Snapshots

NIH Record’s Garnett Retires

BY DANA TALESNIK, THE NIH RECORD

Carla Garnett will retire in July after 41 years of federal service, including more than 30 years with the NIH Record (a sister publication to the NIH Catalyst), where she has served as a writer, associate editor, and for the past three years, editor. Garnett also served as editorial operations branch chief in NIH’s Office of Communications and Public Liaison (OCPL).

“Carla’s contributions to the success of our office are, quite frankly, immeasurable,” said Scott Prince, OCPL deputy director for public information. “She is a powerhouse writer, a thorough and thoughtful editor and, simply put, someone you can always count on no matter the assignment.

“But that’s only part of the story. There’s a reason she is so admired and respected by her staff, peers, and leadership alike. And it’s much more than her obvious skills and talents. It’s her professionalism, kindness, and warmth that make her such a pleasure to work with.”

Garnett came to NIH as a high school graduate in the National Junior Fellowship Program. NIH’s mission and the work to communicate about it proved to be irresistible. She worked intermittently through college breaks and grad school and ended up spending her career doing work she loved.

HHS-wide Brain Trust Tackles Rare Diseases, Gene Therapies

In June, NIH leaders, including NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli, DDIR Nina Schor, and NCATS and NCI directors, met with colleagues from the Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and other U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agencies to discuss how best to join forces in tackling each agency’s priorities regarding rare diseases, including gene therapies and other innovations.

The brain trust identified new avenues in which the agencies could collectively work together to explore and speed up the research to marketplace continuum.

Collins Joins Past Directors on Halls of Building 1

The official portrait of Francis Collins, the 16th and longest serving NIH director, was unveiled on June 18. The portrait features Collins with “Rosalind,” a guitar gifted to him by NHGRI colleagues at a farewell celebration in 2008 when he stepped down as NHGRI director. Rosalind was custom-made for Collins by a company near his hometown of Staunton, Virginia, and features a mother of pearl inlay of a double helix on the fretboard.

The portrait was created by artist and photographer Visko Hatfield, who is the son of former Senator Mark Hatfield (R-OR) after whom the Clinical Research Center is named. It will hang with the other NIH director portraits in Building 1 on the Bethesda campus.

Catch Collins’ latest performance with Rosalind at 58 minutes into the VideoCast recording of the unveiling ceremony.