Annual Retreat

The 2022 GGA Retreat


The first annual GGA retreat will be held on Friday, August 26, 2022 at Hunt Library on NC State’s Centennial Campus. The Annual Retreat welcomes new graduate students and new faculty, highlights the research of GGA laboratories and Research Interest Groups, and features discussions about GGS graduate student recruitment and admission strategies.

Date: August 26, 2022

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Rob Dunn, Senior Vice Provost for University Interdisciplinary Programs and William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor in the Department of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State University

Location Address: Duke Energy HallHunt Library

Registration: Link

ZOOM Registration: The Zoom link will be emailed to all registered attendees.

Schedule of Events: See below!

Questions? Please contact Dr. Jeff Yoder with any questions: jayoder@ncsu.edu

Schedule of Events

08:30 AMCoffee and light breakfast. Poster and vendor set up.
09:00 AMOpening Remarks, Welcome, and Updates

Opening remarks by Fred Gould, GGA Executive Director
Welcome – Provost Arden, Dean McGahan, Dean Dole, Dean Meurs
Updates from the GGA Executive Committee:
> Introduce New Faculty
> The four major objectives of the GGA
> GG Scholars Program—overview and new student introductions 
> Reformulation of Research Interest Groups (RIGs) through interactive activities 
> Interface with the PDU 
> Seminar Series 
> Genetics & Functional Genomics Merger 
> Discussion 
10:30 AMCoffee Break & Posters
11:00 AM Keynote Speaker:
Dr. Rob Dunn, Senior Vice Provost for University Interdisciplinary Programs, and William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor in the Department of Applied Ecology, NC State University
The Future of Interdisciplinarity at NC State, from Sourdough Bread to Earth’s Wicked Problems
12:00 PMProvided Lunch & Posters
01:30 PMScience Talks: Session 1
03:00 PMCoffee Break & Posters
03:30 PMScience Talks: Session 2
04:45 PMGGA Contest Winners Announced & GGA Paper of the Year Presentation
05:05 PMClosing Remarks & Poster Awards
2022 GGA Annual Retreat Schedule of Events

Profile: Keynote Speaker – Dr. Rob Dunn

Dr. Dunn is the Senior Vice Provost for University Interdisciplinary Programs at NC State. In the context of this job he is working to lead and launch interdisciplinary programs at NC State and also to make it easier for faculty, postdocs and students who want to work across disciplines to do so in ways that have a great impact on society. Dr. Dunn is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist whose work focuses on the biology of the everyday. He aims to apply general concepts and theory from ecology and evolutionary biology to biological realms that have been relatively ignored. Often, this work is done with large collaborative teams. 


2022 Retreat Sponsors:

2022 GGA Annuals Retreat Sponsors

Past Retreats

2021 Retreat

Date: August 20, 2021

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Gene Robinson, Professor of Entomology and Director of the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Location Address: James B. Hunt Library, Duke Energy Hall CD (and streamed via Zoom)

Registration: CLOSED. Registration is FREE.

Schedule and Full Retreat Program can be viewed below.

Full retreat program: View program

Schedule of Events

09:00 AM      Opening Remarks, Welcome, and Updates from the GGI Executive Committee
Opening remarks by Dr. Fred Gould
Welcome – Vice Provost Larick, Dean McGahan, ADR Lommel, & ADR Meurs
Updates from the GGI Executive Committee
– Seminar Series
– RIGs
– New Faculty
– GG Scholars Program (Cohort, Curriculum, & Recruiting)
– Genetics & Functional Genomics Merger
– Initiative vs. Academy
– Discussion

10:30 AM      Coffee Break: Posters & Vendors

11:00 AM     Keynote Speaker: Dr. Gene Robinson
“Sociogenomics: The Molecular Biology that Links Nature and Nurture”

12:00 PM     Lunch Break: Posters & Vendors

01:30 PM     Science Talks: Session 1

03:00 PM      Break: Posters & Vendors

03:30 PM     Science Talks: Session 2

04:45 PM     GGI paper of the Year Presentation

05:05 PM      Poster awards announced and Closing remarks

2020 Retreat Sponsors:

2020 Retreat

Date: August 29, 2020

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Gregory Wray, Professor of Biology and Director of the Duke Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University

Location Address: Zoom

Registration: CLOSED. Registration is FREE.

Schedule and Full Retreat Program can be viewed below.

Full retreat program: View program

Schedule of Events

09:00 AM      Opening Remarks, Welcome, and Updates from the GGI Executive Committee
– Seminar Series
– GGI Contest Winners
– Research Interest Groups (RIGs)
– New Faculty
– GG Scholars Program (Cohort, Curriculum, & Recruiting)
– Director Search
– Discussion

10:30 AM      Break & Sponsor Meetings

11:00 AM     Keynote Speaker: Dr. Gregory Wray
“No Gene Is An Island: The Evolutionary Causes and Consequences of Gene Interactions”

12:00 PM     Lunch Break & Sponsor Meetings

01:00 PM     External Sponsor Presentations

01:15 PM     Science Talks: Session 1

02:30 PM      Break & Sponsor Meetings

03:00 PM     Internal Sponsor Presentations

03:15 PM     Science Talks: Session 2

04:15 PM     GGI paper of the Year Presentation

05:00 PM     Adjourn

2020 Retreat Sponsors:

2019 Retreat

Date: August 19, 2019

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Frances Ligler, Lampe Distinguished professor of Biomedical Engineering, NCSU

Location Address: 2450 Alumni Drive, Raleigh, NC 27606. Parking is FREE.

Registration Deadline: Friday August 9, 2019 (CLOSED).

Registration: Registration includes breakfast, buffet lunch, refreshments, and coffee breaks. Registration is FREE.

Schedule and Full Retreat Program can be viewed below.

Full retreat program: View program

Schedule of Events

08:30 AM     Registration and Breakfast

09:00 AM     Welcome and Updates: The Future of GGI
– Seminar Series
– Research Interest Groups (RIGs)
– GGI Graduate Training Program and Curriculum
– And more!

10:30 AM     Coffee Break

11:00 AM     Keynote Speaker: Dr. Frances Ligler
“On being a Gemini: Combining science and engineering to help people”

12:00 PM     Lunch Buffet and Poster Presentations

01:30 PM     Science Talks: Session 1

03:00 PM     Coffee Break and Poster Presentations

03:30 PM     Science Talks: Session 2

05:00 PM     Adjourn

2019 Retreat Sponsors: