BMRI is committed to fostering an inclusive environment for scientists, students, faculty and staff from diverse backgrounds and experiences.
Committee Chair: Teresa Milner, PhD, Professor of Neuroscience
Committee Co-Chair: Esteban Andres Fridman, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience
Committee Members:

- Karen Carter, Department Administrator
Goals & Values of BMRI Diversity Committee
I. Outreach
II. Monitoring & Evaluation
III. Mentorship
IV. In House Programming
V. Oversight Implementation
- Recruit and assemble a committee of faculty members, admin, and students within the department for diversity focused initiatives.
- Including a dedicated forum for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students who become involved with the BMRI.
- Create a designated inventory on the status of faculty and students, the makeup of our department and where the gaps exist within representation.
- Create a more engaged mentorship for the chair and others to allow for conversations and opportunities of academic and professional growth.
Partnerships
Our partners include the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at Weill Cornell whose mission is
to create a collaborative working and learning environment. We believe that diversity is a platform for developing creative solutions to challenging healthcare problems, advancing cutting-edge biomedical research, and designing and implementing innovative teaching modalities in medical education. We view diversity in the broadest sense, including differences in race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, ability, religious practices, socioeconomic class, citizenship, life experiences, and other important aspects of human life. Feil Family BMRI Neuroscience Summer Diversity Scholars Program
Beginning in the summer of 2022, the BMRI will sponsor a Helen and Robert Appel Alzheimer's Disease Research Institute Summer Diversity Scholar and a Neuroscience Summer Diversity Scholar. These BMRI Summer Scholarships are a new opportunity for promising young college-level scientists identifying from an underrepresented background and residing in the New York City area. They will provide awardees 10-week long paid internships within the BMRI with leaders in neurodegeneration and other neurological diseases as well as addiction and psychiatric disorders. Individuals will receive one-on-one training with a researcher in one of the BMRI laboratories, develop a research idea and plan, learn scientific methods, and produce their own data. They will also be included in workshops and seminars sponsored by WCM’s Office of Diversity. At the end of the internship, the diversity scholars will present their findings in a research seminar.
https://brainandmind.weill.cornell.edu/diversity-and-inclusion/bmri-summer-scholars-program
Questions?
- For any suggestions of speakers or events for the BMRI Diversity Committee, please contact Teresa Milner, Esteban Fridman, or Maullika Dua
- Please share any diversity or social justice events you are participating in, to share with the BMRI community.
Teresa Milner: tmilner@med.cornell.edu
Esteban Fridman: esf2005@med.cornell.edu
Maullika Dua: mzd2020@med.cornell.edu