Jeanne Garbarino, Rockefeller’s Director of Science Outreach, does it all. In the last twelve years, she has fundraised over eight million dollars in collaboration with Rockefeller’s Development office, developed and consulted on dozens of science education and outreach programs across NYC, and trained several hundred scientists spanning every career stage. She’s one of the scientific community’s greatest assets. And somehow, she will always have time for you.
It is this last piece that makes Garbarino so beloved among the Rockefeller community, especially by the people who work closely with her. “As a manager, Jeanne operates off of trust, respect and relationship-building,” Lizzie Krisch, RockEDU’s community manager, said. “We are brought into spaces that help us grow, we are challenged to reach the next level in our careers, and foremost we are gifted solid leadership, direction and support from Jeanne.”
Building RockEDU
Garbarino stepped into her role as Rockefeller’s Director of Science Outreach at the end of 2012, after completing her postdoc in the Breslow Laboratory, and got to work acquiring lab space and funding. In the basement of Flexner Hall, Garbarino built the RockEDU laboratory we know today, and within two years began hosting high school and college students and building lasting relationships with teachers from nearly 100 NYC public schools.
After securing funding from the estate of Brooke Astor in 2012, Garbarino established the infrastructure for the Lab Experience program, which provided full-day immersive field trips for 1500–1800 middle and high school students each year. After that came the LAB Jumpstart program, and in 2015, Garbarino launched Science Saturday, another cornerstone of Rockefeller’s ecosystem of outreach.
Early on, Garbarino prioritized “community inreach” and focused on developing the scientists who participated in RockEDU programs. She knew that for scientific mentors to meet a high standard of skills and commitment, she would need to ensure that they were also fulfilling their career development goals. Over 1500 scientists have volunteered in these programs during Garbarino’s tenure as director.
“She is one of the most understanding people I’ve ever worked for,” said Dr. Jen Bohn, RockEDU’s research education program manager. “She’s incredibly supportive and from the very beginning I felt that she wasn’t just my boss but also my advocate.”
When the pandemic hit in March 2020, Garbarino’s team was among the first to launch remote programming. After months of effort planning Science Saturday in person, the team pivoted to holding it virtually. They also launched an interactive web series, Data for the People, that hundreds of people attended to learn more about COVID-19, social behavior, and medicine. Garbarino also developed at-home experiments for Summer Science Research Program (SSRP) students, which demonstrated how laboratory science can be made more accessible. The RockEDU team shifted their approach away from one-on-one mentorship towards team science and found that implementing more rigorous mentorship training maximized the likelihood of success.
“After participating in the SSRP Program, I am deeply aware of the fact that science is not a field only some have access to, but rather it is an endeavor that anyone can contribute to anywhere (even in their own homes!),” one student said. RockEDU’s response to the pandemic was a master class in agility, problem-solving, and creativity.
Rigorous Inclusivity
The adaptability that Garbarino demonstrated during the pandemic extends to creating space for everyone who wants to participate in science. Inclusivity is woven into the fabric of RockEDU. “The people always come first,” Bohn said. “You can see the real results of that in watching how all the students create a home for themselves in science.”
As described on their website, RockEDU’s program aims to connect people through the wonder of science, a justice-centered process that is integral to our humanity. This objective goes deeper than grades or publications, and assessing qualitative metrics of success takes enormous time, effort, and thoughtfulness. For example, one goal is for mentees to develop “STEM identities” and the ability to define themselves as scientists. This is not something that can be quantified, but rather something that must be continually reflected upon and assessed in language that might be unique to each mentee. “The reason why metrics like this aren’t widespread [is] because they take so much time,” Garbarino said. “This attention to personalized experience is why we are up to our ears in work.”
This process involves a series of reflective essay prompts given to mentees throughout the program to assess their experience. The team also gathers data using end-of-program surveys and interviews with peer mentors. “Most importantly,” Garbarino said, “we actually spend the time to review all this info and adjust our programming to meet the new needs and new goals.”
Finally, the RockEDU mentors and leaders directly respond to the feedback by updating the mentees about what they heard and how they’re responding. The result is a seamless cycle of feedback, thoughtful analysis, and response. “The reason why it looks easy is because there is so much work going on behind the scenes,” Garbarino said. “Being inclusive is actually way more rigorous, and you capture way more.”
The challenge of pioneering a symbiotic approach to science
Garbarino is building an ecosystem, not an empire. And like an ecosystem, collaboration and connection are at the core of RockEDU’s mission. Garbarino and her team maintain prolific networks amongst students and teachers throughout NYC. They continue to grow RockEDU’s breadth and depth of impact. The toughest challenge Garbarino currently faces is right here at home: fostering a deeper understanding of RockEDU’s program in Rockefeller scientists and leadership.
RockEDU’s mentorship tools and curricula used to train Rockefeller scientists are effective only alongside an appreciation for the depth of expertise required to do science inclusively.
Rockefeller boasts a culture of innovation and open-mindedness in biomedical research and emboldens scientists to take risks and boldly pursue new frontiers. That allowance, however, doesn’t always extend to outreach and informal education. Ironically, Garbarino’s work may be more broadly useful to our community than any other research program at Rockefeller. For example, 100% of NSF grants and an increasing number of philanthropic funding organizations require a Broader Impacts element, such as a mentorship initiative. “She had to fight against people who didn’t think this work is important, and now it’s essential,” Bohn said.
“People were willing to tokenize the program, but also to dismiss the program as ‘childish’ and didn’t understand the scholarly nature of our work,” Garbarino said. “[They] liked the idea of RockEDU but didn’t actually understand the depth of our experiences and connection to science for the benefit of humanity.”
Outreach is not every scientist’s priority or area of expertise. Developing and executing this expertise is a full-time gig for outreach professionals like Garbarino, as is running a research program for a head of laboratory (HOL). The difference is that by its very nature, Garbarino’s work is made to be shared, propagated and integrated. RockEDU can serve as a web that unites the work of Rockefeller scientists in a more public, community-engaged direction. “I think what I would want most are more clear paths to getting in sync with everyone in the university,” Garbarino said. “Making sure that RockEDU is serving the mission in both, the ways that humanity demands of us, but also in the ways that people in our community prefer to operate.”
If the Rockefeller community can better understand RockEDU as a resource, everyone will benefit. When HOLs or groups of Rockefeller scientists want to apply for grants involving outreach or establish relationships with NYC colleges and high schools, they should first seek out RockEDU’s expertise. “People can come to us at the outset to kick things off more effectively and efficiently,” Garbarino said.
However, Garbarino has encountered barriers to raising awareness of what RockEDU has to offer. Routes of communication such as the Monday lecture series are established for HOLs to share their work broadly, but Garbarino isn’t included. “People like me don’t have a platform to engage with the campus as a whole,” Garbarino said.
The Rockefeller community has begun to recognize the importance of Garbarino’s work in accordance with a widespread movement in academic culture towards DEIJ – Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice – and outreach initiatives. The continued growth of groups like the Rockefeller Inclusive Science Initiative (RiSI) and appointment of Ashton Murray as Rockefeller’s inaugural chief diversity officer and vice president for DEI exemplify other ways that Rockefeller effectively channeled its resources towards bettering our culture and impact. But why are we satisfied with staying in step with academia at large, and why do we not respect this work at the same level as biomedical research? Rockefeller’s research philosophy is centered on pioneering new frontiers of scientific discovery. To continue making meaningful strides in this space, empowering pioneers like Garbarino is fundamental.
“I want people to take the time to see what we have,” Garbarino said. “I want to go deep and go with everyone together.”