on Shanderson caught the science bug when he was just a kid. His parents bought him the tools to explore, from telescopes to observe the workings of outer space, to microscopes to peer inside cells.
“They bought me insect catchers, so I guess they didn’t mind that much, but one time when I was in the 3rd or 4th grade I caught 15 to 20 bees,” Shanderson said with a laugh. “And I had a tarantula when I was younger, and it escaped once or twice, much to my mother’s chagrin.”
That freedom to explore and his curiosity about the world has led the Honors College student, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in biology, to a bright future as a researcher.
He received the highly competitive Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship—only the second recipient in the university’s history—and will be headed to Stanford University this fall to pursue his Ph.D.
He built that potential under the tutelage of Susanna Greer, a former researcher at Georgia State who is now director of clinical research at the American Cancer Society.
While working in her lab, he performed molecular biology research that helped him better understand cancer.
“One of the biggest things I’ve learned is that I love the lab environment,” he said. “It is really fulfilling.”
After getting his Ph.D., Shanderson said he would like to continue research in molecular biology, most likely in what’s described as “basic” research.
It’s research that might not directly produce a new medication, vaccine or diagnostic tool. But it’s critical to the understanding of how systems in the body work.
“Having basic research is fundamental, because we wouldn’t have any of the applied work we do in drug discovery without people first making those earlier discoveries,” Shanderson said.
—Jeremy Craig