Events, Awards, and Leadership

• Events

  Nibbles & Knowledge

  The TAP Program hosts student driven and organized gatherings throughout the year that allow students the opportunity to meet and connect though various activities that include research presentations, talks by faculty and industry professionals, mock candidacy exams, and more.  

  TAP Career Symposium

  This annual day-long spring event focuses on the varied career paths available to TAP students with panels and presentations from industry and academic leaders in the field, including TAP alumni. 

  Fall TAP Retreat

  The annual fall TAP Retreat is held at an outside venue, with past locations that have included St. Arnold's Brewery and Karbach Brewing Company, and features a poster and oral presentation competition, a keynote speaker chosen by the students and much more in a day of fun and fellowship.

  For more information on the above events, contact Dawn Wolf-Taylor at [email protected].

• Distinguished Lecture Series in Experimental Therapeutics

  Students are encouraged to attend the monthly faculty seminar series sponsored by the Department of Experimental Therapeutics. For more information regarding the seminar series, contact Grace Taupo at [email protected].  

• TAP Travel Award

  The TAP program offers travel awards of up to $750 to defray student expenses for presenting posters or talks at conferences or for travel to attend outside courses. TAP program primary students are eligible to apply.

  TAP Travel Award Application 

• TAP Program Steering Committee and TAP Bylaws

  Ali Azhdarinia, TAP Program Director	2023-2026
  Chandra Bartholomeusz	2023-2026
  Kendra Carmon	2023-2026
  Bisrat Debeb	2024-2027
  Sunil Krishnan, TAP Program Co-Director	2023-2026
  Vihang Narkar	2025.2028
  Federica Pisaneschi	2024-2027
  Deepa Sampath	2023-2026
  Bhoomika Muruvekere Lakshmisha	student representative through August 31, 2026

   

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  TAP Bylaws

  The MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences

  THERAPEUTICS AND PHARMACOLOGY PROGRAM BYLAWS

  Article I. Purpose

  The purposes of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology of The University of Texas MD Anderson UT Health Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS) are to provide scientific instruction to teach and/or conduct research in interdisciplinary studies in Therapeutics and Pharmacology, and to augment the educational process for individuals pursuing studies in other disciplines. The Program is an inter-institutional activity with faculty and laboratories located in different entities of The University of Texas at Houston, all committed to excellence in graduate studies. The Program recognizes its responsibilities to the individual student to ensure quality education to achieve the highest goals in research and sciences. An additional objective is to bring together faculty with common primary research interests in the discipline of Therapeutics and Pharmacology.

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  Article II. Administration

  1. The Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology is under the aegis of The University of Texas MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston.
  2. The Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology shall be conducted by all members of the Program Faculty. It shall elect a Program Director and a Co-Director, through whom the Program will be administered in collaboration with the Steering Committee. Individual members of the Steering Committee will serve as chairs of subcommittees of Faculty Membership, Student Admissions, and Student Affairs. 
     1. The Program Faculty is responsible for policy-making decisions. Voting privileges will be held by members as defined under Article III.
     2. To preserve the integrity and anonymity of the election of the Program Director, the Graduate School will conduct the election. The Program Steering Committee will submit the names of nominees for Director to the GSBS Deans’ Office. GSBS will solicit additional nominations, including self-nominations, from the Program Faculty at-large to serve as Director. Once the slate of candidates has been approved by the Deans’ Office, GSBS will conduct the election and report the results to the Program community. The Director shall be elected by a simple majority of the membership of the Program Faculty.
     3. The Director of the Program will act as Chair of the Steering Committee.
     4. The Director shall serve for a term of three years, and shall, upon re-election, serve at most serve two successive terms.
     5. The Director of the Program will facilitate in applying for extramural/intramural training grant applications.
     6. To preserve the integrity and anonymity of the election of the Program Co-Director, the Graduate School will conduct the election. The Program Steering Committee will submit the names of nominees for Co-Director to the GSBS Deans’ Office. GSBS will solicit additional nominations, including self-nominations, from the Program Faculty at-large to serve as Co- 2 Director. Once the slate of candidates has been approved by the GSBS Deans’ Office, GSBS will conduct the election and report the results to the Program community. The Co-Director shall be elected by a simple majority of the membership of the Program Faculty.
     7. The Co-Director of the Program will carry out the Director’s responsibilities in the Director’s absence. The Co-Director shall serve for a term of three years, and shall at most serve two successive terms.

