Innovators Start Here

By every measure, Keck Graduate Institute (KGI) is in a league of its own. Since our founding in 1997, we have dedicated our mission to provide pathways for students to become leaders in healthcare and the applied life sciences. Join us in celebrating the past, present, and future of our innovation and collaboration… join us for our 25th anniversary celebration!

Listen to President Schuster talk about KGI on a recent podcast.

Events

  • 2022

  • March 9

    Building 555 Ribbon Cutting

    More than 100 people attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the new 555 Building, which included four new labs and classrooms for students to innovate and collaborate.
    Video | Photos

  • March 16

    Updates from Campus with President Schuster

    KGI alumni received an update from President Schuster about the recent Board of Trustees meeting, new programs, and what else is happening on campus. A Q&A followed.

  • May 13

    Student Meet and Greet with Commencement Speakers

    KGI’s commencement speakers, Larry Wood of Edwards Lifesciences and alum Abasi Ene-Obong of 54gene, sat down with a small group of students for a meet and greet.
    Photos

  • May 14

    Commencement

    KGI hosted two commencement ceremonies to honor graduates from the class of 2022 in the Henry E. Riggs School of Applied Life Sciences and School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
    SHPS Photos | Riggs School Photos

  • June 15

    KGI in New York

    Ten KGI alumni met with faculty and staff at Regeneron to celebrate the 25th Anniversary Celebration.
    Photos

  • July 11

    Mascot reveal: Beaker Bee

    After four focus groups met in the spring, Beaker Bee was unanimously voted to represent KGI as its first-ever mascot.
    Video

  • August 10-12

    KGI in the Bay

    Alumni, students, parents, and friends of KGI joined President Schuster, faculty, staff, and alumni in the Bay.

  • August 18

    Orientation

    Incoming students attended new student orientation to familiarize themselves with KGI and its campus in preparation for the start of the academic year.
    Photos

  • October 7

    Founder's Day Celebration

    Rap Video | Tribute Video | Photos | Speaker Series Video | Recap Video | Story

  • October 7

    Speaker Series: Dr. David Lawrence

    Former School of Community Medicine Dean
    Bio | Photos | Video

  • October 8

    White Coat Ceremony

    Video | Photos

  • November 1

    Speaker Series: Dr. Kiana Aran

    Associate Professor, KGI, and Chief Scientific Officer, Cardea Bio
    Bio | Video | Photos

  • 2023

  • January 19

    Speaker Series: Dr. Stephen Kingsmore

    President and CEO, Rady Children's Institute for Genomic Medicine
    Bio | Video | Photos

  • March 29

    Speaker Series: Dr. Steven Galson

    Former Senior Vice President, Amgen, and acting Surgeon General of the United States, 2007-2009
    Bio | Video | Photos

  • April 20

    Speaker Series: Dr. Jeremy Levin

    Chairman and CEO, Ovid Therapeutics
    Bio | Video | Photos

  • May 11

    End-of-the-year Celebration

    Celebrate the end of the year and send the class of 2023 off in style! Come for the good food, good friends, and a good time.
    Photos

  • May 13

    Speaker Series: Dr. Marcia McNutt

    President, National Academy of Sciences
    Announcement

  • June 6

    KGI in Boston

    62 alumni, students, corporate partners, faculty and staff met at the BIO International Conference Reception in Boston.
    Photos

Most Influential

KGI's Most Influential Honorees were honored during an anniversary reception and dinner on Founder's Day on October 7, 2022. Contributions from the individuals include but are not limited to being involved with founding the Institute, planning the curriculum, achieving accreditation, philanthropic investment, and providing guidance and oversight to academic programs. Click here to read details on each honoree.

