Alumni Day 2019 - SOLD OUT!

Welcome Remarks

Lila W. Hope, PhD '99

President, Stanford Medical Alumni Association

Hope is a partner practicing law at Cooley LLP. She specializes in life sciences licensing and partnering transactions involving complex legal, business and operational issues.  She also assists clients with their day-to-day contract needs for manufacturing, distribution, clinical trials and other operational matters.  She works closely with the management teams to structure transactions to meet strategic goals, and to close such deals through drafting and negotiating legal contracts.  Her clients are located around the world and are active in all areas of biotechnology, including therapeutics, artificial intelligence, vaccines, diagnostics, e-Health and medical devices.  She is a regular speaker on licensing and partnering matters in the legal and biotech communities.  She is also actively involved in mentoring students at Stanford Medicine and Duke Law.  She received her PhD in Cancer Biology from Stanford Medicine in 1999, and her JD from Duke University School of Law in 2002. 

Making Sense of the Brain

David Eagleman, PhD

Neuroscientist and Author; Adjunct Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral  Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine; CEO, NeoSensory 

David Eagleman is a neuroscientist, bestselling author, and Guggenheim Fellow. His areas of research include sensory substitution, time perception, vision, and synesthesia. He also studies the intersection of neuroscience with the legal system, and in that capacity he directs the nonprofit Center for Science and Law. Dr. Eagleman is the writer and presenter of The Brain, an Emmy-nominated television series on PBS and BBC, as well as the author of many books, including The Runaway Species, The Brain, and Wednesday is Indigo Blue. He is also the author of a widely adopted textbook on cognitive neuroscience, Brain and Behavior. His bestselling book of literary fiction, Sum, has been translated into 32 languages, turned into two operas, and named a Best Book of the Year by Barnes and Noble. Dr. Eagleman has launched several neuroscience companies from his research, including BrainCheck and NeoSensory.

Taste

Philip Beachy, PhD '86

Ernest and Amelia Gallo Professor, Professor of Developmental Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine

Philip Beachy studies the role of extracellular signals and the stem cell niche in controlling stem cell activity during tissue regeneration and in cancer and degenerative disease. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and received the National Academy of Sciences Medal in Molecular Biology, the March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology, and the Keio Medical Science Prize. Dr. Beachy is the Ernest and Amelia Gallo Professor in the Departments of Urology and Developmental Biology and maintains his laboratory within the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. 

Sight

E.J. Chichilnisky, MS ’92, PHD ’95

John R. Adler Professor, Professor of Neurosurgery and of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine

E.J. Chichilnisky has been at Stanford since 2013, after 15 years at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. He received his BA in Mathematics from Princeton University, and his MS in Mathematics and PhD in Neuroscience from Stanford University. His research program focuses on understanding the patterns of electrical activity in the retina that convey visual information to the brain, and their origins in retinal circuitry, using large-scale multi-electrode recordings. His research also involves physiological experiments with electrical stimulation and computational methods aimed at advancing the design of visual prostheses for treating blindness. 

Touch

Miriam Goodman, PhD

Professor and Chair, Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology

Chair, Wu Tsai Interdisciplinary Scholars in Neuroscience Program, Stanford University School of Medicine

Miriam Goodman earned her PhD in Neurobiology from The University of Chicago. She uses an interdisciplinary approach to study the sense of touch, which is the first sense to develop, the last to fade, and among the least well understood of the five fundamental senses. Her research team includes biologists, physicists, and engineers and the team is also investigating how anti-cancer drugs degrade touch sensation. She is a recipient of the Eppendorf and Science Magazine Prize in Neuroscience, an award-winning educator, and an editor for the flagship journals of the Society for Neuroscience.

Hearing

Robert Jackler, MD

Chair, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery

Edward C. and Amy H. Sewall Professor of Otorhinolaryngology, Stanford University School of Medicine

Robert Jackler received his MD from Boston University, and residency and fellowship training at the University of California, San Francisco. After a fellowship at the House Ear Clinic in Los Angeles, he joined the faculty at UCSF and, in 2013, moved to Stanford School of Medicine as professor and chair of the Department of OHNS. Clinically, he specializes in complex ear diseases with a special interest in tumors of the lateral and posterior cranial base. Dr. Jackler leads the Stanford Initiative to Cure Hearing Loss, whose mission is to create biological cures for major forms of inner ear hearing loss. 

