New Haven, Connecticut, United States
Karen DSouza, PhD, is a higher education program leader specializing in academic program development, research training pathways, and student success initiatives within research universities. She currently serves as Program Manager for Collaborative Excellence at the Yale Cancer Center, where she leads education and workforce development initiatives designed to expand access to careers in biomedical research. In her role, Karen designs and manages training programs that support learners across the educational continuum—from high school students exploring research careers to post-baccalaureate fellows preparing for PhD and MD–PhD pathways. She oversees nationally funded pathway programs, including the American Cancer Society Post-Baccalaureate Fellows Program, and coordinates cross-institutional collaborations through initiatives such as ASCEND, which partners Yale faculty with historically Black colleges and universities to strengthen research and training opportunities. Karen’s work focuses on developing structured educational programs that combine mentorship, curriculum design, and professional development to help students navigate academic and research careers. She also leads large-scale academic convenings and collaborative initiatives that bring together faculty, trainees, and institutional partners to advance workforce development in biomedical science. Trained as a mixed-methods researcher, Karen brings expertise in program evaluation, qualitative research, and data-informed program design. Her scholarship examines the hidden curriculum in biomedical education and the experiences of historically underrepresented trainees in academic research environments. Karen earned her PhD in Biomedical Science with a focus in Clinical and Translational Science from Mayo Clinic, where her research examined disparities in reproductive healthcare access for transgender and gender-diverse patients. Her work contributed to efforts to improve inclusive clinical care and training practices across medical and graduate education. She is passionate about building academic environments where students can thrive, mentoring future scholars, and developing programs that expand access to research and leadership opportunities in higher education.
-Coordinates equity-centered education and training programs including the American Cancer Society Postbaccalaureate Fellowship, supporting diverse trainees in pathways toward PhD and MD-PhD careers. -Designs and implements community-aligned training initiatives, such as a new Yale Pathways to Science summer program in cancer biology focused on HER2 expression and protein detection techniques. -Facilitates cross-institutional partnerships through Yale’s ASCEND initiative, coordinating with faculty and leadership at Hampton, Meharry, Morehouse, and Tuskegee Universities to advance cancer research collaborations. -Coordinates large-scale convenings, including the Yale Cancer Research Symposium, managing large budgets and logistics for >150 attendees, and successful participation by national faculty and trainees. -Collaborates with faculty, administration, and community stakeholders to align programs with institutional priorities in diversity, equity, and inclusion, and to strengthen pathways into cancer research. -Supports institutional DEI strategy through service on the Council for Collaborative Excellence, contributing to initiatives that enhance inclusivity and representation across the cancer research workforce.
- Contributed to workforce equity and hidden curriculum scholarship, co-authoring manuscripts on mentoring experiences, inclusive training environments, and equitable pathways in biomedical research.
Frias Lab, Div. of Reproductive & Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center I worked to quantify and characterize the spatial differences in the placenta of a non-human primate model by first preparing tissue samples and later analyzing the heterogeneity in the tissue using novel imaging techniques.
David Lab, Department of Microbiology, Oregon State University I investigated proteins both common and unique to treatments of soil samples in order to identify microbial pathways disrupted by altered rainfall patterns.