2025 Meeting Program
Meeting Schedule
September 30, 2025
| Time | Location | Speaker(s) | Title | Description | 9:00am-3:30pm | Pegasus Park, 104A | Karolien Denef Colorado State University | Powering Up Core Management: A Hands-On Workshop with Microsoft Power Tools | Join us for an interactive full-day workshop designed specifically for Core directors seeking smarter, more efficient ways to manage operations, visualize data, and make data-driven decisions. Through a combination of short presentations and guided hands-on sessions, participants will explore how Microsoft Power Tools (Power BI, Power Automate, and Power Apps) can transform Core facility workflows. Bring your laptop! |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jake Neuman Colorado State University | ||||
| Aaron Larson, Seattle Children's Research Institute | ||||
| Danny Gonzalez, Universisty of Texas at Dallas | ||||
| 12:00pm-4:00pm | Pegasus Park, 104C | Agilent iLab User Group Meeting | Unlocking iLab's Potential: A User-Focused Session | Connect with fellow iLab users and discover the latest updates in iLab development. Learn about the external quoting features and how to activate and apply survey tools within the platform. Our experts will be on hand to share valuable insights and provide personalized support. We're excited to welcome you and explore how iLab can further empower your research efforts. |
| 3:30pm-4:30pm | Pegasus Lobby | Tours of Pegasus Park | ||
| 4:30pm | Pegasus Park 104 | Platinum Sponsor Presentation | Qiagen | |
| 5:00pm | Opening Keynote | Eliah Overbey, University of Austin | Inspiration4: Building the First Comprehensive Omics Atlas of Civilian Spaceflight | The Inspiration4 mission marked the first all-civilian spaceflight, accompanied by the most comprehensive collection of astronaut omics data to date. This talk will highlight the design and execution of biomolecular sample collection in a commercial spaceflight setting, as well as the development of a publicly available resource for the broader research community. By integrating genomics, transcriptomics, and other molecular readouts, Inspiration4 sets a precedent for how civilian missions can contribute to open science and biomedical discovery. Attendees will see how the Inspiration4 dataset establishes a new type of biomolecular resource that can be integrated into existing facility workflows and leveraged for collaborative discovery. |
| 6:00pm | Pegasus North Lobby and | Opening Social and Vendor Reception | Light appetizers and drinks served in Pegasus Park Lobby and Vendor Exhibit Hall for networking and socializing |
October 1, 2025
| Time | Location | Speaker(s) | Title | Description | 8:00am | Breakfast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00am | Technology Showcase and Flash Talks | Gold sponsor: Illumina | Flash talks from various SC3 members | ||
| 10:30am | Nicky Nikolakis, Michael Heinz, Jessica Podnar | Careers in Cores - From Bench to Biotech Sales: How Core Lab Life Paved the Way | Ever wonder how one becomes the director of a core facility? Join myself and other panel members to discuss our journeys on how we landed our roles in core facilities or transitioned to industry. | ||
| 12:00pm | Lunch | ||||
| 1:00pm-2:15pm | Travis Moore, Tim Gilheart, David Haviland | Rigor & Reproducibility in Cores | A brief overview of the issues of Rigor & Reproducibility over history, across disciplines, the disturbing increase in the number of papers being retracted, and the problems publishers face. | ||
| 2:45pm-4:30pm | Karolien Denef, Michelle Itano | Interactive Mini-Workshop | Coaching Toolkit: Defining coaching as a skill, seeing examples, and practicing active listening and coaching with peers. | ||
| 5:00pm | Haoping Hao, Michael Heinz | Panel Discussion: Alternative Funding for Core Instrumentation | An overview of considerations that went into the decision to use reagent rental to acquire Element Biosciences AVITI sequencer and how the agreement worked two years into the three year agreement term. The take away is that a well thought out reagent rental agreement can be an effective option for acquiring capital equipment for core research facilities. | ||
| 6:00pm-8:00pm | Community Brewery and Kitchen | Social Reception: appetizers and drinks |
October 2, 2025
| Time | Location | Speaker(s) | Title | Description | 8:00am | Breakfast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00am | Tours of Pegasus Park | ||||
| 10:15am | Closing Keynote | Gabby Everett | Pegasus Park is a 26-acre, future-focused campus dedicated to innovative companies and organizations across science, technology, healthcare, and social impact. Talent from the region’s best universities, biotech organizations, nonprofits, startups, investment groups, accelerators and incubators are hard at work building what’s next. In this closing session, you'll see, first hand, what makes Pegasus Park a jewel in the North Texas biotech ecosystem. | ||
| 11:15am | Rebecca Fitch, Ashlyn Montgomery | Interactive Plenary: Using Event-based Outreach to Market your Core | As research core facilities continue to evolve as hubs of innovation and collaboration, proactive outreach is key to increasing visibility, forging partnerships, and securing support. This session will highlight how institutions are using event-based outreach to connect with diverse audiences—from internal researchers to external stakeholders. |