Manager Technician

KIMBERLY S. KERR

** ****** **. **** * – Somerville, MA 02143

978-***-**** ********.*****.****@*****.***

PROFILE

My passion for science is evidenced by my numerous years of research experience in Neuroscience and Biology.

My strengths are my organizational and multitasking abilities as demonstrated by my current job. I am a self-

motivated individual with a strong work ethic. I have vast experience as a leader and team player demonstrated

by lab manager experience and several research collaborations and I have a solid background in a variety of

genetic, molecular, and biochemical techniques. I am looking for an opportunity that will utilize my strengths but

also allow me to grow.

EDUCATION

Ph.D., Biomedical Sciences, UMASS Medical School-Worcester, MA; 2012

Certificate in College Teaching, Colleges of Worcester Consortium-Worcester, MA; 2012

§ Online teaching portfolio: https://sites.google.com/site/kkerrportfolio/

Double Major: B.S., Neuroscience, B.A., Biology, Brandeis University-Waltham, MA; 1998

CONTINUING GRADUATE EDUCATION

M.S., Program and Project Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA (In Progress)

Courses Completed:

§ Foundations in Project Management

§ Professional Communications

§ Project Scheduling and Control

§ Negotiation and Conflict Resolution (Spring 2015)

RESEARCH BACKGROUND

Lab Manager II, Lab of M. Rosbash, Ph.D., Brandeis University/HHMI-Waltham, MA; 2012-present

§ Oversee personnel and daily laboratory operations, monitor lab expenses and maintain budget

§ Operate and manage the next generation sequencing facility, acting liaison for internal and external

customers, and maintains all financial aspects of the facility

§ Assist in the operation of the departmental fly food making kitchen: implemented changes to improve

communication and efficiency of the fly kitchen, such as hired a student fly kitchen manager, established

system for both managers and students

§ Perform administrative tasks for principal investigator such as proofreading and compiling letters, reviewing

and writing grants and manuscripts

§ Assistant for the National Academy of Sciences section 22 chair of cellular and developmental biology:

proofread and compile correspondences and handle all administrative tasks for annual and special elections

§ Wrote grants for funding of the 2013 Chronobiology Gordon Research Conference

§ Current research projects: (1) The role of neurodegeneration in circadian rhythms and aging, (2) The

relationship between neuronal activity and circadian rhythms

Doctoral Research, Lab of M. Freeman, Ph.D., UMASS Medical School/HHMI-Worcester, MA; 2006-2012

§ Glial control of synapse assembly through Wingless (Wg) at the Drosophila neuromuscular junction (NMJ)

Research Technician, Lab of M. Freeman, Ph.D., UMASS Medical School-Worcester, MA; 2005-2006

s

§ Identification of Drosophila genes involved in the Wallerian Degeneration Slow (Wld ) pathway

Researcher, Lab of N. Perrimon, Ph.D., Harvard Medical School/HHMI-Boston, MA; 1998-2005

Research Technician III; 2003-2005

§ Construction of a network of kinases and phosphatases using Drosophila DNA microarrays and RNA

interference (RNAi)

§ Identification of new components and novel regulators in the Drosophila insulin signaling pathway

Research Technician II; 2002-2003

§ Generation of the Drosophila genome-wide double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) set

§ Successfully developed programs for high throughput robot automation; performed in vitro-transcription

reactions, purification techniques, dsRNA quantification, and quality control; analyzed and maintained data

Research Technician I; 1998-2001

§ Development of Drosophila DNA microarrays

Undergraduate Research, Lab of L.C. Griffith, M.D., Ph.D., Brandeis University-Waltham, MA; 1997-1998

§ Senior Thesis: “Developing a long-term memory assay in Drosophila using courtship conditioning”

Undergraduate Research, Lab of J.C. Hall, Ph.D., Brandeis University-Waltham, MA; 1996

§ Characterization of fruitless mutation using courtship behavior in Drosophila

PROFICIENCIES

Management

§ Overseeing laboratory operations, supervising and training new personnel, ensuring personnel and protocols

comply with environmental health and radiation safety regulations (including IACUC and MTAs), and

overseeing operation of essential equipment

Administrative

§ Monitoring expenditures; reconciling budgets for multiple grants and funding sources; billing, purchasing lab

supplies and equipment, including writing justifications for large equipment purchases; processing travel and

other reimbursements; acting as a liaison between lab and departmental offices; composing, proofreading,

researching, and compiling letters, special projects and grants; and maintaining the lab website