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  Article III. Faculty – Categories of Membership

  The graduate faculty of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology shall be composed of the GSBS faculty with primary interests in the discipline of Therapeutics and Pharmacology. These persons are qualified by their scholarly activities, creative research works, and teaching abilities to supervise and instruct graduate students. All members shall participate in Program policy decisions and have voting privileges on matters pertaining to the Program.

  1. Regular Members
     1. Must hold a faculty appointment as a Regular Member of the GSBS.
     2. Are expected to participate in the various teaching and administrative activities of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology. These activities include:
        1. Direct supervision of Program graduate students
        2. Participation in academic activities as an instructor in didactic courses or laboratory tutorial and special topics courses associated with Therapeutics and Pharmacology
        3. Serving on Student Advisory and Candidacy Examination committees
        4. Participation in the administrative activities of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology
     3. Faculty seeking program membership will apply to the Faculty Membership Committee. Potential new members must petition the Program, submitting credentials to the Director, including current CV, updated GSBS membership form, and written willingness to participate in Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology activities. The GSBS Faculty Affairs Office will be informed of each new selection.
  2. Associate Members
     1. Must hold a faculty appointment as an Associate Member of the GSBS.
     2. Are expected to participate in the various teaching and administrative activities of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology. These activities include:
        1. Direct supervision of Program M.S. graduate students
        2. Participation in academic activities as an instructor in didactic courses or laboratory tutorial and special topics courses associated with Therapeutics and Pharmacology
        3. Membership on student Advisory and Candidacy Examination committee
        4. Participation in the administrative activities of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology
     3. Faculty seeking program membership will apply to the Faculty Membership Committee. Potential new members must petition to the Program, submitting credentials to the Director including current CV, updated GSBS membership form, and written willingness to participate in Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology activities. The Dean will be informed of each new selection.
  3. Distinguished Senior Lecturers
     1. Must hold a faculty appointment as a Distinguished Senior Lecturer of the GSBS.
     2. Responsibilities include those of Regular Members except that a Distinguished Senior Lecturer would not normally be expected to supervise a PhD student.
     3. Faculty seeking program membership will apply to the Faculty Membership Committee. Potential new members must petition to the Program, submitting credentials to the Director including current CV, updated GSBS membership form, and written willingness to participate in Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology activities. The Dean will be informed of each new selection.
  4. Review of Current Members
     1. Reappointment as a Program Faculty Member will be evaluated every five years by the Program’s Faculty Membership Committee in conjunction with the faculty member’s five-year review by the GSBS Membership Committee. The Program’s review will be done on a schedule determined by the Program.
     2. The Program’s Faculty Membership Committee will evaluate the faculty member’s participation in such activities as mentoring students, teaching courses, or involvement in program administration. Faculty participation reports will be provided by GSBS but they should be augmented by reports/statements of Program-specific activities.
     3. The Program will send GSBS a list of faculty they suggest are inactive. Inactive faculty will be notified that they are on probation for one year and encouraged to increase their participation. At the end of this time, if there is no increase in participation, the Program may terminate membership. Faculty who are asked to leave the Program may appeal the decision to the GSBS Membership Committee, who will make a recommendation to the Deans. Faculty determined to be disengaged are subject to not being reappointed as a GSBS faculty member. The Program will notify GSBS Faculty Affairs Office of any terminated faculty members.

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  Article IV. Committees

  All committee assignments are held from September 1st through August 31st.

