Brandeis Magazine

Shane S. Scott ’13, a dual chemistry and biochemistry major, remembers how discouraging his journey to medical school was.

He’d won an award for his undergraduate research on disrupting the peptides that promote HIV gene expression. Yet the barriers to med school admission remained high — a result of his pursuing the path later than many of his peers and some one-size-fits-all advising that didn’t account for his experiences as a Black student.

“I just heard so many people tell me no,” he says.

After gaining research experience at the National Institutes of Health and a master’s in medical science from the Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, he contacted Brandeis’ Pre-Health Advising Program. Available to undergrads and alumni, the program helps those applying to graduate or doctoral programs in health care complete applications, find professional-shadowing opportunities, and make connections with alumni mentors.

“Once I started working with the people at the program, I stopped hearing no all the time,” Scott says. “They knew what my dream was. We worked together to get it done.”

Today, Scott is an MD/PhD candidate at The Ohio State University’s Medical Scientist Training Program. He also acts as a Pre-Health Advising Program mentor at Brandeis, sharing his own story and providing guidance to students from underrepresented backgrounds.

Kate Stutz, director of pre-health advising, says stories like Scott’s are emblematic of the program’s purpose.

“We’re really focused on making the pathway more transparent,” she says. “We take an inclusive, holistic approach to student support. The door to a career in health care is never closed. Our job is to help each individual chart the path that works for them.”

Joel Burt-Miller ’16 — currently an MD/MPH student at the University of South Carolina’s School of Medicine Greenville and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health — is another mentor in the program.

He does it to give back, especially to students from under-resourced communities. “They often operate without tools that other students have benefited from,” he says. “My hope is to be a resource, so they don’t have to figure things out all by themselves.”

The Pre-Health Advising Program, says Stutz, creates something of a virtuous circle that helps break down hurdles for qualified students, whatever their background.

“The alums I work with are really motivated to give back,” she says. “And the students are really craving that support.”

— David Eisenberg

To learn more about the program, go to www.brandeis.edu/academic-services/pre-health-advising.

When I was an undergraduate, I did a lot outside the classroom. I pursued my passion for photography. I worked in (and ultimately became president of) the Student Service Bureau. I drove for Brandeis, picking up dignitaries at Logan Airport, on campus, or at their home, and taking them wherever they needed to go.

Shooting photos for the yearbook and The Justice, and working at SSB, allowed me to get to know undergraduate and graduate students across class years and throughout many corners of the campus. Driving for the university gave me the opportunity to meet more Brandeis faculty, staff, trustees, and visitors than I otherwise would have.

At the time, I had no idea how getting to know such a wide range of Brandeisians would impact my life. Nor could I have imagined that, decades later, I’d still be an active member of the Brandeis community. Yet here I am, as my term as president of the Alumni Association comes to a close, writing you one final time.

Brandeis has had such a profound impact on my life. I joined the Alumni Association 12 years ago — and chose to run for president at the end of 2018 — because I wanted to give back.

For so many of us, Brandeis is not just where we received an amazing education, learning from world-renowned faculty. It’s the place where we made lifelong friends. For some, myself included, it’s also where we met our wife, husband, or partner.

I have many dear friends from the Classes of 1977 through 1983, plus my wife’s Class of 1984. I often refer to these seven-plus years as “my slice of Brandeis.” What I didn’t envision when I joined the Alumni Association is how many more friendships I would make and how closely I would come to work with alums, faculty, and administrators from the seven-plus decades of the university’s existence. My circle of cherished friends within the Brandeis community has grown tremendously during my time as president. As a result, my love for Brandeis has never been stronger.

All Brandeisians are members of a lifelong community. Engage with the university to make sure this community continues to thrive. Give what you can. Do what you can. Apply to serve on the Alumni Association board or in regional positions. Attend local events. Come back to campus for the 75th celebration. Join B Connect. Join your class’s Facebook group. Attend reunions. Encourage your children to consider Brandeis. Call your college roommates. You will be very happy you did.

See you on campus. I’ll be wearing my Brandeis hoodie with a camera around my neck.

My best,

Lewis Brooks ’80, P’16
President, Brandeis Alumni Association

Every year during Family Weekend, the Legacy Brunch celebrates generations of family members who call Brandeis home. Today, more than 200 current students have a parent or a grandparent who also attended Brandeis.

Family members Sharon Salter ’91, P’24; Marilyn Salter ’57, P’88, P’91, P’95, G’24; Susan Bradley ’95; and Ladi Roach ’24 represent decades of Brandeis loyalty, stretching from the university’s first years to the present day.

At the Legacy Brunch, Douglas Monasebian ’84, P’25, speaks about the joys of watching his child attend their shared alma mater.

The brunch attracts a couple of Judges-in-training.

Dana Schneider ’11 and Stephen Yellin were married in an August 2022 ceremony. They welcomed a son, Jesse, to the family in January.

Joanna Banegas, Heller MBA/MA’18, and Felix Trede exchanged vows on Martha’s Vineyard in September.

Michelle Miller ’11 married Kfir Klausner in Sagaponack, New York, in September. Brandeisians in attendance included Michelle’s sister, Danielle ’14; Danielle’s boyfriend, David Lasher ’13; and Michelle’s close friend Ji Yun Lee ’11.

Jacquelyn Drozdow ’15 and Mathew Comite were wed in Palm Beach, Florida, in December. Jacquelyn’s parents, Gilbert ’79 and Linda (Moskowitz) Drozdow ’80, both P’12, P’15, and Gilbert’s friends Alberto Kriger, Herb Lazarus, David Kessler, and Steven Sheinman, all ’79, were there to celebrate.

Jamie Lee and Hansol Lee, both ’18, were married in Topsfield, Massachusetts, in June 2022. The couple, who met at Brandeis, were joined in celebration by alumni friends.