Susan Hockfield is the sixteenth and current president of the
Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyThe Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. Hockfield's appointment was publicly announced on August 26, 2004, and she formally took office December 6, 2004, succeeding Charles M. Vest. Hockfield's official
inaugurationAn inauguration is a formal ceremony to mark the beginning of a leader's term of office. An example is the ceremony in which the President of the United States officially takes the oath of office....
celebrations took place during the week of May 2, 2005. Her title is "President and Professor of
NeuroscienceNeuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
," and she is the first woman and the first life scientist to hold the title of president of MIT.
Education
She attended
Horace Greeley High SchoolHorace Greeley High School is a public, four-year secondary school serving students in grades 9–12 in Chappaqua, New York. It is part of the Chappaqua Central School District....
in
Chappaqua, New YorkChappaqua is a hamlet and census-designated place in northern Westchester County, New York. As of the 2010 census, following a major revision to the delineation of its boundaries by the Census Bureau, the population was 1,436...
and graduated in 1969. Hockfield received her
bachelor's degreeA bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in biology from the
University of RochesterThe University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The...
in 1973 and her Ph.D in Anatomy and Neuroscience from the
Georgetown University School of MedicineGeorgetown University School of Medicine, a medical school opened in 1851, is one of Georgetown University's five graduate schools. It is located on Reservoir Road in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC, adjacent to the University's main campus...
in 1979. Her doctoral dissertation was on the subject of pathways in the nervous system through which pain is perceived and processed. Her advisor during her doctoral work was Steven Gobel.
Career
At
Yale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, she served as professor of neurobiology and as dean of the Graduate School. As dean, Hockfield introduced a "Take a Faculty Member to Lunch" program to encourage informal faculty-student interactions. The program paid for lunch when one or two students invited a professor to join them. It was later expanded to also cover the cost of lunch when a faculty member invited a graduate student.
Hockfield then served at
Yale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
as a provost, the university's second highest officer.
During her time as dean and provost, Hockfield was at the center of the imbroglio surrounding the
Graduate Employees and Students OrganizationThe Graduate Employees and Students Organization is a group of graduate student teachers and researchers which is trying to be recognized as a union at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut....
and its unionization efforts. While Yale opposed the student union, Hockfield made healthcare for PhD students free and increased stipends for graduate students.
Hockfield has continued scientific research in addition to her administrative career. She pioneered the use of monoclonal antibody technology in brain research and discovered a gene that plays a critical role in the spread of cancer in the brain. Scientists working under her direction identified a family of cell surface proteins whose expression is regulated by neuronal activity early in an animal's life. Her early work involved the application of monoclonal
antibodyAn antibody, also known as an immunoglobulin, is a large Y-shaped protein used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects such as bacteria and viruses. The antibody recognizes a unique part of the foreign target, termed an antigen...
technology to questions within neurobiology. A link between her research and human health was made when it was suggested one of these proteins played a role in the progression of brain tumors. Hockfield's work has recently focused one type of brain
tumorA tumor or tumour is commonly used as a synonym for a neoplasm that appears enlarged in size. Tumor is not synonymous with cancer...
called
gliomaA glioma is a type of tumor that starts in the brain or spine. It is called a glioma because it arises from glial cells. The most common site of gliomas is the brain.-By type of cell:...
. Her work suggests that the glioma is particularly deadly because of the way highly mobile cancerous cells move around the brain.
http://www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/abstract/18/7/2370
Hockfield is currently a corporate director of
GE IndustrialGE Industrial was a division of General Electric. It provided a broad range of products and services throughout the world, including appliances, lighting and industrial products; factory automation systems; plastics, silicones and quartz products; security and sensors technology, and equipment...
, and serves as a board member for the
National Security Higher Education Advisory BoardThe National Security Higher Education Advisory Board was created by American Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert S. Mueller III on 15 December, 2005...
.
Personal life
Hockfield is married to Thomas N. Byrne, M.D (Clinical Professor of Neurology at MIT's Health Science and Technology). They were married on March 2, 1991 at Yale's
Battell ChapelBattell Chapel at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was built in 1874-76 as a Civil War memorial, with funds donated by Joseph Battell and others of his family. The chapel was designed by Russell Sturgis, Jr. in High Victorian Gothic style of rough brown sandstone. It was the third of...
. They have a daughter, Elizabeth.
Honors
- American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
- Wilbur Lucius Cross Medal, Yale University Graduate School
- Meliora Citation for Career Achievement, University of Rochester
- Charles Judson Herrick Award (for outstanding contributions by a young scientist), American Association of Anatomists
The American Association of Anatomists, based in Bethesda, MD, was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1888 for the "advancement of anatomical science." AAA is the professional home for an international community of biomedical researchers and educators focusing on anatomical form and function.In...
External links