152. Celebrating Our Strengths with Associate Professor and Researcher Elaine Choung-Hee Lee

152. Celebrating Our Strengths with Associate Professor and Researcher Elaine Choung-Hee Lee

 

 

Introducing Elaine Choung-Hee Lee

Today I’m talking to Associate Professor and Researcher Dr. Elaine Choung-Hee Lee about celebrating our strengths.

Her Career Journey

Elaine completed her BS in Nutritional Sciences at UConn, where she stayed to earn both her MA and PhD in Kinesiology and Exercise Science. She went on to complete two postdoctoral fellowships, one at Yale and the other at Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory in Maine. Elaine returned to UConn and is currently an Associate Professor, the Director of Research Support, and the Director of the Human Performance Laboratory in the Department of Kinesiology.

Celebrating Our Strengths

Elaine’s current research in exercise, nutrition, and ‘omics seeks to understand how individuals can enhance resiliency and performance. While it is hard to imagine that Elaine would ever be doing something else, it took her a long time to figure out the direction of her career. It wasn’t until she discovered how much easier it was to study and learn about topics that clicked with her that she came to realize how important it is to celebrate our strengths.

Inside this episode:

  • Elaine shares her academic journey and how she came to study nutrition later in college. It took her time to get past the idea that she should be in medical school and embrace what came naturally to her.
  • When the environment of her first postdoc wasn’t the most supportive for her, Elaine looked for a better fit. This brought her to Maine where she picked up new skills that give her a unique perspective in her research today.
  • Elaine brings a mechanistic perspective to the kinesiology department, where each member has a different approach to the question: is this athlete healthy and are they able to train?
  • She’s created an online presence for her research group and has become more involved in social media. Watching grad students at other institutions open up about the struggles they’re facing has made her a better mentor, more attuned to what her students might not be telling her.
  • As a woman in the workplace, Elaine feels she must take on the additional role of being the “kind person” in many situations. These expectations create additional work that women can’t easily walk away from.

Resources

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