Bonnie
Anderson
KGI trustee emeritus
Bonnie Anderson
Karen
Bernstein
current KGI trustee
Karen Bernstein
Dan
Bradbury
current KGI trustee and advisory board member
Dan Bradbury
Robert
Bradway
friend of KGI
Robert Bradway
Bonnie
Busenberg
former KGI staff
Bonnie Busenberg
Steve
Casper
current KGI faculty and former dean
Steve Casper
Marsh Cooper (Posthumous)
KGI trustee emeritus
Marsh Cooper
Bob
Curry
KGI board chair emeritus and current KGI trustee
Bob Curry
Robert
Day
friend of KGI
Robert Day
Gregory
Dewey
former KGI dean
Gregory Dewey
Dennis
Fenton
current KGI advisory board member and trustee emeritus
Dennis Fenton
David
Finegold
former KGI faculty
David Finegold
Bob (Posthumous) and Bette Finnigan
friends of KGI
Bob and Bette Finnigan
David
Galas
former KGI trustee and vice president of research
David Galas
Sean
Gallagher
current KGI advisory board member
Sean_Gallagher
Ross
Grossman
current KGI trustee and former advisory board member
Ross Grossman
Judy
Heyboer
KGI trustee emeritus
Judy Heyboer
Alice
Huang
KGI trustee emeritus
Alice Huang
David
Lawrence
former KGI dean
David Lawrence
John Maguire (Posthumous)
KGI trustee emeritus
John Maguire
Angelika
Niemz
current KGI faculty
Angelika Niemz
Harlyne Norris (Posthumous)
KGI trustee emeritus
Harlyne Norris
Stan Phelps (Posthumous)
KGI trustee emeritus
Stan Phelps
Ian
Phillips
KGI Professor Emeritus
Ian Phillips
Art Riggs (Posthumous)
KGI trustee emeritus
Art Riggs
Hank (Posthumous) and Gayle Riggs
Founding KGI President and his wife
Hank and Gayle Riggs
David
Sadava
former KGI advisory council member
David Sadava
Jil and Jack
Stark
KGI trustee emeritus
Jill and Jack Stark
Jim
Sterling
current KGI faculty and former dean
Jim Sterling
Bob
Tranquada
KGI trustee emeritus
Bob Tranquada
Kathy Webster (Posthumous)
former KGI dean
Kathy Webster
Jim Weinberg (Posthumous)
former KGI trustee and board chair
Jim Weinbert
Jim
Widergren
current KGI Board Chair
Jim Widergren

KGI's Impact

KGI alumni, faculty, and students are impacting our community in meaningful ways.

Kiana
Aran
FACULTY

Professor Kiana Aran to Receive Rutgers Engineering Alumni Distinguished Engineer Award

Kiana Aran
Jesse
Frumkin
PHD

Alumnus Dr. Jesse P. Frumkin Honored by Department of Commerce for Co-Developing Machine-Learning Algorithm to Analyze Patent Documents

Jesse Frumkin
Ramya
Kartikeyan
PPM

KGI Alumna Ramya Kartikeyan Named to MM+M's Women to Watch List, Honoring Accomplishments in Medical Marketing

Ramya Kartikeyan
Abasi
Ene-Obong
PPM

KGI Alum and 54gene CEO Abasi Ene-Obong Wants to Fix the Racial Imbalance in Health Data

Abasi Ene-Obong
Allyssa
Gomez
MSCM

Fresno Native Allyssa Gomez Pursues Her Passion for Community Outreach in KGI's Inaugural Community Medicine Program

Allyssa Gomez
Alejandro
Quiñones
PPC

KGI PPC Alumnus Alejandro Quiñones to Attend UCLA Medical School, Honoring His Commitment to Community Outreach

Alejandro Quiñones
Stacey
McIlroy
FACULTY

KGI MSPA Professor Stacey McIlroy Celebrates Long-Standing Relationship with Claremont

Stacey McIlroy
Srikanth
Kolluru
FACULTY

Dr. Srikanth Kolluru's Publication Explores Unconventional and Emerging Career Pathways for Pharmacists

Srikanth Kolluru
Talia
Puzantian
FACULTY

Dr. Talia Puzantian's Publication Evaluates Effectiveness of Films for Educating Pharmacy Students on Mental Illness and Developing Empathy for Patients

Talia Puzantian
Passant
Shaker
MSGC

Passant Shaker Pursues Career in Genetic Counseling to Empower Others to Take Charge of Their Health

Passant Shaker
Abasi
Ene-Obong
PPM

KGI Announces Alumnus Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong as the School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences 2022 Commencement Speaker

Abasi Ene-Obong
Laurel
Anderson
MSGDA

MSGDA Student Laurel Anderson Works with City of Hope to Precisely Track Progress of Leukemia Patients Using Computational Biology

Laurel Anderson
Sindy
Alvarez
MBS

Dr. Sindy Escobar Alvarez, Alumna from KGI's First Graduating Class, Publishes "Strategies for Inclusive Grantmaking" in Nature Medicine

Sindy Alvarez
Kiana
Aran
FACULTY

Dr. Kiana Aran Receives Research Gift from Agilent Technologies to Develop Real-Time Monitoring of Cell Cultures

Kiana Aran
James
Sterling
FACULTY

Dr. James Sterling Teams with Australian Scientists to Analyze Drug Delivery Methods, Focusing on the Sugar-Coat Lining Blood Vessels

Jim Sterling
Jason
Kerr
MBS

KGI Alumnus Jason Kerr Earns Award for Helping Pharmaceutical Companies Meet Quality and Safety Standards

Jason Kerr
Yuu
Ohno
MS

MS Student Yuu Ohno Secures First-Authorship for a Publication Exploring Methodology for Investigating Alzheimer's Disease Pathology

Yuu Ohno
Yun
Liu
Faculty

Beyond Representation: Dr. Yun Liu's Publication Examines Inclusivity and Multiple Dimensions of Diversity Among Board Directors

