This past summer, thirteen students from Yeshiva College and Stern College participated in the annual Roth Scholars Program at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. As part of the ten-week program, which is sponsored by the Ernst and Hedwig Roth Institute of Biomedical Science Education at Yeshiva, students were given the opportunity to conduct research in various fields of biomedicine under the guidance of Einstein faculty.

Student spent eight hours a day in the laboratory, researching diseases such as cancer, tuberculosis, and epilepsy. While in the lab, students were given the opportunity to interact with faculty mentors as well as graduate students and postdoctoral fellows doing similar research. Weekly seminars delivered by either faculty members or graduate students complemented the Scholars' research experience. At the conclusion of the program, participants were required to present their research to the other students and faculty advisors and to then write a brief report describing their research conclusions.

The Roth Scholars Program is open to undergraduate students between their junior and senior years of study, who have shown career interest in biomedical sciences. A committee of five faculty members rates applicants based upon their transcript, letters of recommendation, and two interviews. Students with strong backgrounds in laboratory research possess somewhat of an advantage in being named to the program.

Dr. Barry Potvin, chairman of the committee, is aided in the difficult selection process by a number of Yeshiva faculty: Dr. Raji Viswanathan, head of the chemistry department in Yeshiva College, Dr. Lea Blau, head of the chemistry department in Stern College, Dr. Dasantis, biology professor at Stern, and Dr. Gary Bassell, faculty member in the neurosciences department at Einstein.

The Roth Scholars grant usually allows for eight students to receive this distinguished honor. Last year, however, because of the increased number of students qualified to receive the grant, Potvin requested to have an additional five students join the program. Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Morton Lowengrub helped to gather the additional funds necessary to allow five more students the opportunity to conduct research at AECOM.

The thirteen participants this year were Shayna Aster, Arkady Broder, Phillip Green, Isaiah "Ish-Shalom" Friedman, Bracha Kenigsberg, Shlomo Koyfman, Hadassa Rutman, Elliot Schwarzenberger, Elana Sedletscaia, Michael Shapiro, David Sturm, Yehudit Weinberger, and Meredith Weiss.

Potvin praised the program, noting that many students learn more during one summer at AECOM than they do during a year of study in Yeshiva. "The experience is valuable for any student," he stressed. "Not only [does the program] teach students more about the laboratory itself, but it also helps students in future semesters of study, as well as aiding in the process of choosing a career."

Yeshiva College Senior Shlomo Koyfman, who is majoring in Jewish Studies and Chemistry, researched breast cancer metastasis under the tutelage of Dr. Jeffrey Segall, professor of Anatomy and Structural Biology at Einstein. He came into the Roth Scholars Program with previous experience in the laboratory; Koyfman performed independent research last year with Viswanathan. Although Koyfman, a husband and father of one, did not live on the medical center's campus, he did find the summer to be a "fantastic" experience. "It was amazing to have this opportunity to do real research," he explained.

Elliot Schwarzmberger, who elected to take advantage of the on-campus housing, researched HIV as well as ALV, the Avian Leucosis Virus. Echoing Koyfman's favorable sentiments, he commented on the importance of research partners. "The extent of your experience is very dependent on whose lab you get and how interesting your project is," he pointed out.

In addition to the rigorous academic program offered Roth Scholars, the students were invited and encouraged to attend Einstein functions, and were provided with a number of forums for social interactions, including trips to Yankee Games and the Bronx Zoo.