For University of Georgia Ph.D. trainee Morgane Golan, the most meaningful result of her journey through graduate school wasn’t found under a microscope; it was found in the neighborhood she constructed along the way.
A trainee in the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES), Golan is paving a new course in medication as part of the country’s first and only program offering both bachelor’s and postgraduate degrees in regenerative bioscience– a discipline checking out methods to replace, fix and regrow harmed or diseased cells, tissues and organs.
At CAES, she works together with industry-leading research study professors and acclaimed trainees to bridge biology and medicine through tissue engineering, gene therapies, cell production and more.
“In cell manufacturing, we state that the process is the item,” Golan stated. “In this case, both the procedure and the product were the community and connections, the network and the relationships that I developed at CAES.”
The UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences is home to the country’s first and only program offering both bachelor’s and postgraduate degrees in regenerative bioscience. Source: Morgane Golan Where the journey
started When she started her college journey, Golan had actually planned to participate in vet school. Throughout her pre-veterinary program, nevertheless, she found an affinity for research that motivated her to explore alternative graduate programs.
Her undergraduate coaches recommended connecting with Dr. Steven Stice, a D.W. Brooks Distinguished Professor at the University of Georgia and the director of the UGA Regenerative Bioscience Center (RBC), where scientists work to discover treatments for conditions like distressing brain injuries, stroke, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and dementia– all of which presently have no cure.
Quickly afterwards, she planned a trip to Athens, Georgia, and rapidly fell for the lovely college town, beautiful red brick structures and lavish school.
“Bringing my hubby back to see this place, it was simply an immediate realization that we were going to end up here,” Golan stated.
The time had come for her to make her decision: would she pursue veterinary school, or would she accept a position with Dr. Stice at the University of Georgia?
“By that point, there was no contest,” she stated. “I had satisfied Dr. Stice. I found out about his research study, the program at large and the neighborhood of research study scientists I would be involved with. There was no opportunity that I was going anywhere else.”
UGA is ranked No. 1 for best trainee life amongst public universities in the United States. Source: University of
Georgia Signing Up With the UGA Regenerative Bioscience Center
Finding a doctoral consultant who really champs his or her Ph.D. candidates is important to a college student’s success. In Dr. Stice, Golan found not just a coach, however a mentor who was adaptable, flexible and devoted to buying her development. He supplied a tailored learning experience, personalized to Golan and her needs.
“He doesn’t coach any 2 trainees the exact same method,” she included.
An official member of the RBC, Golan began working with Dr. Franklin West, a CAES teacher who co-founded the center alongside Stice in 2004. There, her research focused on developing therapies that stimulate the body’s natural recovery systems to bring back brain function in a pig model of terrible brain injury.
After two years, Golan transitioned to in vitro research study in cell production. Supported by both Dr. West and Dr. Stice, she began a new role as a graduate trainee in the Center for Cell Manufacturing Technologies (CMaT), an Engineering Proving ground moneyed by the National Science Foundation.
“CMaT has actually given me chances to take part in research study, education and outreach in ways I never ever thought possible. I got to really step up into the role of a leader,” she stated.
The journey continues
As part of this interdisciplinary program, Golan’s work integrated neuroscience, cell manufacturing and bioengineering. She worked in cutting edge labs filled with groundbreaking tools and technologies, and she was supported by a group of researchers and entrepreneurs advocating for her every step of the method.
She combined her passions for laboratory research study, education and neighborhood outreach in her dissertation focused on responding to one crucial question: “How do we advance access to regenerative bioscience?”
Understanding that she needed to engage young researchers to expand access, Golan started working as a teaching assistant in Dr. West’s animal biotechnology course within the Regenerative Bioscience significant for undergraduates. There, she developed an active learning technique called the “Biotech Tool kit” to help trainees engage deeply with primary clinical literature.
“I didn’t really get to process the information until after the term had actually ended and all the last grades were in, so it wasn’t till weeks later that I started to see this technique in fact works,” she said. “It’s so exciting to reveal that this brand-new active reading method genuinely benefits trainees.”
Golan’s research in the Stice laboratory concentrated on enhancing production pipelines to support client access to stem cell-derived treatments for neurological conditions. Source: Morgane Golan|Picture credit: Adi Vaxman Photography
Life as an alumna
Golan graduated from the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences with her Ph.D. in Regenerative Bioscience in May 2026. Her accomplishments remain unforgettable to the happy CAES alumna.
In addition to effectively protecting her dissertation to a full-house public audience, she also won the UGA Excellence in Mentor Award and started teaching an experiential course-based undergraduate research experience sponsored by CMaT.
Bringing her dissertation into her neighborhood, Golan has likewise partnered with teachers within the Athens-Clarke County System to check out ways that regenerative bioscience can be made available to high school students, science teachers and households.
Presently, Golan is constructing a five-day program in cell production for high school students, a job likewise sponsored by CMaT.
“Bringing my concepts, passions and love of science to the neighborhood has actually enriched this journey,” she included.
Golan has accepted a position as a postdoctoral partner at the University of Georgia where she will continue to create evidence-based, active-learning learning chances that integrate fundamental biology with authentic translational research study.