Heather Benz
“I like to help people, and I find that when you help people, they also like to help you. It’s not an intentional outcome for me, but I really have benefited from being curious and open to trying new things.”
School of Medicine
Biomedical Engineering, PhD 2014
Associate Director, Clinical Research at Johnson & Johnson
Heather‘s Podcast Episode
In this episode, we discuss Heather’s passion for mentorship and the ways her involvement with the Thread program has uplifted her and contributed to her success, how her dedication to patient impact led her to pursue roles working with robotics in the healthcare industry rather than in academia, and her take on the necessity of taking risks to reach your full potential.
Learn More About Heather‘s Story
I’m a mom first! Pictured are my three kids, born when I was at Hopkins, FDA, and J&J. Their shirts prove we’re huge BattleBots fans, and Tantrum, our family favorite, was the J&J-sponsored winner of World Championship VI. We’re excited to be kicking off a LEGO robotics club at their school this year.
Thread has been a priority for me since I visited Hopkins prior to enrolling in 2007. It’s one of the reasons I ended up in Baltimore! Originally a student-led group, it is now a non-profit with a mission to harness the power of relationships to create a new social fabric of diverse individuals deeply engaged with young people facing the most significant opportunity and achievement gaps. Our community is committed to ending social isolation and building a more equitable culture in which everyone thrives. I’ve learned so much from the amazing people in Thread, including adaptability, showing all the way up, learning from everyone, and failing forward.
