May 03, 2017

Dr. Julie Swartzendruber

A Midwestern University faculty member was recently named a Public Policy Fellow by the American Association of Immunologists (AAI). Julie Swartzendruber, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology on the Downers Grove Campus, is one of a select few nationwide to earn a spot in the AAI Public Policy Fellows Program. The aim of the program is to engage postdoctoral fellows and junior scientists in public policy activities that impact biomedical research.

"I am honored to be selected as an AAI Public Policy Fellow. I look forward to learning how to advocate for biomedical research and building relationships with members of the AAI public affairs staff and other Fellows," Dr.  Swartzendruber said. "I am particularly interested in learning about the forces that influence public policy and how to best communicate and advocate for biomedical research. As a Fellow, I look forward to developing the skills required to be successful as a science policy leader. I am hopeful for the future of scientific research and I am excited by the opportunity this fellowship will provide," she added.

During her one-year term as a Fellow, Dr. Swartzendruber will have the opportunity to visit Capitol Hill and to delve more deeply into key issues related to biomedical research through the AAI public affairs program. In her role as a faculty member at Midwestern University, Dr. Swartzendruber teaches future physicians at the University's Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine and is engaged in research regarding the use of probiotics in the suppression of allergic disease.

The AAI is an association of professionally trained scientists from all over the world dedicated to advancing the knowledge of immunology and its related disciplines, fostering the interchange of ideas and information among investigators, and addressing the potential integration of immunologic principles into clinical practice.