Recap: Honoring Postdoctoral Contributions Across Carnegie Science

Last month, Carnegie Science continued its long tradition of observing Postdoc Appreciation Week with celebrations across our campuses and divisions. Postdoctoral Fellows play an essential role in our research and community life, and we are proud to join universities and researchers across the U.S. in this annual celebration. 

Carnegie Science Biosphere Sciences & Engineering’s Baltimore, Palo Alto, and Pasadena campuses added tasty twists to Postdoc Appreciation Week. Staff and postdocs in Palo Alto enjoyed breakfast, an ice cream social, and lunch throughout the week, culminating in a potluck hosted by the Carnegie Institution Postdoc Association (CIPA) on Friday. In Pasadena and Baltimore, postdocs ended the week with breakfast treats and coffee.

The Carnegie Science Earth & Planets Laboratory (EPL) marked Postdoc Appreciation Week with a number of field trips and festivities. On Monday, postdocs went behind the scenes at the Smithsonian to capture a unique glimpse of its historic meteorite collection. They continued their journey into the past on Wednesday with a special “Treasures of the EPL Archives tour” at the Broad Branch Road Campus. And in addition to the customary Friday beer hour—with a bonus sweet ice cream treat—the postdocs completed a photo scavenger hunt and trivia contest. 

The Carnegie Science Observatories have extended their Postdoc Appreciation Week observation into the fall and are working to plan a trip to Disneyland. We all look forward to hearing about their adventures. See you at Space Mountain!

“While we often think of the postdoc years as a chance for a junior scientist to learn and grow (and we hope they do), we also learn a tremendous amount from them,” said Interim President John Mulchaey. “We are so grateful for all that postdocs do to add to the spirit of our science and the fabric of the community, whether they are new to Carnegie or have been here for several years.”