Rita Strack’s love of science and math began at a young age. But it was not until her freshman year of high school, when a fruit fly genetics project in biology class sparked her curiosity, that she became truly captivated by science. Studying dominant and recessive traits in fruit flies and seeing molecular biology come to life through those experiments deepened her fascination. Growing up in Indianapolis, Strack was familiar with Rose’s reputation as a STEM-focused institution and the school became the perfect choice for college.
“I wanted a quantitative education where I could study math while also training to be a biologist and Rose gave me all those things,” said Strack. She majored in biology and biochemistry while minoring in literature. After graduating in 2005, Strack earned a PhD in biochemistry and molecular biology from the University of Chicago before completing a postdoctoral fellowship at Cornell University. Strack went on to be the editor of Nature Methods journal for nearly 11 years. Today, she serves as chief editor of Nature Biomedical Engineering, where she puts her Rose degree to work on a daily basis.
The journal features both magazine-style editorial content and peer-reviewed research articles. Scientists submit manuscripts describing new discoveries or technologies, and Strack’s editorial team determines which papers advance to peer review and, ultimately, publication. As chief editor, Strack leads a team of six editors and is responsible for the scientific vision of the journal, which reports on biomedical engineering technologies with the goal of advancing technologies that will improve human health.
One of Strack’s responsibilities is writing the editorial for the magazine. Recently, she wrote a piece championing science that was inspired by the Artemis II mission earlier this year.
“So many eyes were on space and science and engineering, and I wanted to capitalize on the moment and show how there are a lot of people behind the scenes doing the science and engineering legwork to make these moon shots possible,” said Strack. “I wrote about how we need consistent education, funding, institution building and support for future moonshots in rocket science and in medicine.”
The undergraduate education Strack received at Rose-Hulman continues to impact her career in many ways, including providing the strong scientific and mathematical foundation that prepared her for graduate school.
“If you do not have the skills in biochemistry or math, you will struggle. Rose gave me such a strong foundation that graduate school felt manageable,” she said. “I learned bench research, molecular cloning and how to work with yeast and bacteria. Rose set all that up for me.”
Additionally, Strack praises the social sciences at Rose, specifically the literature department, which continues to influence her career as a science writer and editor.
“The way the professors critiqued my essays and made me think about creating compelling stories and teaching me technical communication … I use all those skills every day,” said Strack.
Strack’s path into academia and as a journal editor may be different from many traditional graduates, yet she is thrilled where the road took her and encourages science students to forge their own paths the way she did.
“Rose teaches you to be open to pursue new and different things and think outside the box. Back in 2005, I wouldn’t have envisioned this career I have, but I’m so happy where I am now.”