ASHG President Susan Slaugenhaupt Calls for Hope, Leadership, and Communication in Science

The American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) meeting, being held in Montreal this week, kicked off with the Presidential address given by Susan Slaugenhaupt, PhD, Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and ASHG President.

Slaugenhaupt opened the speech noting that “it’s really hard to know what to say in a presidential address” and that one of her friends told her that, “right now, people just need a message of hope.” And another said, “You always speak from the heart, so just do that.” Slaugenhaupt proceeded to deliver her heartfelt address—emphasizing hope, leadership, and the importance of communication amid the challenges facing science today. Some of the highlights are here.

“Persistence is not simply how we survive difficult periods in science. It is how we protect our passion, strengthen our teams, and turn discovery into a better future,” she asserted. “I know I’m not alone in feeling anger and frustration about what has happened to science in the United States, how it is reviewed, funded, and perceived by the public. The very idea of education is under attack. Scientific priorities are increasingly shaped by political forces rather than rigorous peer review. We see people rejecting vaccines, distrusting physicians, and dismissing decades of evidence-based progress. As scientists, our instinct is to respond with data. We want to explain the evidence. We want to demonstrate what the science shows, that the data alone are not bridging the divide. Whatever our individual political beliefs are, politics should not determine the value of scientific discovery. So what do we do? We act, we persist, we communicate. The most successful people I know are not people who never encounter barriers. They are people who meet those barriers with persistence and determination and keep going.”

Slaugenhaupt told the story of the quote below being taped to her office door by a team member after a particularly hard day in the lab. The piece of paper has remained tacked above her desk for nearly 30 years.

The message that stayed with Slaugenhaupt from that quote is that persistence and determination are what carry us through when everything else has been exhausted. “That lesson helped shape me as a scientist and later as a leader,” she noted.

“Recounting this story brings me to an important lesson beyond persistence and determination, and that is the importance of building a cohesive team that has your back. Always pay attention to your team and treat them well. It doesn’t matter if this is your lab team or your leadership team. Those people make you better every single day. Give credit generously. Ask people what they need to succeed. Notice the quiet members of your team. Make it safe to admit mistakes and create opportunities for people to grow in their roles. At some point in your career, success becomes less about advancing yourself and more about helping others advance. When that shift happens, embrace it.”

“This career is not easy, but your work is absolutely essential. Never forget that. If there is one quality that defines scientists, it’s passion. We don’t do this job because it pays particularly well or because there isn’t anything else we’re interested in. We do it because we can’t imagine doing anything else. Most of us caught the bug early. Curiosity became fascination, fascination became purpose, and eventually science became part of who we are. No matter how challenging the current environment is, I still see this passion in people every day and all of you. Most importantly, I see it in young people.”

“For the past 15 years, I’ve run an undergraduate summer student program. Every summer, those students arrive at the lab and they bring something remarkable with them. They bring optimism, energy, possibility. They are completely convinced that they will make discoveries that will change lives. And honestly, some of them probably will. Whenever I begin to think about the future, I think about those students, and that is why I remain hopeful. Hundreds of millions of people worldwide live with a genetic disease. They often face diagnostic odysseys only to learn that their disease has no treatment. Those of you who work with families know that there is nothing more powerful than a parent’s determination to help their child. They do not stop. They do not quit. They do not lose hope. They embody persistence.”

She also emphasized the importance of communicating science and designed the Presidential Symposium to focus on exploring the barriers that limit meaningful public engagement and discuss what scientists can do to help bridge these gaps. Because, she said, “speaking out is not optional anymore. It is part of our responsibility. Protesting might not be for everyone, but communicating must be. We must all be more vocal about the critical role in science and more specifically human genetics and genetics plays in improving the health of people around the world.”

“Over the past 18 months, we have witnessed an unprecedented challenge to science in the U.S. Actions that undermine scientific integrity, public trust, and research funding have affected all of us. Sadly, I suspect we’re not simply waiting for a return to the way things used to be. We are being asked to help shape what comes next. So when the path forward feels uncertain, remember this, your work matters. Build teams that support one another and celebrate one another’s success. Tell people outside this room what you do and why it matters. Protect the passion that brought you to science in the first place and above all, persist. Persist for the students who are just beginning their journeys. Persist for the patients and families who are waiting for answers. Persist for one another and persist because the future of human health depends on what we discover together. I am absolutely convinced that human genetics and genomics will continue to transform medicine and improve lives around the world.”

“Every person in this room is part of that future. The world needs your science. The world needs your voice and now more than ever, the world needs you to persist. Thank you.”

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