June 18, 2020. The U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy is welcome news. We continue to stand in firm support of our DACA community here at Stanford, and we are delighted that the Court allowed the program to remain in place.

The members of our DACA community are valued members of the Stanford community and are making important contributions to our work of education and research. We have steadfastly believed that investing in the education of DACA students is both the right thing to do as well as an investment in our country's future, as they apply their talents to strengthening our society and economy.

As you may have read, while the Court did not rule on the merits of DACA itself, it blocked the effort to bring an immediate end to the program, saying the Department of Homeland Security provided insufficient justification for doing so.

We continue to believe the best, most lasting way to support DACA recipients in our community and across the nation requires legislative action.

At Stanford, we have consistently urged White House and Congressional leadership to support the concepts embodied in the DREAM Act and to provide a legislative solution addressing the needs of DREAMers and DACA recipients. We also have supported DACA in the courts and undertaken an array of advocacy efforts supporting undocumented members of our community. Those efforts will continue.

We also remain committed to providing support and resources for those in our community who are undocumented. To find DACA resources click here. 

Many in the Stanford Healthcare community gathered to march for racial equality on June 4th, 2020  We're proud to  be among those on  the front lines to advocate for humane treatment for everyone.

To learn more about Black Lives Matter resouces visit here. 

It is with sadness and heavy hearts that we write to you about the ongoing events related to racial prejudice throughout our university, communities, and country.  We have heard of racially-driven incidents on campus, the tragic deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, and are witnessing ongoing civil unrest across the nation.  At this time we believe it is important to highlight our values of respect and inclusion of all people.  Radiation Oncology and Stanford University denounce all hateful speech, images or actions.

The Department’s Inclusion Cabinet includes faculty, staff and trainees from both Stanford Healthcare and School of Medicine, and are available if anyone has a concern they would like to voice.  We recognize that this is an emotional time for you and we are here to listen.  You may reach out to any of our Cabinet members, your manager or any member of the department leadership team. In addition, resources for diversity support may be found here.

We will be having a Town Hall in the next week or so to discuss steps the department can take, as well as provide an open forum for people to raise concerns. We are also reaching out to some Human Resources and Diversity leaders to see if one of them can join our discussion. An invite will be coming out soon.

We encourage everyone to join together to heal the wounds of racial injustice and hate with open expression of tolerance, inclusion and love in your lives at work and at home.

Sincerely,

Quynh Le, Fay Murray, Dan Chang, Keith McClain, Deepa Basava, and the Radiation Oncology Inclusion Cabinet

The Department of Radiation Oncology continues to recognize gender disparities and plans to create a program dedicated to facilitating networking events for women faculty and trainees. Our program will consist of bi-annual events aimed to connect women faculty, residents, and trainees professionally and personally, and seeks to foster role model relationships. Radiation Oncology includes 3 geographically separated divisions (Radiation Therapy, Physics, and Radiobiology), with 3 satellites in addition to our main site, and our program will promote camaraderie between all ranks and groups of women, and thus support the variety of issues experienced among women in the Department of Radiation Oncology.

We are thrilled to share that Stanford will be the first site in the world to install the Reflexion Biology Guided Radiation Therapy (BGRT), which combines PET with a novel linear accelerator to track a tumor in real-time using the photons emitted by tumors. 

In addition to being the first installation, we will be entering an important partnership with Reflexion to embark on groundbreaking research and will lead transformative clinical trials. Being in this “first to market” position will allow us to be a leader in this important new treatment modality, both in research and clinical care.  This aligns with our mission and vision: To bring the most advanced care to our patients by being at the cutting edge of research and technology. 

We're happy to announce our matched applicants for this year: