Issue-003 · · Sakina Saif, M.S. , Samantha Klasfeld, Ph.D. , Masoome Rezaei, M.S. · 5 min read
🌟 2025 Year in Review & What’s Next
Issue three is here! We’re trading 2025’s highlights for 2026’s possibilities. Think new mentorship programs, expanded resources, and events worth marking on your calendar. Ready? Let’s go! 🚀
Here’s what’s inside this month:
- Non-profit Announcement
- Holiday Dinner
- Events Recap
- Upcoming Event
- Career Mentorship Program
- Community Resources
- 2025 Annual Committee Reports
- Inside our Organization Committees
- Meet the Executive Board
🎊 We’re Official: BWIB Gets Non-Profit Status
We are thrilled to announce that BWIB officially became a nonprofit organization in 2025. This milestone provides us with the stable infrastructure needed to sustain and grow our programs, secure funding more effectively, and serve our community for years to come.
Holiday Dinner
In celebration of the year’s accomplishments, the BWIB organizers and the executive team gathered for a holiday dinner at Gustazo! The evening provided an opportunity to meet and connect with each other in-person, reflect on the organization’s growth, recognize the contributions of the committee chairs and volunteers, and share wishes for a happy and a healthy holiday season!
Events Recap
Byte and Bite: Bioinformatics Lunch Meetup
Our November Byte and Bite made for a cozy afternoon of networking and conversation at CanalSide Food & Drink. This casual lunch meetup continued our tradition of creating unscripted spaces for professionals to connect, share experiences, and build relationships beyond the formalities of typical networking events. Thank you to everyone who joined us. We look forward to seeing you at our next meetup!
Communicate Your Unique Value: A Masterclass for Job Seekers
Joanna Ghayad, PharmD, PCC (pronounced “guy-add,” as she memorably shared) created an engaging space where attendees moved beyond resume bullet points. Through interactive frameworks and a practical fill-in-the-blank template, participants reflected deeply on their accomplishments, impact, and aspirations—discovering how to articulate their authentic professional value.
Building Adaptive Strategies for Career Advancement in Science
Dr. Jenn Felsted-Knight from Felsted Coaching & Consulting inspired attendees to reflect on their career journeys, with participants sharing their own paths in science. Together, we explored practical strategies for tracking career growth and building adaptive approaches to navigate the evolving landscape of bioinformatics and computational biology.
Upcoming Event
New Year, New Connections Social
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Let’s start 2026 right with a networking event you don’t have to skip dinner for! Join us at the C-Side bar in the Cambridgeside food court for our first event of the new year - and this time, allies are welcome too (bring your colleagues!). Come ready to make new connections, snag limited-time swag, and share your ideas for what our community should tackle this year. Whether your resolution is “network more” or “finally suggest that tool idea I’ve been thinking about,” we’ve got you covered.
Introducing our Career Mentorship Program
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We’re launching a year-long mentorship program specifically designed for women who are building their careers in bioinformatics—whether you’re navigating your first industry role, transitioning between sectors, or positioning yourself for leadership.
This program pairs early- to mid-career professionals with senior mentors who are established leaders in academia and industry. Through regular one-on-one meetings, mentees receive personalized guidance on career strategy, leadership development, and navigating the unique challenges women face in bioinformatics. For mentors, this is an opportunity to invest in the next generation of leaders, share hard-won insights, and strengthen our professional community.
We’re building meaningful, goal-oriented connections focused on career transitions, networking, skill building, and opening doors to new opportunities. Our vision is simple: create a lasting culture where women in bioinformatics mentor one another and champion each other’s success.
This program is for professionals already working in the field—not currently accepting applications from students or recent graduates.
📦 Resource Drop: Skills & Communities
We’ve expanded the Boston Women in Bioinformatics website with two new pages designed to support your professional growth and community connections:
Upskilling Resource Library – A curated collection of tools, tutorials, and platforms across bioinformatics, machine learning, coding, and professional development to help you sharpen your skills.
Partner Communities – Discover organizations and networks in bioinformatics, biotech, and data science to expand your connections locally and beyond.
Have a resource or community to add? We’d love your contributions! To suggest an addition, please share:
- For Upskilling Resources: Name, description, URL, category (bioinformatics, machine-learning, math, biology, coding, professional-development, or other), and tags (e.g., free, beginner-friendly)
- For Partner Communities: Name, description, website, category (bioinformatics, biotech, data-science, or other), location, whether it’s female-only, Boston-based, and relevant tags
Reach out to someone on the web-development committee on slack and help us build a comprehensive resource hub for our community!
2025 Annual Committee Reports
As the year draws to a close, our various committees have diligently compiled their end-of-year reports to reflect on the 2025 goals, measured progress and achievements, identified lessons learned and potential plans for the next year. This process of annual review highlights the commitment to transparency and continuous and trackable improvement within the organization. We thank all committee members for their hard work and dedication in preparing these valuable summaries. Please enjoy reading them on our website at boston-wib.org/about/annual-report-2025.
Executive Board
Social Media
- Slack: boston-women-bioinfo
- Email: Bostonwomeninbioinformatics@gmail.com
- LinkedIn: Boston-area Women in Bioinformatics
- Lu.ma: Boston Women in Bioinformatics
- Location: Boston Area, Massachusetts