Jaclyn Lock, the student speaker at the grand opening of the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex, is pretty impressive. She’s a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow and a peer mentor. She’s also a big believer in the power of cross-disciplinary collaboration, one of ISEC’s primary foci.

“ISEC was built to empower us to solve grand challenges,” says Lock, a fourth-year doctoral student in bioengineering who has spent her time at Northeastern researching the link between the food we eat and our mucus production. “It will help to advance not only my research but our research as a community.”

Lock, who works with experts in fields ranging from microbiology to microfluidics, challenges her peers to revel in interdisciplinary collaboration, to leave their own comfort zones to explore new opportunities. “Collaboration helps us develop new skills and insights to effectively communicate and share ideas,” she says.

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey praises Lock for her student leadership. “Thank you for reminding us that great universities start with great students,” he tells her during his remarks at the opening ceremony. “Northeastern has some of the best students in the world who will be doing their research right here in this building.”