Trainee Newsletter
The CAIRIBU Trainee Newsletter is a new initiative designed to provide trainees with a quarterly update featuring valuable resources and articles contributed by CAIRIBU investigators. The Newsletter is published quarterly, in the middle of the month on Jan, April, July, and October.
In each issue of the newsletter, trainees have the opportunity to submit questions to be answered by CAIRIBU investigators from across the network. See below for the different issues of the Trainee Newsletter.
Issue No. 5
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Ask a PI – Johanna Hannan, PhD
Question: How do you stay accountable to your writing goals, and what advice do you have for trainees? As trainees and faculty, one of the biggest challenges we face is writing. Manuscripts, dissertations, fellowship applications,…
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Ask a Post-Doc – Alexandra Polasko, PhD
Question: What inspired you to pursue a career in research, and when did you realize it was the right path for you? For the first 15 years of my life I was…
Issue No. 4
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Ask a PI – Douglas Strand, PhD
Question: How did your career path evolve? I had about a year of working in a lab at the University of Virginia during undergrad in 2000, where hardly anything worked. However, a…
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Ask a Postdoc – By Anonymous
Question: What is one thing you did in grad school to set you up for success as a post doc? My path to a PhD was far from conventional. Rather than following…
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NIDDK’s Training and Career Development Programs
Director of Cell Biology Programs in Urologic and Kidney Diseases Project Scientist for the Urology Centers Programs/CAIRIBU Division of Kidney, Urologic and Hematologic Diseases (KUH) National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and…
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Seth Reasoner, MD/PhD, Reflects on CAIRIBU’s Lasting Impact as He Begins Next Chapter
Seth Reasoner recently completed his MD-PhD at Vanderbilt University. Since then, he has continued his engagement with CAIRIBU and credits his CAIRIBU Community engagement as a transformative experience that strengthened his collaborative…
Issue No. 3
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Ask a PI – Aruna Sarma, PhD
You learn to publish through repeated writing, feedback, mentorship, and reviewing others’ work. Publishing is not just about mechanics; it’s about finding your voice and developing a consistent style.
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Ask a Postdoc – By Anonymous
Dealing with difficult or unfair PIs involves clear communication, documentation, and selfadvocacy. Mentorship is often seen as unidirectional, but the mentee is also responsible.
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Ask a Trainee – Alexis Adrian
Knowing you’re meeting expectations starts with defining your own goals and what independence means to you. Regular, open conversations with supervisors are key to measuring growth.
Issue No. 2
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Ask a Postdoc – Acacia White, PhD
Balancing expertise and growth in a postdoc I am a new postdoc who switched research focus from hypertension to urology, and I would be happy to provide some insight into this topic. As…
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Surviving and Thriving in Uncertain Times – Whitney Sweeney, PhD
On September 10, 2025, the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research at the University of Wisconsin – Madison hosted a one-day event for researchers and professionals working on health-related topics. The event…
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The NIDDK Urology Program Welcomes Dr. Stuart Reynolds!
Hello CAIRIBU community! For this issue of the CAIRIBU Trainee Newsletter, I’d like to take the opportunity to introduce a new and very welcomed member of the NIDDK Urology Program, Dr. William…
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Ask a PI – Gregory Tasian, MD, MSc, MSCE
If there’s one thing I’ve come to appreciate over the course of my research career, it’s that success depends less on knowing all the answers and more on developing a core set…
Issue No. 1
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The NIDDK Celebrates its 75th Anniversary! – Chris Mullins, PhD
First, hello to the CAIRIBU community! Dr. Kris Penniston asked me to provide a few words from the NIDDK for this inaugural issue of the Trainee Newsletter and periodically in future issues. I’ll…
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NIH Funding for Trainees Within the F-Series Grant Mechanism – Kris Penniston, PhD
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) offers a series of “fellowship” awards. These awards are part of the NIH National Research Service Award program. F-series awards are specifically designed to support training…
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Ask a Postdoc – Hannah Ruetten DVM, PhD
As a postdoctoral fellow, I am in the in-between stage where I am working toward independence but still working for another lab. It seems like there are a lot of obstacles at…
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Collaboration Tips – Whitney Sweeney, PhD
Working across disciplines helps us get a deeper understanding of urologic conditions and develop better health solutions. However, most researchers aren’t trained to step outside their own field, and the training that…
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Ask a PI – Chad Vezina, PhD
The short answer is yes — a principal investigator (PI) may have to leave academia if they experience a lapse in funding. The impact of losing funding often depends on the PI’s…