CIE Researcher of Distinction, March 2023

Kehinde Cole

Each month, the Center for Inclusive Education showcases the outstanding research being conducted by one of our talented scholars in our Research Café series. In addition, we recognize this scholar as a Researcher of Distinction and share the details of his/her journey to becoming an accomplished scholar. This month's Researcher of Distinction is Kehinde Cole Ph.D., Integrative Neuroscience, Psychology. Cole presented their work, ‘Neurobiological mechanisms that allow prior experiences to alter future learning’ on Thursday, March 14, 2023.

 

COLE'S PATH INTO RESEARCH

I was on the path to medical school during college and was also involved in research. I worked with Dr. Reed Carroll at New Jersey City University to investigate protein-protein interaction on the cellular level, specifically the selective localization of CaMKII at excitatory synapses versus inhibitory synapses. During this time, I began to wonder what the behavioral output of these reactions looked like in behaving animals. It was at that point I pivoted because I needed to know how changes on the neural level affected the behavior. I decided to apply to graduate school, which is how I landed at Stony Brook University in Dr. Ryan Parsons' lab.

Cole's Current Research

Describe the work you presented for your Research Café.

I presented a collection of some of the work I did in my 2nd year, 3rd year, and thesis. This work primarily focuses on understanding the behavioral and biological mechanisms that allow animal models to incorporate past experiences into future learning experiences and the extent to which these experiences interact.

What was the deciding factor for you to come to Stony Brook for your graduate studies?

The work of my PI, Ryan Parsons, aligned with my interests, and The CIE (most especially Rosalia) was the final push. Rosalia and I exchanged over 20 emails, and she provided an application waiver and virtual tour for me, encouraging me to keep SBU as my number 1 school. In addition, I got the BD NSF fellowship from the CIE, making me a desirable candidate for the program.

Are there any other projects, beyond your Research Café work, that you are currently working on? 

I am currently interested in the contribution of sodium and potassium ion channels in excitability changes within the cell and whether or not the priming effect might depend on some of these mechanisms. In addition, several brain regions are part of the priming process. I am specifically looking at areas that project to the amygdala and the other regions that send and receive information from the amygdala.

What are your future goals?

I am currently working on dissertation experiments and towards finishing in May 2023. I am also applying to jobs within and outside academia. And I hope to apply the learned and acquired skills in whatever new role I find myself in. So, if you hear of a job posting that might suit me, let me know :)

What do you enjoy most about research?

I enjoy the stimulation more than anything. It is the fact that I am mentally pushed to constantly think about different ways to approach, design, and understand my research questions and experimental procedures.