Women in Cancer Immunotherapy Network 2023

SITC’s 2023 Women in Cancer Immunotherapy Network (WIN) Leadership Institute is supported, in part, by a grant from Bristol Myers Squibb. Additional support has also been made through a challenge grant made by an anonymous donor (As of May 10, 2023).

Program Details

September 28–29, 2023 in Chicago, IL | August, 9–10, 2023 Virtual

The 5^thAnnual SITC Women in Cancer Immunotherapy Network (WIN) Leadership Institute features two opportunities to attend, in-person or virtually. The program, championed by SITC Past President Lisa H. Butterfield, PhD, the society’s first female president, brings emerging female leaders in the cancer immunotherapy field together for an inspirational two days of professional development and networking event.

The SITC WIN Leadership Institute will feature presentations from experienced female leaders, panel discussions allowing participants to ask questions and interact with these leaders and our distinguished program organizers, and networking opportunities. There are no registration costs to attend the in-person or virtual program.

The WIN Leadership Institute 2023 applications were due April 11, 2023 at 5 p.m. PST and are now closed.

Eligibility

This program is open to female applicants only. Applicants must currently work in the field of cancer immunotherapy or be interested in starting a career in the field. If you have attended past WIN programs, you are not eligible to apply.

In addition, applicants must fit one of the following criteria:

Five or fewer years since applicant’s post-doctoral PhD and/or MD experience (e.g., post-doctoral lab experience or medical residency/fellowship)
Ten or fewer years since applicant received terminal degree (PharmD, MBA, etc.)
Applicant is starting or in consideration for their first leadership position

Topics

The SITC WIN Leadership Institute explores topics specifically designed for women as emerging leaders in the cancer immunotherapy field, attendees will learn how to:

Apply leadership skills to create an effective team environment in the workplace
Display a broad understanding of effective leadership roles and strategies and be able to apply them in a variety of professional, personal, and civic environments
Navigate unique challenges that face female leaders in the field of cancer immunotherapy
Demonstrate the ability to understand and apply principles of effective communication in order to affect appropriate change in a variety of leadership settings

SITC Professional Interest Communities

SITC Professional Interest Communities are an original series of online communities created exclusively for SITC members. Within these communities, researchers and clinicians in the cancer immunotherapy field expand their network and receive career development support from colleagues.

The Women in SITC Community is open to women who share a common interest in immunology and cancer. Open to professional women, the goal of the community is to increase females in leadership roles within the society, foster connections and working opportunities among members, discuss immunotherapy toxicities (open to other specialties that deal with toxicity of immunotherapy), create mentorship opportunities, discuss gender bias and professional opportunities and contributions to the field of oncology/immunotherapy.

Not a member? Join SITC today and gain immediate access to the Women in SITC Community!

Application Process

Applications were due by 5 p.m. PST on April 11, 2023 and are now closed

Applicants will submit an application via SITC’s website. Selection is made by the SITC WIN Leadership Institute Program Co-Organizers. Applicants will be notified via email of their application’s acceptance or decline.

Selection Criteria

Program Co-Organizers will consider the following in their selection of applicants:

Career stage
Diversity
Written responses to short answer questions

Priority will be given to applicants who are early in their independent professional careers or who are re-entering the workforce.

organize your application as outlined below:

I. Applicant's Career Stage: In 50 words or less, please state your career stage relative to your terminal degree (for example: 2 years in current position, after a 3 year postdoc, which is 5 years since my PhD degree; or 2 years in current position after a 3 year residency in internal medicine and 3 years of oncology subspecialty training which is 8 years since my MD degree; or 5 years in my current position after completion of my PharmD, MBA, etc.)

II. Applicant's Statement of Benefit: In 50 words or less, please state why you would benefit from attending this event.

III. Proof of Student / Fellow Status: Proof of student/fellow status or years out from such status can be provided through a letter or transcript from the institution at which the applicant completed this work.

WIN Leadership Institute Travel Awards

Applications were due by 5 p.m. PST on April 11, 2023 and are now closed

To support young investigators and clinicians interested in attending the Women in Cancer Immunotherapy Network (WIN) Leadership Institute, SITC will accept applications for travel awards, which will supplement costs up to $750 for those honored to attend. Five travel awardees will be selected.

Three of the five travel awards will be reserved for those who self-identify as individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in the Biomedical Sciences according to the NIH definition.

The information collected in response to the self-identifying process will only be viewed by SITC staff and WIN program organizers in consideration of WIN Leadership Institute travel awards.

Applicants will be asked to provide an additional Statement of Benefit to state how receiving a travel award to attend the 2023 SITC WIN Leadership Institute in-person in Chicago, IL from September 28-29, 2023 will help in reaching their career objectives.

Selection: Selection is made by the SITC WIN Leadership Institute Program Co-Organizers. Applicants will be notified via email of their application’s acceptance or decline.

Application process: Applicants will submit an application via SITC’s website through their application for the WIN Leadership Institute. Applications were due April 11, 2023, at 5 p.m. PST.

SITC WIN Leadership Institute Organizers

Lisa H. Butterfield, PhD
Merck

Olivera J. Finn, PhD
University of Pittsburgh

Kristen Hege, MD
Bristol Myers Squibb

Padmanee Sharma, MD, PhD
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Cornelia L. Trimble, MD
Johns Hopkins University

SITC WIN Faculty

Lisa H. Butterfield, PhD
Merck

Olivera Finn, PhD
University of Pittsburgh

Melinda Griffith, JD
Chan Zuckerberg BioHub

Kristen Hege, MD
Bristol Myers Squibb

Noor Jailkahni, PhD
Matrisome Bio

Sandra Masur, PhD, FASCB
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Funmi Olopade, MD
University of Chicago

Kimberly Shafer-Weaver, PhD, MBA
Merck

Padmanee Sharma, MD, PhD
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Elizabeth Travis, PhD, FASTRO
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Cornelia Trimble, MD
Johns Hopkins University

Jennifer Wargo, MD, MMSc
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Catherine Wu, MD
Dana Farber Cancer Institute

Alethia Young, BA
Graphite Bio

COVID-19 Measures

At SITC programs, our goal is to have a safe and meaningful in-person experience. SITC will refer to the CDC COVID-19 Community Levels to guide health precautions for in-person meetings. In addition, SITC strongly recommends that in-person meeting attendees take the following precautions:

Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccinations
Take a rapid COVID test prior to attending a meeting and do not attend in person if you test positive
Do not attend the meeting if you have symptoms that could be consistent with a “cold” or any other respiratory infection and leave the meeting if you develop such symptoms
Wear a mask in crowded indoor settings
Follow all health and safety protocols as required by SITC and local and state health departments.
Review current CDC and applicable local guidance for protecting yourself from COVID-19

Attendees will have access to the meeting content online if they are unable to attend in person due to illness or a positive COVID test. For hybrid programs, attendees can change from in-person to online-only registration by contacting events@sitcancer.org.

View Past Programs

2022 WIN LI 2021 WIN LI 2019 WIN LI

Sept. 28–29, 2023 in Chicago or
Aug. 9–10, 2023 Virtual

SITC’s 2023 Women in Cancer Immunotherapy Network (WIN) Leadership Institute is supported, in part, by a grant from Bristol Myers Squibb. Additional support has also been made through a challenge grant made by an anonymous donor (As of May 10, 2023).