Broadcast Date: November 6, 2024 | 2:00pm - 3:30pm Central
Webinar Summary
This session explores the diverse caregiving roles professionals assume and the challenges they face in the workplace, focusing on how caregiving stress impacts career development and workplace dynamics. It features a panel discussion with 1-2 invited experts offering international perspectives on caregiving-related professional hurdles and supportive policies, followed by 3-5 APS panelists sharing their experiences from different career stages. Participants will then engage in small-group discussions on selected caregiving and professional development topics, concluding with brief closing remarks
Learning Objectives
- Learn about international perspectives on caregiving-related professional development hurdles and support
- Learn from diverse caregiver experiences from different sectors (academia, industry, government, other)
- Have an opportunity to ask questions related to caregiving while having an active career
About the Presenters
Moderators
- Peiqi Zhang
- Marija Zivanovic
- Suzette Arcibal Baldwin
Speakers
Isabel Torres
Mothers in Science | | Dr. Isabel Torres is co-founder and CEO of Mothers in Science, a global nonprofit that advocates for mothers in STEMM and develops evidence-based solutions to promote workplace caregiver inclusion. She holds a PhD in Genetics from the University of Cambridge and completed her postdoctoral research at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in the UK. After moving to France, she worked for several years as a science writer, editor and consultant before founding Mothers in Science. She is a passionate advocate for women in STEMM, gender equality and social justice, and she is a mother of four. |
Jeannie Klein-Gordon
USDA-ARS Crop Bioprotection Research Unit | | Dr. Jeannie Klein-Gordon is a Research Plant Pathologist with the USDA-ARS Crop Bioprotection Research Unit in Peoria, IL. Her plant pathology career started as an undergraduate researcher at Oregon State University within the USDA-ARS Horticultural Crops Disease and Pest Management Research Unit. She obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Florida, then moved to Michigan State University for postdoctoral research before joining the USDA-ARS in December 2023. She is a mother of two; one of which she had during her employment with USDA-ARS, and the other of which she had during her postdoctoral research at Michigan State University. All hobbies and free time currently revolve around her kids, but she has dreams of getting back into hiking with her husband at some point in life. |
Levi Eckshtain Noam
Bayer Crop Science | | Dr. Levi Eckshtain Noam completed his B.Sc. in Biology and M.Sc. in Genetics at Tel Aviv University. He then pursued a Ph.D. in Plant Pathology at the Hebrew University, focusing on bacterial effectors and host preference. After earning his Ph.D., Noam moved to the United States, where he spent five years as a postdoctoral researcher at Virginia Tech, Cornell University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. During this time, he worked on various projects exploring host-microbe interactions, both beneficial and pathogenic, with a particular emphasis on the plant immune system. In 2021, Noam joined Bayer Crop Science in Chesterfield, MO, as an individual contributor to the yield and stress program within the Plant Biotechnology organization. His work primarily involves early-stage projects (Phase 0 and Phase 1), utilizing gene editing and transgenic technologies to combat plant diseases in row crops and enhance yield. Beyond his daily responsibilities, Noam holds leadership positions in various committees at the American Phytopathological Society (APS). He also initiated and runs the Virginia Tech chapter of B4U (Bayer University Mentoring Program), which focuses on developing soft skills and providing career development advice. |
Sharon Clay
SDSU | | Dr. Sharon Clay is a Distinguished Professor Emerita of Weed Science at SDSU. She has taught over 2500 undergraduate students in Weed Science and has trained over 30 graduate students. Her research interests have included precision agriculture, remote sensing, resistance weed management, biological weed control, pesticides in the environment, weed physiology and biology, and crop/weed interactions. She has experience in corn, soybean, wheat, sunflower, pasture and range examining weed biology and crop/weed interactions with over $70 million in grants with collaborations of weed scientists, entomologists, plant pathologists, plant physiologists, and soil scientists. Because of her diverse expertise, she has served on numerous USDA grant review panels, and a multitude of national and local scientific committees. She is an active member of WSSA and a fellow of ASA and has received university, regional, national, and international awards due to the research findings of the multiple projects. Dr. Clay has authored over a dozen book chapters, over 250 peer reviewed journal articles (h index of 46; total citations 7500), 200 conference proceedings, and has been an Editor of several books. She has worked as an associate editor for Weed Science and a technical editor for Agronomy Journal (2017-2023). She was past president of ASA and has served on numerous committees within each society. |
