The WSU PDA leadership and the Associate Dean of the Graduate School, Dr. Timothy Stemmler, attended the 16th Annual Conference of the National Postdoctoral Association in Cleveland, Ohio from April 6 - 8, 2018.

The program was filled with sessions relevant to the postdoc community and talks by accomplished researchers from life sciences and social sciences. Emphasis was placed on networking and exchanging ideas at the national postdoc level, awareness of different postdoc offices across the nation, and policy-making in the field of business and academia interface. Attendees also learned about leadership development, funding opportunities, mentorship, and diversity related topics.

The WSU postdocs presented a poster highlighting the regional postdoctoral symposium organized last year at Wayne State University. "This conference exceeded all my expectations," said Stefanie Baier, PDA Vice Chair and postdoctoral fellow in Academic Affiars and Student Success, "I was impressed by the relevancy of the sessions to my work, the expertise and experience shared by incredibly accomplished researchers and the networking opportunities. I am planning on sharing what I learned with my fellow postdocs at WSU and am excited to work with our leadership team to implement new ideas."

The WSU PDA leadership team's participation was supported by the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs housed within the Wayne State Graduate School.