Teaching

§ Mentoring Masters student performing research; converting Powerpoint lectures to text accessible word files

for visually disabled students; developed lectures and demonstrations for biochemistry lab

Computer

§ Microsoft Office, Photoshop, Prism, Endnote, Filemaker, Volocity, Slidebook, Image J, and Ape. Familiar

with Microsoft Project

Bioinformatics

§ BLAST analysis, primer design and sequences comparisons

Molecular Biology

§ Next generation sequencing (Illumina HiSeq 2000), PCR, double stranded RNA synthesis, gel

electrophoresis, DNA and RNA isolation and purification, molecular cloning of DNA fragments, in vitro

transcription, restriction digests, microarrays and competent cell preparation and some experience with qPCR

Biochemistry

§ Analysis and design of western blots and some experience with immunoprecipitations and ChIP

Cell Culture

§ Maintaining Drosophila adherent cell lines, neuronal primary cultures, transfections, performing RNAi

experiments, cell culture immunocytochemistry, and familiarity with mammalian cell culture

Model Organism

§ Micro-dissections and immunocytochemistry of Drosophila tissues, Drosophila genetics including

screening genetic suppressors, mapping EMS mutations with deficiencies and maintaining stocks

Microscopy

Optic, fluorescence, spinning disk and confocal microscopy, quantification analysis and

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immunocytochemistry

PUBLICATIONS & PRESENTATIONS

Publications

§ K.S. Kerr, S.R. Alnemy, S.N. Radyuk, V. Klichko, and M. Rosbash. Circadian Rhythms of Drosophila

Peroxiredoxins: Still to be Determined? (2014) (In Revision)

K.S. Kerr, Y. Fuentes-Medel, C. Brewer, R. Barria, J. Ashley, K.C. Abruzzi, A. Sheehan, O.E. Tasdemir-

§

Yilmez, M.R. Freeman, and V. Budnik. Glial Wingless/Wnt regulates glutamate receptor clustering and

synaptic physiology at the Drosophila neuromuscular junction. Journal of Neuroscience 34(8) (2014), pp.

2910-2920

L. Kockel, K.S. Kerr, M. Melnick, K. Brückner, M. Hebrok, and N. Perrimon. Dynamic switch of negative

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feedback regulation in Drosophila Akt-Tor signaling. PLoS Genetics. 6(6) (2010)

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M.A. Avery, A.E. Sheehan, K.S. Kerr, J. Wang, and M.R. Freeman. Wld requires Nmnat1 enzymatic activity

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and N16-VCP interactions to suppress Wallerian degeneration. Journal of Cell Biology 184 (2009), pp. 501-

513.

M. Boutros, A.A. Kiger, S. Armknecht, K. Kerr, M. Hild, B. Koch, S.A. Haas, H.F. Consortium, R. Paro, and N.

§

Perrimon. Genome-wide RNAi analysis of growth and viability in Drosophila cells. Science 303 (2004), pp.

832-835.

Oral Presentations

§ K.S. Kerr, Y. Fuentes-Medel, M.R. Freeman, and V. Budnik. (2011) Glial control of synapse assembly, Cold

Spring Harbor Meeting on Neurobiology of Drosophila, Cold Spring Harbor, NY.

nd

K.S. Kerr, Y. Fuentes-Medel, M.R. Freeman, and V. Budnik. (2011) Glial control of synapse assembly, 52

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Annual Drosophila Research Conference, San Diego, CA.

Poster Presentations

§ K.S. Kerr, S.R. Alnemy, S.N. Radyuk, V. Klichko, and M. Rosbash. (2014) Circadian Rhythms of Drosophila

Peroxiredoxins: Still to be Determined? Society for Research on Biological Rhythms Meeting, Bozeman, MT.

K.S. Kerr, Y. Fuentes-Medel, M.R. Freeman, and V. Budnik. (2009) Glial control of synapse assembly,

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North/East Under/graduate Research Organization for Neuroscience, Boston, MA.

K.S. Kerr, Y. Fuentes-Medel, M.R. Freeman, and V. Budnik. (2009) Glial control of synapse assembly,

§

North/East Under/graduate Research Organization for Neuroscience, Quinnipiac University, CT.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Association of Women in Science (AWIS); 2010-present

Women Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology (WEST); 2010-present

National Science Teachers Association (NSTA); 2011-present

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