For a Sixth Form Independent Study Project, Taylor Schreiber ’98 shadowed a radiologist at Concord Hospital. The experience had him hooked on science.

“I started doing research at SPS,” says Schreiber, who went on to earn an M.D. and Ph.D. in cancer biology and immunology at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, “then I did research exclusively in Boston. It confirmed that I wanted not only to be a doctor, but a scientist.” 

Schreiber is now the chief scientific officer for Shattuck Labs, Inc., a biotech research facility he co-founded with Josiah Hornblower ’94, who serves as company CFO. The lab, named for SPS founder George Cheyne Shattuck, Jr., concentrates on the advancement of immunotherapy in cancer treatment. The alumni partners hope to spark for a rising Sixth Former a trajectory similar to the one Schreiber followed by offering an internship opportunity at their lab in Research Triangle Park, N.C. The program will be accessible through the SPS Engineering Honors Program.

“Science is one of those fields through which you can learn the pathways and fundamentals of knowledge, but becoming a good scientist requires good mentorship,” says Schreiber. “The reason I became a good scientist is because I was lucky to have good mentors.”

Scott Spurzem ’19 spent the Spring Term working side-by-side with molec-ular biology teacher Sarah Boylan to learn about polymerase chain reaction (PCR), gel electrophoresis, and cancer culture to prepare for his work with Schreiber’s team this summer. The molecular bio lab inside the Lindsay Center for Mathematics and Science is one of many resources available to students wishing to understand the tools and techniques used in professional labs. 

“PCR is arguably the most powerful laboratory technique ever invented, enabling scientists to make a billion copies of a specific piece of DNA in just a few hours,” says Boylan. “The School’s laboratory is outfitted with an incubator, culture hood, microscope, and more that enables students to carry out cancer cell culture, which will be very beneficial to Scott’s work at Shattuck Labs.”