1 | Name: | Dr. Gerald R. Fink | |
Institution: | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | ||
Year Elected: | 2003 | ||
Class: | 2. Biological Sciences | ||
Subdivision: | 207. Genetics | ||
Residency: | Resident | ||
Living? : | Living | ||
Birth Date: | 1940 | ||
Gerald Fink received his Ph.D. from Yale University in 1965. In 1967 he joined the faculty of Cornell University where he was professor of genetics and professor of biochemistry. He became professor of molecular genetics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1982 and is currently the American Cancer Society Professor. He has been a member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research since 1982 and served as its director from 1990-2001. Gerald Fink is internationally recognized for his contributions in genetics, and is considered a preeminent figure in the field of yeast genetics. His work with yeast yielded deep insights into human genetics, and his long-time teaching commitment to the Cold Spring Harbor Yeast Genetics course has initiated many new researchers into the field. As Whitehead director, he developed and supported nationally-renowned education and public policy programs that continue to exert a profound impact on public understanding of research and biomedicine. Fink's service to the scientific community includes mentorship that will inform the professional practice of generations of researchers to come. Dr. Fink is the recipient of the Award in Molecular Biology from the National Academy of Sciences (1981); the Genetics Society of America Medal (1982); the Yale Science and Engineering Award (1984); the Emil Christian Hansen Foundation Award of Microbiology (1986); the Wilbur Lucius Cross Medal from Yale University (1992); the Bristol-Myers Squibb Infectious Disease Research Award (1993); the Senior Scholar Award from the Ellison Medical Foundation (2001); the George W. Beadle Award from the Genetics Society of America (2001); the Yeast, Genetics and Molecular Biology Lifetime Achievement Award (2002); and the James R. Killian Jr. Faculty Achievement Award [2018]. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 2003. |