Yun Liu
Ijeoma
Nnadozie
PhD

Nigerian PhD Student Ijeoma Nnadozie Examines Functional Variants in Colorectal Cancer Among African Americans

Ijeoma Nnadozie
Ian
Phillips
Faculty

KGI Professor Emeritus Dr. Ian Phillips Publishes Memoir Recounting His Adventures in Science and Encounters with Nobel Laureates

Ian Phillips
Joel
West
Faculty

KGI Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Dr. Joel West Surpasses 20,000 Citations on Google Scholar

Joel West
Kiana
Aran
Faculty

KGI’s Dr. Kiana Aran Receives NIH Funding to Help Set Quality Control Standards for CRISPR Therapies

Kiana Aran
Jasper
Worlikar
MEng

MEng Student Jasper Worlikar Advocates for Queer Workers in Biotech

Jasper Worlikar
Mary
Bessell
MSMDE

Mary Bessell Thrives in KGI's Supportive Environment, Navigating Learning Challenges While Playing to Her Strengths

Mary Bessell
Candy
Lu
MS

From Competitive Ice Hockey to Pre-Health, KGI Student Candy Lu Triumphs Over Challenges and Hits Her Stride

Candy Lu
Uche & Dubem
Anyaduba
PhD

Husband and Wife Use KGI's PhD Program as a Stepping Stone to Improve Healthcare in Their Home Country of Nigeria

Uchechukwu and Tochukwu Anyaduba
Kiana
Aran
FACULTY

Dr. Kiana Aran’s Achievements as a Biotech Leader Honored in 2021 Nature Research Awards for Inspiring Women in Science

Kiana Aran
Leslie
Contreras
MS

Leslie Contreras Overcomes Hardship as Daughter of El Salvadoran Immigrant, Fueled by Her Passion for Community Outreach

Leslie Contreras
Nicole
Diaz
PPC

Raised in the World of Professional Boxing, PPC Student Nicole Diaz Discovers the Fusion Between Sports and Medicine

Nicole Diaz
Jeniffer Hernandez
Animesh Ray
Faculty

Professors Jeniffer Hernandez and Animesh Ray Selected As 2021 NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award Recipients

Jeniffer Hernandez and Animesh Ray
Michael
Koeris
Faculty

KGI Professor Dr. Michael Koeris and Team Publish Papers in a Two-Part Series on Manufacturing Bacteriophages

Michael Koeris
Nazia
Rashid
Faculty

Economic and Health Consequences of Suboptimal Treatments for Dementia-Related Psychosis Examined in Dr. Nazia Rashid's Psych Congress 2021 Presentations

Nazia Rashid
Lindsey
Graham
PharmD

PharmD Student Lindsey Graham Expands Her Horizons at Professional Student Organization Meeting

Lindsey Graham
Karina
Quiroz
MSCM

MSCM Student Karina Quiroz Addresses Oral Health Disparities Among American Indian/Alaskan Native Populations in APHA Presentation

Karina Quiroz
Stephanie
Rodriguez
PPA

PPA Alumna Stephanie Rodriguez Offers Hope and Encouragement to PA School Applicants

Stephanie Rodriguez
Samet S.
Yildirim
MBS

KGI Alumnus Samet S. Yildirim Joins Cultivated Meat Company Orbillion Bio as Co-Founder & COO

Samet S. Yildirim
Cassidy
Mirjah-Jablonski
MS

KGI Student Cassidy Mirjah-Jablonski Helps Others Navigate the Pandemic Using Education and Resources

Cassidy Mirjah-Jablonski
Christine
Urrea
PHD

KGI PhD Candidate Christine Urrea Publishes Internship Results on Improved Filtration for Bioprocessing

Christine Urrea
Jabre
Millon
PPC

Personal Tragedy Fuels KGI Alumnus Jabre Millon’s Desire to Help Others as a Doctor

Jabre Millon
Robert
Rankin
MBS

KGI Alumnus J. Robert Rankin Embraces Change As Bioinformatics Startup Exits Beta in Amsterdam

Robert Rankin
Monique
Williams
FACULTY

Dr. Monique J. Williams’ Third 2021 Publication Examines the Response of Churches to the Pandemic and the Role of Churches as Change Agents

Monique Williams
Cecile
Maria
PPC & MS

KGI Student Cecile Maria Vazquez Advocates the Healing Powers of Nutrition and Fitness

Cecile Maria
Breann
Reinsch
MSGC

Alumna Breann Reinsch Joins KGI Faculty as Assistant Professor of Genetics

Breann Reinsch
Line
Stigen
MBS

Line Stigen Raquet Joins Panel of Judges for KGI’s Business Plan Competition

Line Stigen
Tamerisa
Dyer
MSGDA

KGI Student Tamerisa Dyer, Mother of Five, Returns to School After 25-Year Hiatus to Pursue Career in Genomic Data Analytics

