Wright Lab associate professor David Moore was one of four faculty members to receive the 2025 Graduate Mentor Award from the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS).
The Graduate Mentor Award recognizes faculty members who are exceptional in fostering the intellectual, professional, and personal development of their students. It is the university’s principal award for superb teaching, advising, and mentoring of graduate students.
Each year, a selection committee—comprised of previous Graduate Mentor Award winners and delegates from the Graduate Student Assembly and the Graduate School—receives scores of letters from graduate students nominating outstanding mentors from across our campus.
Jackie Baeza-Rubio, who was one of several Moore group graduate students who nominated Moore for the award said, “It’s been amazing working for Dave and it’s great to see his mentorship is getting the recognition it deserves.”
Baeza-Rubio also shared an excerpt from her nomination letter, which said, “Dave has always been welcoming and patient, happy to repeat or walk me through a concept… Dave makes me feel eager to share my thoughts, is always willing to listen, and welcomes all my ideas, even if they regard my outreach and leadership activities, not just research. He makes it a priority to treat me and the rest of my colleagues as individuals with different needs. With this, Dave fosters a collaborative work environment with all the students and postdocs in our group.”
The other recipients of the award were Andrew Wang, associate professor of internal medicine (rheumatology); Moira Fradinger, associate professor of comparative literature; and Rourke O’Brien, associate professor of sociology and of public health–health policy.
Lynn Cooley, the dean of GSAS, congratulated the winners in an email on April 17, calling them “true exemplars of the mentor-student relationship that is a pillar of graduate education.”
The Graduate Mentor Award winners will be recognized at this year’s Graduate School Convocation ceremony on Sunday, May 18, at the Yale University Art Gallery.