Dr. McKee, mentored by CIC Co-Director Coleen McNamara, MD, is deeply involved in community engagement efforts both within UVA and beyond. She received her medical training at the University of Otago in New Zealand before pursuing a master’s degree in Immunology and Inflammatory Disease at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. While presenting to the approximately 40 high schoolers attending her talk, she used her experience in both clinical and research settings to help delineate the two perspectives. “Imagine a cliff,” Dr. McKee explained. “Clinical medicine is like an ambulance that treats people who fall off the edge. Research science tries to build a fence to stop people from falling in the first place, and there are pros and cons to each approach.” She also described her current research and the importance of being an advocate for science in a national climate increasingly skeptical of research.

Speaking at Monticello High School is Dr. McKee’s latest community engagement effort. She has also volunteered at events that brought middle schoolers to Grounds, UVA’s Discover Medicine program, and Charlottesville’s local Big Brothers Big Sisters chapter. Community service is one of Dr. McKee’s core values, having volunteered in international medical efforts and local programs throughout her professional and personal life.

Her efforts to bring UVA and the Charlottesville community together are already building new bridges. Dr. McKee’s Discover Medicine mentee attended her talk at Monticello High School. Another student who attended that talk subsequently sought out a clinical research rotation and will work at iPRIME this summer.

Dr. Abbate, for his part, has a long history of community outreach. Like Dr. McKee, he spoke about the career that brought him to UVA: an MD/PhD from the Campus Bio Medico University of Rome, Italy, a fellowship at the Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy, and a residency at Virginia Commonwealth University. He focused, however, on trying to excite the next generation to pursue science. “When I was a young student, people inspired me. Now, my job is to return that inspiration to the community,” Dr. Abbate said. He and the highschoolers discussed a variety of topics, ranging from practical concerns like how long an MD/PhD takes and his research projects to wider questions, like what motivates research and Dr. Abbate’s long-term goals. “It was a very rewarding experience—the students were very excited to learn about careers in science,” he recalled.

Community outreach and engagement is a core value of the CVRC and its researchers. Students and faculty interested in additional outreach opportunities should contact Dr. Christos Baryiames.