5 Questions With Savanah Shumaker, Analytical Chemist at NIH/NCATS & Entrepreneur
May 4, 2023
“5 Questions With…” is a recurring BioBuzz series where we reach out to interesting people to share a little about themselves, their work, and maybe something completely unrelated. This week we welcome Savanah Shumaker, Analytical Chemist at NIH/NCATS & Entrepreneur.
Savanah L. Saldaña-Shumaker was born and raised in Green Bay, WI. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay with a Human Biology Major and a Chemistry Minor. After undergrad, she briefly worked as a Pathology Lab Analyst for Food Safety Net Services in Green Bay before heading to Mequon, WI to work in Dr. Christopher W. Cunningham’s medicinal chemistry lab at Concordia University Wisconsin’s School of Pharmacy. During that time, she earned an MBA Certificate in Management from CUW’s Batterman School of Business, as well as a Master of Science in Chemical Product Development degree from CUW’s School of Pharmacy. Upon graduation, Savanah was able to continue working for Dr. Cunningham thanks to a grant from the National Institutes of Health – National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. She also took on the role of Program Coordinator for her alma mater, the MS in Product Development Program. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Savanah decided to shift gears and moved to Rockville, MD to work as a Federal Contractor at National Institutes of Health – National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. At NIH/NCATS, Savanah works in the Division of Preclinical Innovation’s Analytical Chemistry Core, as a Chemist specializing in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy. Outside of her traditional “nine-to-five” job, Savanah works on two startups that she founded. The first is SCS Laboratory Solutions, Inc. This C-Corp is centered around a novel Anhydrous Chemical Transfer Device, which was inspired by Savanah’s extensive work with anhydrous liquid chemicals. Her second business is Nazte Beauty, LLC. This company is centered around the development of densely pigmented, cream and glitter cosmetics that are formulated with minimal and non-toxic ingredients. Nazte Beauty’s first products are tentatively set to launch in late 2024. Additionally, Savanah is currently serving as the Vice-Chair of Sponsorship for the Women In Bio – Capital Region organization.
1) Please introduce yourself to our audience by looking back at your education, training, and career path.
The overarching thread in my professional life has been “go with the flow” as I have pivoted at almost every step of my journey. In high school, I had multiple opportunities to begin a professional ballet career, but I instead decided to attend a dental assisting program at a local trade school (Northeast Wisconsin Technical College – Green Bay Campus). My time as a dental assistant inspired me to pursue more schooling to become a dentist (University of Wisconsin – Green Bay). While my undergraduate science classes were meant to fulfill my dental school application requirements, I ended up falling in love with chemistry and decided to apply for a Master of Science in Product Development Program after graduation (Concordia University of Wisconsin – Mequon). While working on my master’s thesis, I also worked as my adviser’s medicinal chemistry research technician (Christopher W. Cunningham Medical Chemistry Lab). After graduation, I was hired to stay as a research staff member in the Cunningham Lab. My 4+ years in this lab consisted of small molecule synthesis, process chemistry, synthetic and analytical method development, contracted synthesis design, and contracted HPLC/UPLC method development. Throughout this time, I was given increasingly more NMR-related responsibilities and often daydreamed about fully diving into the spectroscopy space. I ended up finding my current NMR position at NIH/NCATS while searching for formulation jobs for my good friend… We still don’t know how or why an NMR position popped up in my search for her, but it must have been meant to be!
2) You’ve been at NCATS for almost 3 years. Can you share more about your specific role, your goals, and your favorite part of the job?
NCATS is one of the twenty-seven NIH institutes, and our mission is to get more treatments to all patients more quickly, by utilizing and improving translational science processes to get our work done in the most efficient and collaborative ways possible. For my research group, our patient pool of interest is individuals with rare and neglected diseases. My role within the center involves NMR instrument maintenance and troubleshooting, serving as a subject matter expert on method development and optimization for projects and programs with internal and external collaborators, and my own innovative projects. Projects that I oversee include developing our NMR-Based Fragment Screening Program; developing a qNMR platform for targeted and untargeted analysis, reaction monitoring and screening, and impurity analysis and identification in our forthcoming automated synthesis lab; and developing automated analytical process workflows, from sample preparation through data analysis for the above projects, using liquid handling robots.