  Steering Committee

  1. The Steering Committee shall formulate policies concerning the academic and administrative aspects of the Program and present them to the Program Faculty for approval or modification. The Steering Committee shall be elected by a vote of the Program Faculty.
  2. Composition:
     1. The Steering Committee shall consist of the Program Director, who will also act as Chairman of the Steering Committee, the Co-Director, and six other members of the Program Faculty with two new members elected yearly for a three-year term.
     2. A yearly election will provide replacements for those members of the Steering Committee whose term expires or who resign from the Program. Members may be re-elected. The term of office for all new replacement members or re-elected members shall be for three years.
     3. To preserve the integrity and anonymity of the election process, the Graduate School will conduct the election. The Program Steering Committee will submit the names of nominees to serve on the Steering Committee to the GSBS Deans’ Office. GSBS will solicit additional nominations, including self-nominations, from the Program Faculty at-large. Once the slate of candidates has been approved by the GSBS Deans’ Office, GSBS will conduct the election and report the results to the Program community. The new members of the Steering Committee shall be elected by a simple majority of the membership of the Program Faculty.
     4. Program students shall elect yearly one student to represent their interests as a full voting member of the Steering Committee. The student shall serve a one-year term. GSBS will solicit volunteers from Program students. To be eligible to serve, students must be in good academic standing. It is recommended but not required that candidates have completed the candidacy exam. Once the slate of candidates has been approved by the Program Director and the Deans’ Office, GSBS will conduct the election and report the results to the Program community.
  3. Specific Duties
     1. The Steering Committee shall appoint, from among its membership, directors in the following areas and formulate other committees both on an ad hoc and permanent basis as necessary. All committees serve in an advisory capacity to the Program Steering Committee.
        1. Faculty Membership Committee
        2. Student Admissions Committee
        3. Student Affairs Committee
     2. The Steering Committee shall receive reports from all committees and, when appropriate, present reports to the entire Program Faculty for consideration. The Steering Committee will then implement reports of all program committees and subcommittees.
     3. The Steering Committee will be responsible for reviewing courses and curriculum.
     4. The Steering Committee shall meet at least quarterly (August, November, February, May), unless otherwise requested by the Program Director.

  Faculty Membership Committee

  1. Function: The Program Faculty Membership Committee will evaluate applications from faculty seeking membership in the program and will make a decision on membership status. The Program Faculty Membership Committee will also evaluate applications for renewal of membership.
  2. Composition: The Steering Committee will designate three program members to this committee.

   

  Student Admissions Committee

  1. Function: The charge to the members of this committee is to review the files of applicants that indicate an interest in the Program, directly or indirectly. The comments will be sent to GSBS to allow the GSBS Admissions Committee to have additional information when considering an application. In short, this committee will take the lead in working with the GSBS Admissions Office to recruit and review applicants.
  2. Composition: The Steering Committee will designate three faculty members from the program.

  Student Affairs Committee

  1. Function: To organize student activities.
  2. Composition: Three students from the program will serve on this committee. Students will be selected based on their seniority and an interest in having an administrative and leadership role. 

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  Article V. Program Faculty Meetings

  1. The Program Faculty shall hold semi-annual meetings.
  2. Special meetings may be called by the Steering Committee.
  3. The Program Faculty will be notified in writing at least one month and then one week prior to each meeting. Faculty will be provided a draft agenda and additional agenda items will be solicited from them.
  4. The summary minutes of each meeting will be sent to the Program Faculty.

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  Article VI. Procedures

  1. Rules of Order: The general authority on questions of procedure is Roberts Rules of Order.
  2. Amendments: An amendment to the Bylaws of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology may be accomplished by two-thirds majority vote, by written ballot, of the faculty after the following procedure has been followed: The proposed amendment is submitted to the Program Director who will, one month and then one week prior to a scheduled meeting, send the proposed amendment to the faculty for consideration. Should an electronic election be preferred, GSBS will conduct the election and report the results to the Program community.
  3. Records: The records of the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology are retained in the Program office (Program Coordinator’s), and will be freely available for inspection by the faculty.

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  Article VIII. Student Memberships and Degree Programs

  In order to be admitted into the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology, the student must contact the Program Director and obtain his/her signature on their Accountable Mentorship Agreement form. The Director will record this and send a copy to GSBS.

  1. PhD Degree Requirements:
     1. The student must fulfill all requirements indicated in the GSBS Catalog in place when the student matriculated at GSBS.
     2. The student must satisfactorily complete a curriculum in the Basic Sciences and in the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology, a research project in the area of Therapeutics and Pharmacology and any additional requirements, as posted on the Program’s website when the student affiliated with the Program.
  2. MS Degree Requirements:
     1. The student must fulfill all requirements indicated in the GSBS Catalog when the student matriculated at GSBS.
     2. The student must satisfactorily complete a curriculum in the Basic Sciences and in the Program in Therapeutics and Pharmacology, a research project in the area of Therapeutics and Pharmacology and any additional requirements, as posted on the Program’s website when the student affiliated with the Program.
• TAP Student Council Members

  Anna DeBruine	Outgoing Co-Chair
  Gabrielle Krouse	Incoming Co-Chair
  Tyler Bateman	Retreat Coordinator
  Diego Antelo	Events Coordinator
  Yueh-Ming (Camellia) Shyu	Recruitment Coordinator
  Kevin Bowman	Nibbles & Knowledge Coordinator
  Jack Adams	Communication Coordinator