A big congratulations to Stacey Heaver who successfully defended her PhD this week! It certainly was an affair to remember, with COVID-19 forcing the seminar to be held via video conference with participants taking part from all corners of the globe. This didn’t phase Stacey, though, who gave an outstanding presentation of her research that was well-received by all.

No virus was going to get in the way of a celebration either, as four masked Ley Lab members were on-hand to share a champagne from a distance, while the rest of us participated with a drink-in-hand via Zoom.

Stacey will graduate later this year with her PhD from the Department of Microbiology at Cornell University. Her thesis is titled, “Characterization and exploration of the rationale for sphingolipid metabolism in host-associated Bacteroides”.

Well done, Dr. Heaver!