Justine graduated from Buffalo State in 2017 with an M.A. in Biology.  Since graduating, Justine has continued on to earn her PhD and is a  Postdoctoral Researcher at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center.  Justine has earned many awards in her career including:

2025 Trainee Award, Society of Basic Urological Research Annual Meeting
2025 Early Career Scientist Award, Kickoff Meeting, Cancer Immunoprevention Network (CIP-Net), NCI/NIH
2024 Best Poster Presentation Award, 5th Annual Roswell Park Post-Doctoral Symposium, Roswell Park
Comprehensive Cancer Center
2024 Best Short Oral Presentation Award, 5th Annual Roswell Park Post-Doctoral Symposium, Roswell Park
Comprehensive Cancer Center
2024 TACS Administrator's Choice Award for Best Lecturer, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
2023 Award for outstanding presentation, Great Lakes Nuclear Receptor Annual Meeting
2022 Graduate Professional Development Funds, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
2022 Translational Cancer Research for Basic Scientists Workshop, AACR

Tell us a little bit about you - we'd love to know about your job, family, experiences, or anything else you would like to share with the Buffalo State community.

After Buffalo State, I earned my PhD in Cancer Genomics and Computational Oncology at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center with Dr. Dominic Smiraglia. I am currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Departments of Urology and Bioinformatics at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo with Dr. David Goodrich, where my research focuses on understanding how prostate cancer cells can change their identity from prostate cells into neuronal-like cells, allowing them to become more aggressive and resistant to therapy. As a hybrid scientist, my work combines molecular and computational biology to study how chromatin and epigenetic regulation drive these cellular transitions using multi-omics approaches, with the goal of identifying new biomarkers and treatment strategies for patients with advanced disease. Outside of the lab, I enjoy spending time with my husband, daughter, and our many pets!

Tell us about how your experience at Buffalo State influenced your career, your trajectory, and your life.

My time at Buffalo State had a profound influence on both my career path and my development as a scientist. My thesis mentor, Dr. Derek Beahm, played a pivotal role in my training by teaching me foundational molecular biology techniques and, more importantly, how to think like a scientist- understanding the purpose behind every step of an experiment and how to efficiently troubleshoot when things did not work. He constantly encouraged curiosity and creative thinking, and I remain incredibly grateful for his mentorship, friendship, and the example he set balancing science and family.

Several courses were especially impactful and helped build the foundation that prepared me for my PhD and postdoctoral research. One of the most influential was Foundations of Graduate Studies in Biology, led by Drs. Warren and Pennuto when I took it. This course emphasized how to formulate strong scientific hypotheses, develop specific aims, and critically evaluate the scientific literature- skills that remain essential to my work today and that I continue to use when writing grants, designing experiments, and communicating my research in presentations and journals.

Another course that had a lasting impact on me was Developmental Biology, taught by Dr. Derek Beahm, who later became my thesis mentor. It remains one of my favorite classes I have ever taken. The course focused on the fundamental concepts of developmental biology and epigenetics, which ultimately shaped my scientific interests in cancer lineage plasticity. Many of the principles we discussed have direct parallels in cancer biology. I am deeply grateful for the engaging environment that Dr. Beahm created in that class.

Teaching was also an incredibly important part of my training at Buffalo State. I served as a teaching assistant for many semesters with Dr. Randal Snyder (Organismal Diversity and Human Anatomy and Physiology). Through this experience, I learned how to become a more effective educator and mentor, and I greatly appreciated the independence Dr. Snyder gave me while teaching laboratory sections. That experience solidified a lasting interest in teaching, and I have continued teaching courses and mentoring graduate students every year since my time at Buffalo State.

Finally, I am very grateful for the mentorship of Dr. Doug Easton, whom I completed an independent study project with. Dr. Easton, a previous cancer researcher at Roswell Park, spent a great deal of time discussing cancer biology with me and sharing his experience in the field. Those conversations were incredibly meaningful and helped solidify my decision to pursue a PhD focused on cancer research.

I remain incredibly grateful for the mentorship, encouragement, opportunities, and training I received at Buffalo State (especially from Drs. Beahm and Skerrett). The faculty and experiences there not only shaped my scientific career, but also gave me the confidence, foundation, and curiosity that continue to strengthen my work today.

What piece of advice would you give to a pre-health student at Buffalo State?

My advice would be to focus on building strong foundations early in your training and truly take the time to understand the fundamentals. Those core skills will allow you to continue building your expertise later and eventually develop your own ideas, which is what ultimately makes you stand out and be competitive in science and medicine. Equally important is building relationships with faculty mentors and your peers- mentorship and community can open doors and provide needed guidance and encouragement throughout your career.

One quote I’ve always loved is, “You can’t be what you can’t see”, so seek out mentors, ask questions, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Finally, nurture your curiosity by reading scientific papers, taking courses that interest you, and pursuing opportunities beyond what is required- you never know which experience might shape your future path.