This page is no longer being updated and remains online for informational and historical purposes only. The information is accurate as of the last page update.
For questions about page contents, contact the Communications Division.
When her father was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease at the beginning of her first year at Lafayette, Charis Gehret '01 became interested in neurodegenerative disease research. A few months after graduating with a degree in psychology, she moved to Boston to work at Massachusetts General Hospital in the Day Neuromuscular Lab, where she is conducting research on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
“We have a transgenic animal model that expresses a phenotype identical to what is found in human ALS patients,” she explains. “With this model, we test how different drugs, genetic alterations, and stem cell studies affect the disease. Hopefully, we will be successful in one of these avenues.”
Gehret believes that her greatest accomplishment has taken place outside the laboratory: this past March, she completed the Washington D.C. marathon in three hours, 50 minutes. Gehret says that running the race was something she always promised herself that she would take on soon after graduating from college. She is studying to become certified as a personal trainer this summer. In addition, Gehret takes dance classes and additional undergraduate courses in Boston.
At Lafayette, she choreographed four Marquis Players productions — Bye Bye Birdie, Guys and Dolls, Pippin, and Chess — worked as a peer counselor, and was a member of the dance team. She conducted alumni externships over January interim sessions with HeadStart and a drug rehabilitation center in Philadelphia. She also spent an interim session studying abroad in the Bahamas.
“The best part about Lafayette was being in a small school setting where opportunities to be involved were every where. As a Lafayette alumna, I feel that I have been very prepared for the post-college world,” says Gehret. “I got a well-rounded education that can potentially lead me into many different fields.”
Charis Gehret ’01