Iris Stone

Partnerships Director for Nucleate Seattle: I volunteer part time with the local chapter of a nationwide non-profit organization whose mission is to bring free educational training and programming to early career researchers and academics in the life sciences, with an explicit focus on the biotech industry and entrepreneurship. As director of the partnerships team, I lead outreach in the community to build recognition of our chapter, form connections with relevant industry partners, and identify sponsors to support our programs. The role is closely aligned with the job responsibilities of many positions in strategy and business development. February 2024 to Present.

Manager in Shanahan Family Foundation Fellowship Research Assistant Program: As part of the Shanahan Family Foundation Fellowship, I have the opportunity to hire a full-time research assistant in my second year. This gives me the opportunity to gain skills in leadership, people and project management, and scientific communication. The RA is currently assisting me on a project to understand the role of neuromodulatory signaling in learning in mice with a genetic variant associated with autism spectrum disorder. September 2024 to Present.

Founder and Owner/Operator of Bloomrock Writing: While I was in undergrad, I founded a company that provided all-inclusive research and writing services for businesses and individuals. Managing a team of up to 12 independent contractors at a time, I offered clients a diverse set of services that included web scraping and data extraction; data analysis and organization; search engine optimization (SEO); HTML/CSS; WordPress; marketing; and business, technical, and scientific writing. I was fortunate enough to work with clients across four continents on projects that ranged from market analyses and white papers to blog posts and website copy. I also gained skills in management, business development and client relationships, and communication, to name but a few. April 2014 to May 2018.

Co-Organizer of the Princeton Computational Neuroscience Journal Club: Along with a postdoc, I led this journal club for two years in order to bring interdisciplinary research discussions to the department. We experimented with many different formats during my time as organizer, including having themes, crowdsourcing paper ideas, and catering to the interests of a variety of audiences, all while maintaining a diverse speaker pool. January 2021 to May 2023.

Co-Organizer of Princeton’s BrainWAVES (Brain Women Advocating for Visibility and Equity in STEM): I helped lead this student-run organization to create educational and support opportunities for women and allies in the department. One key achievement was the development of a group mentorship program in which participants fostered lasting, supportive relationships with women they might not otherwise meet (e.g., researchers in other lab groups, different areas of study, and over multiple levels of training). August 2020 to May 2022. 

Research mentor in Princeton Neuroscience Institute Summer Internship Program: I helped advise an undergraduate student who worked remotely over the summer on a project in computational neuroscience. Tasks included developing project ideas, providing instruction in math and code writing, troubleshooting, and discussing analyses. May 2021 to August 2021.

Member of the Neuroscience/Psychology Inclusive Teaching Committee: An inaugural member of the committee, I took on this volunteer position to promote the idea that inclusivity in teaching is important, whether we’re talking about race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, disability, or many other factors. Together with the other founding members, we drafted mission statements and principles of inclusive teaching, collated resources, and held discussions and workshops–including “teaching teas”–to help instructors implement inclusive methods in their classrooms. September 2020 to May 2021.

Neuroscience representative to the Graduate Student Government: In this position, I represented the interests of graduate students in my department on issues that ranged from health insurance policy to housing concerns at Princeton. It was also a great way to build relationships with graduate students in other departments and foster a sense of community beyond the lab. May 2019 to November 2021.

Member of Princeton Citizen Scientists: Policy and advocacy are particularly exciting when they can be combined with science. Together with other policy-minded STEM graduate students in this group, I helped organize events on campus (like a science policy writing workshop) and planned the annual visit to Congress in Washington, D.C. One of my favorite accomplishments was doing research and drafting proposals related to electric vehicle usage to be presented to the town as they developed local policies around sustainability and reducing carbon usage. August 2018 to October 2021.

Research fellow in the Office of Scholarship, Creative Activities, and Research (OSCAR): After successfully earning multiple grants through OSCAR, I was invited to serve in this leadership position wherein I acted as an ambassador to other undergraduates interested in conducting research with George Mason University professors. Among other activities, I helped answer questions for those interested in receiving OSCAR funding and attended events to promote OSCAR’s presence on campus. August 2016 to May 2017.