MDI Biological Laboratory
From the President's Desk

Navigating Change with Clarity and Confidence

  • February 12, 2026
An institutional retreat at an inflection point for MDI Bio Lab 

The MDI Biological Laboratory entered the New Year with a great deal of energy. While the world around us grows more challenging from week to week—and the problems we face are not becoming smaller—we are taking the initiative to actively reshape the Lab’s future development.

This is not an easy task. Many longstanding guideposts to federal support for biomedical research have shifted, and the funding landscape looks considerably altered from just a year ago. Charting a course for MDI Bio Lab through these difficult times requires a reassessment of our goals, a careful analysis of our strengths and constraints, and a clear definition of the tasks ahead.

These questions were at the center of a Leadership Retreat held January 28–29 in Maren Auditorium, bringing together faculty, senior leadership, core directors and the executive team to review progress and refine priorities within the strategic plan that has been guiding us since 2023.

Developed in concert with our Board of Trustees, the long-term strategy has been highly successful in many regards. Among them:

  • Establishment of a robust, well run graduate program that’s brought more than two dozen student researchers into the campus’ year round population.
  • Completed renovation and construction of 10,500 square feet of modernized housing space for graduate students and visiting scientists.
  • Establishment of MDI Bioscience, the Laboratory’s translational initiative, and the associated renovation of Halsey Laboratory, with renovation of the Neal Laboratory now underway.
  • Hired two new faculty and established the George Wojtech Chair in Neurobiology, the Lab’s first endowed faculty position
  • Our trustees and key donors have raised $35 million in gifts and grants to support these strategic investments thus far

This is remarkable progress. Yet in light of recent and continuing changes in federal research funding and policies, and new developments within MDI Bio Lab, the plan also requires a critical reassessment.

Across both days of the retreat, there was strong consensus that MDI Bio Lab is at an inflection point. The strategic plan is more than halfway implemented, scientific momentum is strong, but resources are constrained. We agreed on the need for focus, sequencing, and coordination, rather than launching too many new initiatives simultaneously.

Our people and culture will remain at the heart of our planning. Retaining current faculty and recruiting three additional outstanding faculty members emerged as the single highest institutional priority. Recruitment will be strategic, reinforcing the Laboratory’s distinctive scientific strengths rather than diluting them.

Our research focus will continue to coalesce around core thematic areas: plasticity and regeneration, aging, RNA biology, environmental health, and systems- and data-driven biology.

We also agreed that MDI Bio Lab should establish a more sustainable, dedicated funding source for its graduate student program and develop a formal, visible postdoctoral training program as a core institutional function. Strong training programs are essential to improving research efficiency and quality, and to ensuring that trainees leave MDI Bio Lab with a shared set of core skills that strengthen both individual laboratories and the institution as a whole.

Visibility is critical for recruitment, funding, and reputation. Symposia and courses should be selective and aligned with institutional research priorities. Communication is a trainable skill, and faculty engagement is essential to success in this area. Federal funding—including federal institution-building initiatives such as the National lnstitutes of Health’s COBRE and INBRE programs—remains foundational and must be protected.

At the same time, growth in philanthropic support and establishing a more substantial endowment will be essential for faculty retention, training continuity and long-term institutional resilience. While our current fundraising efforts have been very successful, we must invest in additional resources to sustain this success at current levels.

There was strong consensus that sustained excellence at MDI Bio Lab depends on aligning scientific focus, people, infrastructure, and narrative—while making deliberate choices about where to invest—and where to pause.

Above all, we reaffirmed that MDI Bio Lab’s core identity is that of a basic research institution. Translational and applied work should extend and amplify this strength, not shift us away from our foundational mission.

The retreat made one point very clear: we must take our future into our own hands. External contingencies cannot be an excuse for inaction. We must prioritize—which sometimes means deciding what we will not do—and we must communicate clearly at all levels.

To that end, several focused task forces have been established, each with defined scopes, timelines, and accountability. Priority areas include recruitment and retention, research training and infrastructure (scientific, physical and human), communication and fundraising. Progress will be reported regularly to faculty, staff, leadership, and the Board.

As I wrote in my letters at the end of 2025, setting a clear course for the MDI Biological Laboratory amid ongoing uncertainty is essential. I am optimistic that the open, focused discussions at the retreat—followed by decisive action and the continued support of our donor community—will provide an essential roadmap for the years ahead.

Stay safe and warm,

Hermann Haller