MIT Koch Institute
January 6, 2023
In late 2022, an in-person celebration of the recipients of the Peter Karches Mentorship Prize took place for the first time in three years, bringing together multiple cohorts of winners with family members and friends of Peter Karches to recognize their contributions. The 2022 awardees were Stephanie Gaglione, Sofia Hu, Allen Jiang, and Chris Nabel.
Mentorship plays an invaluable role in readying the next generation of researchers to work toward solutions to some of the most complex challenges in cancer and medicine. This is particularly true in the case of the Koch Institute’s research model, where the trainee experience also includes navigating the collaborative approaches and multiple scientific languages of an integrated, interdisciplinary community.
Each year, the Peter Karches Mentorship Prize is awarded to up to four Koch Institute postdoctoral associates, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students or research technicians who exhibit outstanding scientific mentorship of undergraduate researchers or high school students in their laboratories. Karches Prize recipients are nominated by both the principal investigator of their lab and mentees who have benefited from their hands-on guidance. The awards are formally presented at the Koch Institute’s annual scientific retreat each fall, and celebrated with friends and family of Mr. Karches at a private gathering.
While the usual Karches Prize traditions have been delayed by Covid since 2019, 2022’s reception and dinner served as an opportunity for the 2020, 2021, and 2022 cohorts to come together for a much-awaited celebration of their accomplishments. The winners represent nine different Koch Institute labs and range from bench scientists and engineers to practicing oncologists, exemplifying the interdisciplinary nature of Koch Institute research.
The prize was established in 2018 by Jim Goodwin, a close friend of the Karches family, to honor the life of Peter Karches. Mr. Karches spent his career at Morgan Stanley, becoming president and chief operating officer of the institutional securities and investment banking group. He passed away in April 2006 following a long battle with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Recipients of the Karches Prize embody the generosity, intellect, and dedication to friends and family for which Mr. Karches is remembered.