Dr. Athena Ganchorre is the Director of the Office of Student Development and a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of Arizona, College of Medicine, Tucson. Dr. Ganchorre brings over 25 years of experience supporting students to reach their academic potential towards graduate and professional degrees in the biomedical sciences. She is a former Fulbright Scholar and NASA Fellow and has worked across diverse academic settings including, University of California, Santa Cruz, the American Museum of Natural History in New York City and Columbia University. Her doctoral training was in molecular and cellular biology and the learning sciences. She has presented her research on medical student learning outcomes, specifically on identifying students at-risk for not passing Ste1. She’s published and has presented at premier national conferences such as the American Association of Educational Research and the National Association of Research in Science Teaching. She has a record of securing extramural funding for educational research and academic support programs in the biomedical sciences. She has an established record of improving students’ performances on standardized exams, including the MCAT, USMLE Ste1, Ste2, Ste3.