Tamerisa Dyer
Christian
Makkar
PPC & MS

Alumnus Christian Makkar Delivers Compassionate Care to Hospital Patients During COVID

Christian Makkar
Angela
Hoang
MSGDA

KGI Graduate Angela Hoang Empowers Prospective Parents as Associate Clinical Variant Curator

Angela Hoang
Michael
Gonzalez
MSMDE

Severe Injuries Motivate KGI Student Michael Gonzalez to Design Medical Devices

Michael Gonzalez

KGI Timeline

1997 July 10

W.M. Keck Foundation provides Keck Graduate Institute (KGI) with $50 million founding grant

2000
August 1

Inaugural class enrolls in Master of Bioscience (MBS) program while KGI moves offices from 1263 N. Dartmouth Ave. to 535 Watson Drive

2002 May 19

KGI celebrates first commencement with 28 graduates

2003
July 15

Founding president Hank Riggs retires and Sheldon Schuster becomes president

2005 October 15

Alumni Patio dedication ceremony

2006
August 14

PhD in Applied Life Sciences program begins as overall enrollment increases to 68

2007
May 12

KGI celebrates its 10th anniversary

2010
July 1

KGI succeeds in raising a match of $30 million, solidifying its position as a pioneer in graduate education. The W.M. Keck Foundation awarded KGI with a $20 million challenge grant in 2004 and KGI completed the match one year ahead of schedule.

2010
August 16

Postbaccalaureate Premedical Certificate (PPC) program starts with its first group of students

2014
January 6

KGI partners with Biocon to launch the Biocon Academy's 16-week certificate program

2014
August 23

School of Pharmacy celebrates first White Coat Ceremony

2014
September 8

Founding class of the Minerva Schools at KGI begins classes

2016
August 15

Master of Engineering in Biopharmaceutical Processing (MEng) program begins as overall enrollment for 2016-2017 increases to 517

2016
November 15

KGI celebrates ribbon cutting of 1 North Indian Hill Blvd. building that includes administrative offices and student collaboration space

2017
March 20

KGI celebrates ribbon cutting of the KGI Cafe, a new two-story campus hub in building 517

2017
May 11

KGI breaks ground on the school's first housing complex, a 419-bed facility

2017
May 13

KGI celebrates 16th annual commencement with 175 graduates

2017
July 1

KGI begins year-long celebration of 20th anniversary

2018
July 30

KGI announced plans for a new KGI School of Community Medicine to meet the increasing demand for primary care physicians in Southern California

2018
August 22

Unveiling a new brand and logo, KGI celebrated its innovation and collaboration that lead to career pathways within healthcare and the applied life sciences

2018
August 23

Two new master’s programs in genetic counseling and genomic data analytics welcome their first cohorts to KGI, along with students in the new Master of Science in Medical Device Engineering and Master of Science in Transitional Medicine programs

2019
October 02

The Oasis KGI Commons Ribbon Cutting celebrated KGI's shift to a residential campus

2020 and 2021

KGI continues academic program growth, announcing plans for an Occupational Therapy Doctorate, Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Master of Science in Regulatory Affairs, Master of Science in Community Medicine, and Certificate in Applied Genomics programs

2022
March 09

KGI Building 555 opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony

Then & Now

2005 Alumni Patio Dedication
2021 Chan Family Patio & Cafe
2002 Commencement
2002 Commencement
2021 Commencement
2021 Commencement
2017 Oasis KGI Commons
2017 Oasis KGI Commons
2021 Oasis KGI Commons
2021 Oasis KGI Commons
2014 Rare Disease Day
2014 Rare Disease Day
2020 Rare Disease Day
2020 Rare Disease Day
2011 Student Awards
2011 Student Awards
2019 Riggs School Awards
2019 Riggs School Awards
2002 Student Orientation
2002 Student Orientation
2019 Student Orientation
2019 Student Orientation
2012 TMP Kickoff
2012 TMP Kickoff
2019 TMP Kickoff
2019 TMP Kickoff
2003 TMP Presentation Day
2003 TMP Presentation Day
2019 TMP Presentation Day
2019 TMP Presentation Day
2013 Visit Day
2013 Visit Day
2017 Visit Day
2017 Visit Day

Support KGI and Our Students

Celebrate 25+ years of translational research and discovery! Tax-deductible gifts of all sizes immediately impact our students and campus.

When you give to KGI, you become a partner in our mission to educate the best and brightest students to be leaders in healthcare and the applied life sciences. Whether it be in business, medical devices and diagnostics, clinical and regulatory affairs, engineering, genetics, drug discovery and development, bioprocessing, or another field, the work our students do upon graduation contributes to the betterment of human life.