Advancing Excellence in Research Symposium 2026

Advancing Excellence in Research Symposium 

Effectively Defining our Work in an Evolving Landscape 

This symposium will bring Duke University School of Medicine and the broader community together for conversations at the intersection of science and culture.  

Featuring keynote speaker Rebekah Layton, PhD, CMC, PCC, associate chair of education and training in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at UNC-Chapel Hill. Layton will present “Career development, mentoring, and wellness: Setting the stage for graduate and postdoctoral trainee success.”  

Tuesday, April 28, 2026
9:00 AM to Noon 
Trent Semans Center for Health Education, Great Hall

Sponsored by the Office for Culture, Engagement, and Impact, and the Office for Faculty. 

Register 

Rebekah L. Layton, PhD, CMC, PCC, leads curriculum modernization, trainee professional development, faculty development, and alumni engagement at the UNC Chapel Hill School of Medicine. She previously spent a decade developing and directing innovative professional development programs for 1000+ biomedical graduate students and postdoctoral trainees in the UNC Biomedical Science Training and Research Office (BioSTAR) Office. Layton is also an active education research scholar, leading the PhD Integrated Research on Education and Career Training (PhDIRECT) Lab. Layton has authored 20 peer-reviewed publications on graduate education, training, and career development and is a contributor to Inside Higher Ed’s Carpe Careers. Her research examines the impact of training environment — including experiential learning, trainee wellness, and mentor-mentee-match — on graduate student training and career outcomes. She earned her PhD/MA at the University at Albany, State University of New York, and completed postdoctoral training at UNC School of Medicine. Layton is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through the International Coach Federation (ICF), a Certified Mentor Coach (CMC), a CIMER-trained facilitator for mentor training to enhance the experience of trainees, and currently serves as the president-elect for the Graduate Career Consortium, the leading voice in graduate-level career and professional development. Layton is passionate about improving the academic training environment for graduate and postdoctoral trainees using evidence-based research and data-driven solutions — enhancing faculty development opportunities to facilitate building authentic, supportive, and effective lab and learning environments — and supporting trainee professional skill development to prepare for fulfilling and exciting careers. 

Leigh-Anne Royster, PhD, is an educator, facilitator, and administrator focused on inclusion and equity development through policy, education and intervention. She comes to Duke from Elon University, where she served in multiple roles, including the director of the Center for Equity and Inclusive Excellence and the director of health services. Her work has largely focused on developing and facilitating educational opportunities around issues of diversity, equity and inclusion; climate assessment; and violence/bias prevention. She has also overseen response and compliance systems responding to violence, harassment, and bias. She has experience developing anti-bias and anti-oppression curriculum for students, staff and faculty and has spent years in faculty roles as well. Royster has 25 years of experience working with violence response and prevention, and public health activities including time at UNC Chapel Hill’s Institute on Aging, Injury Prevention Research Center, and the North Carolina Institute of Public Health. She also has experience working in the criminal justice system and the non-profit sector. Royster holds a BA from UNC Chapel Hill, an MPA from the University of Colorado, and a PhD from UNC Greensboro.