Capstone Experience

Each CTEGD T32 Fellow is given the opportunity to participate in a capstone experience towards the end of their fellowship period. The capstone experience can take any number of forms as the goal is to enhance the training experience and provide an opportunity that the trainee may not otherwise be able to take part in. Past fellows have traveled internationally to take part in field research while others have spent time in another U.S.-based laboratory to learn new skills and technology. See some their stories below.

To apply

A request for capstone funds should be prepared by the student with his/her mentor and the PI of the lab being visited (two pages max).

The document should include:

The nature of the overall project of which this training is a part
The research that will be done during the training period requested
The time and location of the proposed training
The reason why this training should be done in this location
How the requested training will further the goals of the trainee
A proposed budget
The source of the funding that will support the actual research of the proposed training.

Two women holding a University of Georgia flag on a mountain overlooking a valley of clouds to celebrate their academic capstone.

India – Victoria Mendiola & Melissa Sleda (2024)

Victoria Mendiola, a PhD student in Dennis Kyle’s lab, and Melissa Sleda, a PhD student in Silvia Moreno’s lab, served as teaching assistants for the study away program in India organized by assistant professor Samarchith Kurup. Pre-veterinary students from the University of Georgia worked in vet clinics and ran diagnostic tests.

During the trip, they toured a number of state-ran research labs and met with government officials.

They also visited a tea plantation, monastery, palaces, the Elephant Resource Center, and did a city tour. Pictured below is the group at a monastery where they watched a martial arts demonstration.

A large group of students posing for an academic capstone project photo on an outdoor earthen courtyard surrounded by palm trees.

A group of students and officials pose for a photo at a meeting to present their Capstone Experience, accompanied by a news article in Malayalam.

A man in a light blue kurta and white dhoti stands with his arms around two women in traditional outfits, celebrating their academic capstone.

A person sits on the stone ruins of an ancient temple carved with figures, reflecting on their academic capstone.

Cambodia – Grace Vick (2024)

Grace worked with trainees and staff working at Insitut Pasteur du Cambodge, all who are members of the Malaria Research Unit. Once a month, Institut Pasteur field teams drive out to villages such as Chok Char (pictured below), to collect blood samples and patient data for testing transmission of Plasmodium vivax as part of an ongoing longitudinal study. These participants who are in these rural villages spend time living and working in forested areas with higher levels of malaria transmission.

A sick community member in the Mondulkiri region arrived at the rural Oreang field clinic with malaria symptoms. IPC field team responded to the call and conducted diagnostic testing for the presence of Plasmodium, followed by administration of antimalarials.

During Grace Vick’s stay in Cambodia, she was able to travel to Siem Reap, Cambodia where she spent time exploring the ancient temples and ruins of Angkor Wat. She also traveled to Ha Long Bay, Vietnam where she spent time exploring and kayaking through the beautiful bay full of thousands of towering limestone islands.

Eight students pose for a photo inside a laboratory during their academic capstone experience.

Health workers in blue uniforms and gloves provide medical testing to a line of people during an academic capstone.

A person in a blue polo shirt and latex gloves prepares a medical test kit on a wooden surface for an academic capstone, while others observe.

Person wearing blue lab coat, hair net, and gloves sits at a laboratory workstation handling samples, smiling at the camera during their Capstone Experience.

Quito, Ecuador – Manuel Fierro (2019)

For my T32 Capstone Trip, I went to Quito, Ecuador and collaborated with Dr. Fabián Sáenz from the Centro de Investigación para la Salud en América Latina (CISeAL) in the Pontifica Universidad Católica del Ecuador (PUCE). The purpose of this trip was to verify antimalarial resistance of field isolates from previous outbreaks in the north of Ecuador. The great misfortune of this trip was that I was not able to perform any experiments with the Ecuadorian field isolates. Instead, what I was able to do is establish a protocol I that would be needed in the future to perform similar assays on the Ecuadorian parasites by using lab-adapted strains. As a matter of fact, Fabián has already told me that he’s been able to invest more time and resources in this project due to the protocol I was able to establish. The experience I had was invaluably enriching for me. It exposed me to the reality of the resource abundance we have here in the US to perform research. In Fabián’s lab, I had to be continually aware of not wasting the resources I was using (such as tubes, tips, media) since the acquisition of these materials is not as expedient as it is here in the US. Despite the limitations, I was genuinely impressed by the hard work and expertise of Fabián and others at CISeAL which motivated me to want to come back to Ecuador and do research there. More importantly, I was able to acquire connections for my professional future in Ecuador, with many people in the Center inviting me back.

