Episode 68: Sharona Gordon, PhD, Professor, Physiology & Biophysics

December 18, 2019

This time, WWEST manager and podcast host Danniele speaks with Dr. Sharona Gordon, a professor at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine who is making waves with her various projects, including Below the Water Line, whose mission is to combat sexual harassment in academia. Dr. Gordon also explains her fascinating research into chronic pain, and her passion for everything she does is palpable in this episode. You don’t want to miss it.

Guest: Dr. Sharona Gordon (Twitter)

Dr. Sharona Gordon is a professor of Physiology & Biophysics at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Dr. Gordon has a deep understanding of the environment and challenges in academic science. She has significant local and international leadership experience, experience developing mentoring programs for early-career scientists, and scholarship on women in science and scientific integrity. She has chaired the Board of Scientific Councilors of the National Heart, Lung, Blood Institute of the National Institute of Health; serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of General Physiology, chaired the program for the Biophysical Society Meeting, an international scientific conference with over 10,000 attendees; and founded Below the Waterline, a grassroots organization working to implement the recommendations of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicines report on Sexual Harassment.

She has also founded programs for early career scientists including the Postdoctoral Scholar Reviewer Program and Junior Faculty Networking Cohort, programs which serve international populations, and Hit the Ground Running, a professional development program for postdoctoral scholars at the University of Washington. In addition to running a well-funded, productive basic science lab studying inflammatory pain, she has recently embarked on social science research to better understand formation of scientific identity in early-career scientists. This research has already resulted in a publication that was highlighted in the journal Science. Dr. Gordon has written extensively on the culture of academic science, women in science, and the relationship between science publishing and community activism. Brown University awarded Dr. Gordon the 2019 Horace Mann Medal, in recognition of her contributions as a distinguished graduate alumna.

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