In terms of my goals at NCATS I want to use my NMR expertise to help further rare and neglected diseases research, and to be a robust part of the translational science spectrum. The main goal I have for specific, technical achievements is to get our NMR-Based Fragment Screening Program up and running.
My favorite part of my job is the variety of opportunities available to improve and develop my scientific skillset. NCATS is very supportive of having the scientists present our work and get feedback by attending scientific conferences, which is a great way to keep my finger on the pulse of the NMR community. I also have the opportunity to attend technical trainings as NCATS often facilitates virtual and in-person sessions for various techniques or software. I will soon be attending an advanced NMR service and maintenance training at a specific vendor’s headquarters, which I am really excited about.
3) In addition to your work at NCATS, you are the Co-Founder of SCS Laboratory Solutions and Nazte Beauty. What were your biggest motivational factors when starting both companies? How do you balance the regular 9-5 while still pursuing your passion for entrepreneurship?
While a laboratory device and a makeup line might seem like a random pair of interests, the common thread between SCS Laboratory Solutions and Nazte Beauty (Nazte is pronounced like Nasty but with a “z”) is, fundamentally, chemical safety. SCS is centered around my desire to extend the shelf life of, reduce the amount of hazardous waste associated with, and increase the safe handling of anhydrous liquid chemicals using a novel device that my business partners and I are developing. Nazte Beauty is centered around the development of a line of rave-worthy, club kid-inspired body paint and glitter that will allow people of all skin tones to create their “naztiest” looks (i.e. “nastiest” but spicier) without having to turn to harmful products and/or harmful application processes in order to get the products to stand out on their skin. Both projects were initiated during the early COVID lockdown days, when I had extra time on my hands, wanted to keep my creative juices flowing, and my friends were crazy enough to go into business with me! While I could definitely be moving both businesses along a bit faster if I was not balancing multiple commitments, I am enjoying my schedule and having fun so I plan to continue this way until I have a reason not to.
For me, the key to balancing my various obligations is compartmentalization. At NIH/NCATS, my team’s core hours are 9-5 so I consider this time my “no fly zone” for other projects. Before I go into work I check my personal and business emails and social media, and then I do this again right when I get home from work. I work on SCS and Nazte Beauty primarily on worknight evenings, with weekend work happening as much or as little is needed at any given time. Having separate emails, social media accounts, notebooks, and Gmail/Drive accounts for personal use/Women In Bio, SCS, and Nazte Beauty helps keep things organized and makes it easy to flip back and forth between projects with no confusion!
4) You’re currently working as the Vice Chair of the Sponsorship Committee for the Capital Region chapter of Women in Bio. What motivated you to take this role and what do you enjoy most about working with the organization?
I decided to apply for this volunteer position in early 2023 after attending several Women In Bio (WIB) events in late 2022. The networking and professional development opportunities that WIB provides for its members are top-tier, and I wanted to be a bigger part of the Capital Region chapter. This role is very fun because I can use the marketing, networking, fundraising, and event planning skills that I have developed through past non-profit and administrative experiences to help promote WIB’s mission of “promoting diversity and inclusion for all women in the life sciences.” I have had several opportunities arise through connections made at virtual and in-person WIB events, such as being interviewed by Kathleen Brunner for Acumen’s LifeSphere Podcast (my episode will air in mid-May). Promoting women in the Life Sciences while also improving my own visibility, all thanks to WIB, has been a very rewarding experience.
5) Now for the fun question – What bucket list item do you most want to check off in the next six months?
I actually have never made a fully thought-out bucket list… when I create short and long-term goals they are almost always career-oriented. I do, however, have a few fun things planned in the upcoming months! My husband Brian and I have recently started looking into purchasing a townhouse or condo, so shopping around for a home has been a new and exciting experience. Over the last year or two, I have made a big effort into building a social life outside of my professional pursuits. One piece of this effort has been taking time to do long-weekend style trips. Locations for upcoming girls’ trips with my friends include Miami and Ocean City, and then Brian and I will be going to Mystic for our anniversary in October. Last year I went on a week-long trip to France with my friend and we had a great time, so I would like to plan another more extensive trip out of the country at some point soon!
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