Competition was organized by Dr. Liisa Veerus with the support of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM). Dr. Veerus is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Martin J. Blaser. She also chairs CABM (Center for Biotechnology and Medicine) Diversity Committee (CDC) and serves as the ASM US Young Ambassador for the New Jersey area. Dr. Veerus also sits on the seminar series committees of RUMP (Rutgers University Microbiome Program) and CABM STARS.