Welcome to the lab

As you begin your journey with us, we kindly ask you to:

• Fill out the Welcome Form: Please provide your personal information and preferences to help us coordinate lab events and maintain safety.
• Join the Lab's Slack Channel: This is our primary platform for communication, collaboration, and planning.
• Read the Lab Handbook: It is crucial to thoroughly read our Lab Handbook. While you delve into the handbook, we encourage you to reflect on how you can embody our lab's core values, including curiosity, growth mindset, diversity and inclusion, and balance and well-being. These values are not just ideals; they are practical guides that shape our daily work and interactions.
• Complete All Lab Safety Training: Before engaging in any lab work, it is mandatory to complete all required lab safety training. This is crucial for your safety and the safety of your colleagues. More detail about this can be found in the lab handbook.

After reviewing the handbook, we would appreciate it if you could:

• Ask Questions: Feel free to reach out to any team member or myself with questions about the handbook or lab practices.
• Read and sign the Lab Expectations Document below: Once you have familiarized yourself with the handbook and completed the initial steps, please sign and return the enclosed welcome document within 1 week of your start date in the lab. This signifies your understanding and agreement with our lab’s expectations and policies.
• Review the Lab Onboarding Checklist: We have prepared a comprehensive checklist to guide you through the essential steps and tasks for getting started in our lab. Some of these items, we’ll take care of, but please go through this checklist diligently to ensure we cover all necessary aspects of your onboarding process.

We are here to support you every step of the way as you embark on this exciting phase of your career. Welcome aboard, and we look forward to your contributions to the groundbreaking work we do here at Chory Lab.

Warm regards,

Dr. Emma Chory

Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Duke University

To facilitate a smooth start, we've compiled a Quick Start Guide with essential resources and steps. After completing all of these tasks (within one week of start date), please read and sign the acknowledgement at the bottom of this page. The Chory Lab Handbook contains more detailed sections on lab expectations, communication policies, lab meetings/notebooks, ordering policies, details on our lab philosophy and general policies. The Chory Lab Portal also contains links to most of the resources below.

• Read the complete lab handbook (www.chorylab.com/lab-handbook), and let Dr. Chory know if you have any questions.
• Please fill out this lab member Info form with your information, dietary restrictions, photo etc. This will help us plan lab events appropriately, update the lab website, and ensure your safety.
• Join our lab's Slack channel for messaging, planning, and collaboration. Sign up using this invite link. Feel free to use this channel to ask questions to lab members during onboarding.

• Set up Duke Mobile ID
• Apply or arrange parking pass, we recommend going to the office in person (Science Drive Garage).

• Explore the Internal Chory Lab Portal, and bookmark all relevant pages (password from Dr. Chory or any lab member)
• Complete the necessary safety training (See Lab Safety section in the Lab Handbook for more info)
• Sign up for Benchling lab notebook manager and join the Chory Lab Benchling group
• Bookmark the Chory Lab Group Info Folder, which contains links to our reagent repository, contact information, safety documents, and lab meeting business notes.

• Sign up for Quartzy, and familiarize yourself with the lab ordering polices.

• Add the lab event calendar to your own calendars, to keep up to date on lab meetings, social events, and other lab-wide events.
• Add the BME Event Calendar to your own calendars, to keep up to date on relevant seminars, thesis defenses, and events sponsored by CAGT.

• Create a Free Feedly account to follow your favorite journals.
• Set up custom RSS feeds around your project through PubMed (e.g. “Continuous Evolution”)

Acknowledgement and Agreement

By signing below, I confirm that I have:

• Read and understood all the items in this Quick Start Guide.
• Completed the necessary steps outlined in the checklist.
• Familiarized myself with the Chory Lab's expectations, values, and policies as detailed in the lab handbook and this guide.
• Agreed to adhere to these expectations and values during my time in the Chory Lab.

I understand that these elements are crucial for the productive and harmonious functioning of our lab, and I commit to upholding these standards to the best of my ability.

In addition to the tasks you are completing, there are several administrative and logistical steps we, as a lab, take to ensure your smooth transition. Once you have worked through your checklist on your Welcome Letter, please arrange a meeting with Dr. Chory to confirm that the lab has completed all the necessary administrative actions that have been taken care of on our end. This includes making sure you have access to software, lab space assignments, safety protocols, and other essential resources. This meeting is an important step to ensure that everything is in place for you to commence your work seamlessly and effectively in the Chory Lab. Please print a copy of this checklist and bring it to your meeting with Dr. Chory.

Note: Not all items are required for each lab member as they depend on your research focus and position.

ONLY ITEMS IN BOLD NEED TO BE COMPLETED BY NEW HIRE. All other items are completed by the lab, admin, or Dr. Chory.

General Checklist:

• Receive the lab Welcome Letter
• Fill out the Lab Member Welcome Form
• Confirm receipt of Slack invite (Invite link) and join the lab's Slack channel.
• Be added to Benchling for lab notebook and data management.
• Receive an invite to Quartzy (from Lab member management).
• Be added to the lab's safety protocol system (Lab and waste management system).
• Gain access to & bookmark shared folders for all lab members

• Google Drive Folder
• Chory Lab Dropbox Folder

• Connect fund code to lab member’s accounts through CCF for ordering.
• Obtain a physical ID card for access to CCF facility and medical school (if needed).
• Be added to and join the CAGT Slack channel.
• Gain access to the calendar for the Zoom room booking.
• Receive shopper/buyer access for lab purchase (if needed).
• Be added to the chorylab@googlegroups list (for calendar invites).
• After you have been fully onboarded, read & sign the lab Expectations Document.

Laboratory Specifics:

• Assign Desk Space
• Conduct a lab safety and space tour (including fire extinguishers, spill kits, PPE).
• Read and sign lab Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Assign spaces in -20°C, -80°C, and 4°C storage (if needed).
• Complete all required safety training.

Software Access:

• Provide a Paperpile license for adding references to papers (if needed).
• Add access to Duke Computer Cluster (if needed).

Molecular Biology Resources:

• Download Geneious (with reimbursement for students, payment for postdocs) (if needed).
• Create a Geneious server username (if needed).
• Assigned dedicated oligo repository spreadsheet (if needed).

For Employees/Postdocs (non-students):

• Set up an Adobe Account through Duke Software Management.