Title:Enduring support for faculty, student research in human science

In 2019, Georgetown University announced that then-Assistant Professor Dr. Blythe Shepard would become the first holder of the Dekkers Endowed Chair in Human Science. Established with a generous gift from Dr. Marijn Dekkers and Andra Dekkers (Parents’19,‘21,’21), the endowed chair enables Georgetown’s School of Health to expand the research opportunities available to faculty in the Department of Human Science and their undergraduate student investigators. The Dekkers, whose gift also created the Dekkers Family Endowed Human Science Research Fund, said they hoped their support would help to stimulate students’ scientific and discovery skills in new areas of human biochemistry.

Since its creation, the Dekkers Endowed Chair in Human Science has been instrumental in accelerating research, contributing to the formation of future scientists, and enhancing the student experience. Following Shepard’s five-year term as chair—a period of significant growth and impact for her lab—Georgetown in 2024 awarded the Dekkers Endowed Chair to Associate Professor Jan LaRocque, whose lab focuses on genome integrity. 

Philanthropically funded chairs are powerful tools as Georgetown works to recognize and resource the esteemed faculty who prepare students for their future careers and strengthen Georgetown’s dynamic community of scholarship in the sciences.

Fueling scientific discovery and student formation

Inaugural chair Blythe Shepard first came to Georgetown in 2017 to start her own research lab focused on cellular signaling as a means to regulate kidney and liver physiology. Shepard had been part of a team of researchers who were the first to discover that microscopic olfactory receptors (the kind found in the nose that allow organisms to smell) are also present in the kidney—findings that are helping transform scientists’ understanding of therapeutic agents that help reduce blood sugar in diabetic patients. 

Shepard, now an associate professor with tenure, said the resources provided by the endowed chair facilitated her mentorship of more than 20 undergraduate students in the lab. During her term as chair, she not only expanded her research portfolio but also established cross-campus collaborations, initiated a monthly “Team Healthy Metabolism” meeting to share new research findings, and obtained additional research support from the National Institutes of Health. “Reflecting on all of the milestones that we reached,” she said, “I can undoubtedly say that none of this would have been possible” without the Dekkers’ support.

Critical resources for faculty, research development

Following Shepard’s term, Georgetown in 2024 awarded the Dekkers Endowed Chair to Associate Professor Jan LaRocque, whose research focuses on genome integrity. “Our genomes experience a large amount of DNA damage,” LaRocque explained. “The ability of the cell to recognize and repair DNA damage is essential for maintenance of genomic integrity, while failures in DNA repair can lead to mutations, cell death, premature aging, and cancer.”

The Dekkers Endowed Chair in Human Science, she said, is supporting student-driven investigations of the fundamental processes that maintain our genome, specifically how the cell recognizes and repairs DNA double-strand breaks. This summer, the funds allowed for research stipends for LaRocque’s mentees, allowing them to continue their research projects during the summer months. 

The chair advances faculty development, as well—for example, enabling travel to national conferences for LaRocque to present her research. “I know this position will strengthen my scholarly productivity and potential for success,” she said.

Fostering a culture of undergraduate research

LaRocque has mentored dozens of undergraduate students during her time at Georgetown, co-authoring peer-reviewed articles and encouraging students to present their research findings at conferences. Recently, one of LaRocque’s mentees in the School of Health was chosen to be a Fulbright Scholar.

She also serves as faculty co-advisor of the school’s annual Undergraduate Research Conference (URC), which provides Georgetown students from health- and science-related majors the opportunity to share their research with peers and faculty. A record 109 Georgetown students presented their work at this year’s daylong exhibition. 

Student-led research provides a meaningful opportunity for undergraduates to connect their personal and academic interests with their scholarly work. The URC enriches this process, teaching students critical presentation skills as they create a coherent scientific story and a thoughtful poster.  

“It’s such an important skill to…learn how to translate complex research into something that is digestible to a general audience,” said Tala Assaf (H’26), a Human Science major who helped organize this year’s conference. The URC’s presentations and poster sessions offer “a unique opportunity to explain our research, an opportunity most undergraduates don’t have, but we’re fortunate to have at Georgetown.”

The conference also reinforces the School of Health’s role as a crucial convener at Georgetown. Home to experts across an array of specialties, the School of Health engages students across a range of majors and collaborates with a host of other Georgetown programs to advance health and accelerate the pursuit of interdisciplinary solutions.