Katy - After coming to the UK as a 13-year-old Iranian refugee in the early 1980s, Katy studied medicine at University College London before
qualifying as a doctor in 1993. Following training as a haematologist specialising in stem cell transplantation, she completed a PhD in transplant immunology at Imperial College London in
2005, based on research undertaken at the USA’s National Institutes of Health. She subsequently held academic posts at the Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College.
In 2012, Katy relocated to Houston, Texas where she is a Professor of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy and founding Director of the Institute for Cell Therapy Discovery and
Innovation at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Her research focuses on engineering immune cells to treat cancers resistant to conventional therapies. In 2023, she received
the E. Donnall Thomas Prize from the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the world’s foremost organisation for blood diseases and cancers. The award recognises pioneering research
that has represented a paradigm shift or significant discovery in the field, and was given for her development of engineered natural killer cells as a new way for treating cancer.
Richard - Following Tonbridge, Richard studied Classics at St David’s University College, Lampeter, where he developed a grounding in analytical thinking and communication. In the early 1990s, he began a technical career in the energy industry before subsequently transitioning to the investment banking sector in London. During fifteen years at Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, Richard managed complex platforms and also lead major infrastructure / application projects in the context of rapidly changing financial markets. Supporting his deep interest in technical management and strategic leadership, Richard subsequently earned an Executive MBA from Henley Business School, University of Reading in 2013.
After moving to Houston with Katy in 2012, Richard returned to full-time academic study, undertaking doctoral studies at the C.T. Bauer College of Business, University of Houston. Concurrently balancing the rigours of his doctoral coursework in Houston with his MBA studies at Henley, he successfully completed a PhD in Information Systems in 2018 with his thesis exploring the causes of technical project failure in complex organisational settings. Richard subsequently joined Bauer faculty as a Professor of Practice, combining undergraduate and graduate teaching in database design and system analysis with research into technology failure and methodological analysis. Reflecting his interdisciplinary interests, he was appointed Visiting Professor at the Royal Agricultural University in 2022, and in the same year elected a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
Though their professional journeys have taken them overseas, Katy and Richard remain deeply connected to the UK, the country that shaped their academic and professional journeys. The Phoenix Fellowship reflects not only their gratitude for the academic opportunities they were given, but also their belief in the transformative power of education. Their aim is simple: to extend the same spirit of support that they received to refugee students in the UK, thereby enabling new generations of talented individuals to flourish and, in time, contribute meaningfully themselves.