Robert Crooker '08

Bob Crooker has been interested in science since the time he was a small child. He would spend afternoons as a kid climbing in and out of trees looking for bugs and other animals. He grew up just a half hour north of Boston in North Reading, MA, the youngest of three children. In his spare time, he likes to watch movies, listen to music, work with video editing, and learning how to play guitar.

Bob’s biology and chemistry teachers, particularly Mr. John Boyle, at St. Johns Prep in Danvers, MA convinced him about the importance of research and the opportunities to make a contribution to the field.

Bob completed his first 2 Co-ops at Critical Therapeutics, in Lexington, MA. At Critical Therapeutics, Bob was part of the pharmacology team, involved in determining the efficacy of anti-inflammatory medications. Bob gained valuable hands-on experience in a laboratory setting and became a lead research associate for the project in which he was involved during his second co-op at Critical Therapeutics.

He is currently out on his third co-op working in the lab of Dr. Carol Warner of the NU Biology Department. Bob’s immediate supervisor is Judy Newmark (nee Judy Triolo, NU Class of 1999, and herself, a former Co-op student). Bob’s role is part of a cell culture and imaging research project using mouse embryonic stem cells, the objective of which is to understand the factors defining the health of both preimplantation embryos and embryonic stem cells.

The Co-op Program played a major role in Bob’s decision to attend Northeastern. He knew he wanted to go to school in Boston. After visiting NU and hearing of the Co-op program, NU became his first choice. He reports: "Classroom learning is great but it is something very different to be out in the field with your hands in the middle of a project. I never anticipated how involved I would be during my co-op sessions and I think it truly is a testament to the program. I feel I have been very fortunate to have had these opportunities during my co-op experiences - they have really shaped my total experience at Northeastern."

Bob plans to continue his education through graduate school, obtaining his PhD. He thoroughly enjoys working in research. In Bob’s words, "We are entering a truly exciting time in biological research and there is so much work that needs to be done. I really want to be involved with the process."