Smell

Zara Patel, MD Fellow '11

Associate Professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery

Director of Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine

Zara Patel received her MD degree from Oregon Health and Sciences University, and completed residency at Mount Sinai in New York and a fellowship at Stanford. As an endoscopic sinus and skull base surgeon, Dr. Patel treats patients with complex sinusitis, skull base tumors, and olfactory loss. Her research focuses on precision medicine in treating chronic sinusitis, avoiding complications in sinus surgery, using new instrumentation in skull base surgery, and finding a cure for those suffering from olfactory loss. She is director of the Rhinology Fellowship Program at Stanford, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Rhinologic Society. 

Engineering Touch

Allison Okamura, MS '96, PhD '00

Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University

Allison Okamura received her BS degree from the University of California at Berkeley, and her MS and PhD degrees from Stanford University. She is a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University, with a courtesy appointment in the Department of Computer Science. She is an IEEE fellow and is currently the editor-in-chief of the journal IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters. Her awards include the IEEE Technical Committee on Haptics Early Career Award, the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Early Academic Career Award, and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award. Her academic interests include haptics, teleoperation, virtual reality, medical robotics, soft robotics, rehabilitation, and education. 

Seeing Into The Future

Jeffrey Goldberg, MD '03, PhD '03

Professor and Chair, Department of Ophthalmology, Byers Eye Institute at Stanford University

Learn about the latest in vision research and future treatments for eye disorders such as age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and diabetic eye disease from those leading basic and clinical research at the Byers Eye Institute at Stanford. From exciting new breakthroughs in vision restoration to the latest in medical technology, this cutting-edge team of researchers and physicians are at the forefront of some of the most innovative laboratory research and clinical trials anywhere in the world.

Jeffrey Goldberg received his BS from Yale University, and his MD and PhD from Stanford University, with training at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and the Heed Foundation. He was named the 2010 Scientist of the Year by the Hope For Vision Foundation, and received the Cogan Award from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology in 2012. Specializing in glaucoma, the number one cause of irreversible blindness in the world, his research is directed at developing therapies to prevent this degeneration, as well as therapies that preserve vision and actually restore sight to those who have lost vision. 

Calming the Senses: Pain and Anxiety

Lauren M. Schneider, PSYD, Fellow '11

Clinical Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine

Lauren Schneider received her PsyD degree from Nova Southeastern University. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship in pediatric psychology at Stanford. Currently a pediatric psychologist within the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Stanford, she co-directs the Medical Coping and Wellness Clinic and is the primary psychologist to the cardiology service, the heart transplant, and the lung transplant teams at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford. Her research interests involve the psychological aspects of heart disease, cardiac devices, and solid organ transplant. Dr. Schneider is an active member of the cardiology and solid organ transplant special interest groups of the Society of Pediatric Psycholgy. 

Dean's Remarks

Lloyd B. Minor, MD

Carl and Elizabeth Naumann Dean, Stanford University School of Medicine

Lloyd B. Minor is a scientist, surgeon, and academic leader. He has served as dean of Stanford University School of Medicine since  December 2012. In addition, he is a professor of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery and (by courtesy) of Neurobiology and Bioengineering at Stanford University. As dean, Dr. Minor plays an integral role in setting strategy for the clinical enterprise of Stanford Medicine. He also oversees the quality of Stanford Medicine’s physician practices and growing clinical networks. With Dr. Minor’s leadership, Stanford Medicine has established a strategic vision to lead the biomedical revolution in Precision Health.

Fernando Sanchez Mendoza, MD '75, Resident '78, Fellow '81

Associate Dean of Minority Advising and Programs

Professor of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine

The RISE (Reach, Inspire, Serve, Engage) Award will be presented to Dr. Mendoza in recognition of his exceptional dedication to nurturing Stanford Medicine and its alumni community through acts of leadership, volunteerism, mentoring, and teaching.

Dean's Reception - 6:00 PM

*Reunion class photos will be taken during this reception

All alumni are invited to attend this eveing reception hosted by Dean Lloyd B. Minor. Raise a glass to Stanford University School of Medicine and to your fellow alumni! 

Reunion Dinner - 7:00 PM

Before Alumni Day 2019 draws to a close, conclude the evening alongside classmates at an elegant dinner in honor of all reunion year alumni.

This year’s MD reunion alumni include the classes of 1949, 1954, 1959, 1964, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009, and 2014. Reunions for PhD alumni, other School of Medicine degreed alumni, residents, postdocs, and fellows will also be celebrated.

Seating will be assigned based on year of graduation for MD alumni. Other alumni will be seated by program (PhD, Postdoc, Fellow, Resident, etc.). If you have any specific seating or dietary requests, please be sure to mention them when you register.