A sign on a concrete wall reads: “CISEAL, Center for Research on Health in Latin America,” highlighting opportunities like the Capstone Experience, with institutional logos and text in both Spanish and English.

Five people wearing lab coats and blue hairnets stand together and smile in a laboratory setting, celebrating their Capstone Experience.

Panoramic view of a large crater lake surrounded by steep, rugged mountains under a cloudy sky—a landscape reminiscent of a true Capstone Experience in adventure.

Roraima, Brazil – Heather Kudyba (2018):

Summary of the project:

The current method for diagnosing malaria infection is microscopy of a Giemsa stained thick blood smear. This technique can be subjective depending on the quality of the smears, the technicians training, the levels of parasitemia in the blood, and if the infection is a mix of different Plasmodium species. The treatments for different species of Plasmodium vary, and thus proper diagnostics are crucial. Additionally, the ability to detect low-levels of infection is crucial to the elimination of this parasitic disease. I visited three municipalities in Roraima, Brazil over a 6 week period (Boa Vista, Pacaraima, and Rorainópolis). We visited various health posts and clinics to collect blood from patients to test the practicality and effectiveness of a molecular-based diagnostic, Malachite Green Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (MG-LAMP). We compared the results to the current diagnostic for malaria, microscopy, as well as another molecular-based diagnostic (that is highly sensitive, but requires more equipment, etc to perform) Photo-induced Electron Transfer PCR (PET-PCR).

Who did you work with during your capstone?

Dr. Joseli Oliveira-Ferreira (Institute Oswaldo Cruz- Fiocruz, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil)

Jaime Louzada (Federal University of Roraima, Roraima, Brazil)

Dr. Naomi W. Lucchi (Malaria Branch and Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA)

Dragan Ljolje (Atlanta Research and Education Foundation, Atlanta, USA)

What were some problems/issues you faced in your capstone research (if nothing, then don’t answer this)?

Working in a resource-poor environment is difficult and you often have to improvise and make do with limited equipment. It made the work a little harder but also gave me perspective on how lucky we are to work in well-equipped labs, such as the ones in the CTEGD.

What was the outcome of your capstone research?

Present poster at ASTMH and Publication in Malaria journal

How did the capstone help your personal and professional growth?

This experience opened many doors for me. I was able to meet and work with new people at the CDC and in Brazil. I made connections that I still maintain to this day. Working in an endemic area was eye-opening. It is one thing to work in the lab on malaria research, it is a completely other thing to see the devastating consequences of malaria infection in the world. This experience gave my work new meaning and purpose.

A woman wearing sunglasses and a colorful skirt sits on a wooden boat, smiling, enjoying her Capstone Experience with a river and lush greenery in the background.

Kisumu, Kenya – Briana Flaherty (2014):

I did my capstone experience in May, 2014 with Dr. Dan Colley’s group in Kisumu, Kenya. Previous studies have demonstrated Th2 immune biasing in schistomsome-infected individuals. Such biasing may affect host immune responses to important vaccinations. My research in Kenya involved analyzing the influence of infection with schistosomiasis or soil-transmitted helminths on adult immune responses to the hepatitis B vaccine. My time was divided between the field, where I assisted with blood collections, and the lab, where I utilized enzyme-based immunoassays (ELISAs) to measure hepatitis B antibody levels in blood serum from study participants.

My experience in Kenya provided an exceptional opportunity to gain experience both working in the field and in a laboratory in a developing setting; this short time has had a profound impact on my future interests and career goals.

Two people sit next to each other under a green canopy, engaged in their Capstone Experience; one looks ahead while the other reads and writes on a paper.

Several people in lab coats work at desks and equipment inside a bright, modern laboratory with tile flooring and large windows, collaborating on their Capstone Experience projects.

A healthcare worker prepares to draw blood from a seated man, using a tourniquet on his arm, as part of a Capstone Experience, against a green and white background.