2026 Forbeck Foundation Spring Newsletter

SPRING 2026 • XLII EDITION

The flip side of a thoughtful critique is learning how to receive it well, a skill that is rarely acknowledged yet essential to sustaining a healthy scientific discourse. Doing so requires intentional preparation to interpret feedback with nuance, separating substance from tone. Funding agencies and institutional leadership can help shape a culture of kindness in scientific criticism by creating Forums that define and cultivate the skills required to give and interpret feedback. They can support groups that normalize candid discussion and make these practices part of everyday scientific life. Journals and funding agencies play an important role in setting expectations for how feedback should be exchanged, just as they do for other core aspects of scientific inquiry. They can further advance this effort by encouraging and disseminating research on best practices related to peer review. Together, these efforts signal that humane, rigorous critique is not an optional courtesy but a shared professional standard. Scientists and clinicians are, above all, human – driven and curious yet vulnerable to doubts and disillusionment that affect all of us. Building a community like the one fostered within the Forbeck Foundation, one that recognizes this humanity and supports one another, is essential to sustaining the scientific enterprise. By fostering an environment grounded in respect and encouragement, we not only retain talent but also empower the next generation to pursue bold ideas with confidence and purpose.

SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD

James Amatruda, MD, PhD Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

W. Kimryn Rathmell, MD, PhD, MMHC Ohio State University

CHAIR

John T Kemshead, MD, FRCPath BioMagnetic Solutions

Stephen Chanock, MD National Cancer Institute Clark Chen, MD, PhD Brown University Lucy A Godley, MD, PhD Northwestern University

Edward Stites, MD, PhD Yale University

VICE CHAIR

Alejandro Sweet-Cordero, MD University of California, San Francisco

Kristina Cole, MD, PhD Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Kris C Wood, PhD Duke University

Jan Karlseder, PhD The Salk Institute

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