Elon faculty Hwayeon Ryu and Andrea Perreault have joined the three-year Computational Biology Peer Mentor Network, a national initiative connecting faculty from primarily undergraduate institutions to strengthen interdisciplinary teaching, research, mentorship and professional development in computational biology.
Associate Professor of Mathematics Hwayeon Ryu and Assistant Professor of Biology Andrea Perreault recently participated in the three-year NSF-funded Computational Biology Peer Mentor Network (CompBioPMN), connecting faculty from primarily undergraduate institutions who teach and conduct research at the intersection of biology, mathematics and computing.
The 2026–2029 CompBioPMN brings together more than 20 faculty members from primarily undergraduate institutions across the United States. The program seeks to strengthen participants’ connections to the computational biology community, reduce the professional isolation that faculty can experience at smaller institutions, and provide strategies and resources to support career advancement.
Ryu and Perreault participated in the network’s first in-person workshop Aug. 3–4 at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. The workshop introduced participants to the network, provided opportunities to build relationships with peers, and highlighted resources for teaching and undergraduate research.
A central component of CompBioPMN is the development of sustained peer-mentoring relationships. During the 2026–27 and 2027–28 academic years, participants will meet regularly in small “Alliance” groups of approximately four to six faculty members. These groups are designed to provide ongoing mentorship, accountability and community while helping participants establish and make progress toward individual professional goals.
The program also provides opportunities for participants to exchange educational resources and approaches for teaching and mentoring undergraduate research at the intersection of biology, computer science and mathematics.
Participation in CompBioPMN complements Elon’s commitment to interdisciplinary teaching, scholarship and undergraduate research. Through the network, Ryu and Perreault will have opportunities to develop new collaborations with faculty at other undergraduate-focused institutions, exchange ideas for integrating computational approaches into computational biology education and research, and bring new resources and perspectives back to the Elon community.
The CompBioPMN Program is organized by Anna Ritz, Margaret Oakley Dayhoff associate professor of bioinformatics at Reed College, and is supported by the National Science Foundation through the Division of Biological Infrastructure (Award #2527521 to Ritz).