Director's Message | Summer 2022

One of the main missions of the UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center is the training of students and postdoctoral fellows to become the next generation of stem cell researchers in academia and industry. We will expand our training of undergraduate students in the coming years with the support of a training grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which we have just received. The undergraduate student body at UCLA is a remarkable and diverse group of individuals whose lives and careers will be shaped by their experiences during their college years. As such, we take very seriously our ability to provide opportunities to experience laboratory research firsthand. Virtually every laboratory associated with the Center includes undergraduate scholars. Having had undergraduate researchers in my laboratory throughout my career, I can attest to the value they bring—they are bright, motivated, and eager to contribute to the intellectual life of the laboratory. Seeds are planted in the form of opportunities, and it is always inspiring to see those seeds grow in terms of research accomplishments and career paths.

And could there be a better metaphor for such growth than the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden on the UCLA campus? I have the great good fortune of having an office that overlooks the Garden, and I often spend time there for some moments of peace and reflection. The Garden was started in 1929 and was initially fostered by donated plant materials from a variety of sources, including the California Botanical Garden in Mandeville Canyon and the Huntington Botanical Gardens. Over the decades, the Garden expanded under a series of directors and became central to the UCLA campus flourishing as an arboretum. It was named for Dr. Mildred E. Mathias, a world-renowned botanist, UCLA professor, and director of the Botanical Garden from 1956 until 1974. Dr. Mathias was very dedicated to public education and actually hosted her own weekly television show on gardening titled, “The Wonderful World of Ornamentals.” Today, the Botanical Garden is a gem in the UCLA crown, boasting a vast range of flora collections, from California Native Plants and Subtropical Woodlands to Hawaiian Native Plants and Mediterranean Ecosystem. It is a place of research and education, a celebration of the beauty of diversity, and a wonderful respite for a “walk in the woods” for members of the UCLA community and the general public.  

So, with a nod to the Botanical Garden, we commit to fostering a culture of education and training in the UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center, where seeds are planted and nurtured. The success of the Center is a reflection of the success of those cultivations. We look to the future with high hopes and high expectations that our investment in education will bear fruit in the form of enriched lives and doors opened to unexpected opportunities and unforeseen possibilities for the next generation of stem cell researchers.

Thomas Rando, MD, PhD

Director, UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center

Professor of Neurology and Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology