Michael Hecht was born and grew up in midtown Manhattan. He received his BA in Chemistry from Cornell University, where he did undergraduate research on protein folding with Prof. Harold Scheraga. He completed his Ph.D. in Biology at MIT, where he received the first Ph.D. from Prof. Bob Sauer's lab, and did research on protein stability and protein/DNA interactions. He did post-doctoral research on protein design in the labs of Profs. David and Jane Richardson in the Biochemistry Department at Duke University Medical School. In 1990, Hecht joined the faculty of the Chemistry Department at Princeton, where he also holds an affiliated appointment in the Department of Molecular Biology. At Princeton, Hecht has served as the Director of Undergraduate Studies and Associate Chair of the Chemistry Department. In addition to his 'day job' in the Chemistry Department, Hecht is also the Master of Forbes College, one of the 6 undergraduate Colleges at Princeton (www.princeton.edu/forbescollege). When not in Frick or Forbes, he spends time traveling, skiing, inline skating, bicycling, and backpacking. The picture at right was taken in the Arctic National Wildlife Range in Northern Alaska.

Curriculum Vitae