summer by inspiring students to explore, create, discover, and innovate in areas related to child health and wellness.

ATOP describes both as pathway programs centered on CHOP's mission to build a diverse and talented community of scientists representative of the population they study and serve. Jodi Leckrone, associate director of outreach programs, explained that ATOP's programs are developed with "the braided river" concept in mind, providing a variety of interconnected pathways based on a student's interest in STEM.

"Rather than funneling students into one career path, we work with our faculty partners to provide a positive, mentored learning environment that emphasizes students' strengths, leverages their innate curiosity, promotes confidence, and emphasizes possibilities," Leckrone said.

In this Q&A, we sit down with Dr. Liao to learn why he prioritizes mentorship and the importance of diverse perspectives in scientific research.

How and why did you get involved as a mentor in CHOP-RISES AND CRISSP?

CRISSP students and Dr. Liao

The reason I participated as soon as I got to CHOP is because I've always worked with students and enjoyed having them in the lab. [My lab] came from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and when I was in the Harvard system, I always worked with high school students, undergrads, and graduate students.

I was particularly interested in working with high school students because if you get someone interested in science early, it will stick with them. When students are interested in science at that age and they have a good experience with it, they end up becoming scientists. In my own personal experience, that was definitely true. So, I wanted to make sure I passed it forward in my career and trained students.

Can you describe some of what's involved in being a CHOP-RISES or CRISSP faculty mentor?

The first thing is that the program is well run. I think Jodi and the ATOP team do a great job. They recruit, identify, and vet the student candidates, as well as review all the applications so that I, the faculty member, can focus on being available for the interview and help in the final selection.

The second thing is you have to think about making the environment good for the students. Within your labs, you need to create a curriculum that is going to be productive for the program and for a young person. Again, I think ATOP does a good job of making sure that happens. There's consistent communication and support from ATOP.

Dr. Liao and RISES/CRISSP students at lunch.

You will need to identify someone within your lab who will work with and supervise students day-to-day. On both sides, it's a commitment. If you participate as faculty, you have to make sure you have the team and plan to provide an educational and positive experience for the students, so that you can represent ATOP and CHOP well.

Why are pathway programs so important for CHOP, and for science in general?

First, all academic medical centers have three general missions: patient care, which CHOP does so well that patients from all over the world come here; second, innovation and research, meaning that we move the needle and make discoveries that affect patients everywhere; and, along the way, as we take care of patients and do the research, we have to be thinking about the third mission: training the next generation. It's our responsibility to train future clinicians and scientists who will answer the questions that we begin to ask today.

When most of us think about teaching, we think about trainees, residents, fellows, and postdocs in a lab. But if you want to work with that great postdoc, when does it start? It actually starts in high school. And that's why RISES is important, and that's why CRISSP is important.

Is there anything else you want to say about encouraging diversity and differences in science?

Charlotte Suh, CRISSP student, with Dr. Eric Liao.

We have to recruit a workforce that is representative of the diversity of the patients that we treat. We have to believe that progress is made at the interface of disciplines, but also at the interface of people with different backgrounds and ideas.

When you want to do good and rigorous science, diversity of ideas and diversity of perspectives is important, and the CHOP-RISES and CRISSP programs speak to both. It recruits young people who want to do research, but it also does it in a way that encourages diversity and equity. That is why I believe this is an important effort that we should be involved with.

Our team is diverse, and I can see all the benefits of that when I walk through the lab every day. People from different backgrounds are communicating about ideas, and everybody listens to each other intentionally.

Whether you're in high school or are a postdoc, your ideas and what you bring to the team are what matter. That is very exciting to see.

The CRISSP student who we are hosting this year comes from New York, Charlotte Suh. She wanted to come to our lab because she has a facial difference, and she is now studying the genetic basis of her own condition. And she is so good at it! I'm already trying to recruit her.

Charlotte Suh working in the Liao Lab.

So, the students are talented, and they all have differences, whether it's medical differences, socioeconomic differences, or racial and cultural differences. As physicians at CHOP, where we take care of kids with differences, it's important to not just talk about it, but also incorporate that as part of your lab.

Can you share any advice that you consistently give to students interested in STEM?

The Liao Lab and RISES/CRISSP students.

Well, if they already got this far to read this piece, I would say stick to it and let your new ideas germinate. Many of us, especially as scientists and clinicians, pride ourselves on creativity, and in fact, the Nobel Committee's most important attribute when searching for potential awardees is creativity. When we use the word creativity, most of us refer to having a great idea, but a great idea is just a small part of creativity: Creativity is to have the idea, but then actually make that idea happen. Delivering on that idea is hard work, requiring persistence, fortitude, failures, and overcoming those failures.

For young people interested in science, of course, you want to have that spark of ideas and creativity, but for it to be truly creative, it will require hard work and often takes a team to do that. And that's another great part that both CHOP-RISES and CRISSP incorporate. It's not just putting students into the lab, it's building a community for themselves, including mentors.

Editor's note:

Anyone with questions about ATOP's pathway programs may contact Jodi Leckrone at [email protected].