Finale Doshi-Velez awarded Everett Mendelsohn Excellence in Mentoring Award

Finale Doshi-Velez, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), was awarded the Everett Mendelsohn Excellence in Mentoring Award by the Graduate Student Council.

Each year at the Everett Mendelsohn Excellence in Mentoring Awards, the Graduate Student Council recognizes the faculty members who have made their students’ graduate school experience academically and personally rewarding and fulfilling. During the award presentations, graduate student nominators introduced their mentors and shared examples of why they deserved this honor.

Doshi-Velez was described as a caring, supportive, and well-balanced mentor for both her PhD students and other graduate students at SEAS, where she serves as faculty advisor of the peer-to-peer support group, InTouch.

“Finale excels in so many aspects of mentorship, but one characteristic which is common to all of these aspects is her ability to perfectly balance her behavior as an advisor,” said advisee Omer Gottesman, PhD student in applied physics. “To cultivate the scientific growth of her mentees, she manages to delicately balance guiding and directing her students so that they can stay productive and minimize the frustrations of stagnating research, and at the same time give them freedom to explore their own path so that they can grow their independence as scientists.”

“The impact a great mentor can have in the life of a graduate student is indescribable,” said Michael Ortiz, interim vice president of the GSC, in his opening remarks. “The mentor is often the person who helps us remember the joy of learning, who asks tough questions about our work, and who guides and shepherds us toward development as a scholar.”

The Award is named for Everett Mendelsohn, a professor emeritus in the history of science, who was present for the ceremony.