Where Are They Now? Dr. Glauco Souza
1/26/2021 9:30:00 AM | Men's Water Polo, My GW: Celebrating our Stories
Men's water polo alum still fueled by passion for science, water polo
Dr. Glauco Souza surveyed the crowd and cracked a smile.
"Seriously," the PhD chemist asked, "who hasn't had a water polo-inspired idea?"
To those who know him best, it's no surprise Souza devoted his presentation a few years ago at Tedx Houston to marrying his two lifelong passions: science and water polo.
A native of Brazil, he can trace so much of his unique American journey through both pursuits, and it all started in Foggy Bottom.
Souza left his mark on GW men's water polo with 387 goals and 521 total points from 1990-93, a pair of marks that remain program records more than 25 years later.
Beyond that success in the pool, he took full advantage of his academic opportunities to earn three degrees from the university, culminating with his doctorate in Physical Chemistry in 2003.
As he explained in his Ted Talk, Souza relied on connections made through his favorite sport on the road to co-founding a nanotechnology company. Today, his work continues under the banner of Greiner Bio-One, pioneering ways to make continued advances in a complex field.
"Without the sport, I wouldn't have gone to GW and I probably wouldn't have stayed in the U.S." said Souza, who was inducted into the GW Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004. "I'm American because of GW. Otherwise, it wouldn't have happened."
Souza has quite the #OnlyatGW tale. He graduated high school in Brazil before making the move to D.C. with his diplomat father in 1990.
Naturally, Souza sought out opportunities to play water polo, a sport he'd played at a high level back home. As a member of D.C. Polo, he met Callie Flipse, who was then coaching at GW.
Flipse offered Souza a scholarship, sold him on the idea of joining the Buff and Blue and helped him navigate the university admissions process.
"As you get older, you start to think of the people that did something that really changed your life," Souza said. "There's absolutely no question that Callie was one of those people for me."
Souza's English was limited at the beginning, but his newfound Buff and Blue family made the process easier every step of the way. It helped that teammate Rick Mehedff was also Brazilian, so they could converse in Portuguese in and out of the pool.
"When you have to learn, you learn," Souza said. "You've got to eat. You've got to survive."
In the pool, Souza made the transition look seamless, emerging as a versatile jack-of-all-trades capable of shining in any spot in the offense. Playing under Flipse and later Head Coach Andy Turnage, he scored at least 80 goals in all four seasons, becoming a four-time team MVP and four-time All-Conference First Team selection. Twice, he led the Buff and Blue to the final of the CWPA Eastern Championship.
Along the way, he made unforgettable memories and lasting friendships.
"For me, sports were, of course, critical to integrate, to improve my understanding of the language, but really, it was just a lot of fun to be a part of GW water polo with those guys," Souza said.
Souza's studies kept him in Foggy Bottom long after his collegiate water polo career had finished.
His research using gold nanoparticles to manipulate cells, under veteran chemistry professor J. Houston Miller, allowed him a spot at the forefront of an emerging field of study.
In total, he was part of the GW Chemistry Department for about a dozen years.
"I'm sort of a gut feeling kind of guy," Souza said. "If whatever I'm doing feels right, I just keep pushing."
Souza moved on to become a post-doctoral fellow and Odyssey Scholar at the University of Texas' M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston to develop the nanotechnology for cancer treatment applications.
Of course, he sought a place to play water polo. It was at the pool that he met Thomas Killian, a physicist and former Harvard water polo student-athlete.
"Water polo, it's a small community," said Souza, who competed against Killian when he was a member of the Crimson. "You always find connections with people. It's less than six degrees of separation, definitely."
Souza and Killian, along with pals Rob Raphael and David Lee, hatched the idea for their company, Nano3D Biosciences, over a weekly dinner meeting for half-priced burgers in a local Irish pub.
Launched amid the Great Recession in 2008, Nano3D Biosciences was a true start-up with Souza drawing no salary for the first year, but the friends persevered, driven by a belief in the technology and work ethic honed as water polo student-athletes.
"I joke that we didn't know enough: Because if we knew how hard it was going to be, maybe we would've taken an easier path," Souza said. "Ignorance is bliss, there's a little bit of truth in that."
It's been an enjoyable run that reached a new chapter in late 2019 when Germany-based Greiner Bio-One bought the technology.
Souza relocated from Texas to Charlotte, N.C., with his wife Kristin and children Olivia and Ian, to continue his work.
Still great friends with Killian, Raphael and Lee, Souza is grateful for a partnership born out of his dueling passions for science and water polo. He echoes the theme of his Ted Talk in explaining why it's worked so well.
"The idea, the science, it all came from friends," Souza said. "When you resonate with people on different levels – if you're friends, if you play water polo – things amplify. Your chances for success go much higher."
"Seriously," the PhD chemist asked, "who hasn't had a water polo-inspired idea?"
To those who know him best, it's no surprise Souza devoted his presentation a few years ago at Tedx Houston to marrying his two lifelong passions: science and water polo.
A native of Brazil, he can trace so much of his unique American journey through both pursuits, and it all started in Foggy Bottom.
Souza left his mark on GW men's water polo with 387 goals and 521 total points from 1990-93, a pair of marks that remain program records more than 25 years later.
Beyond that success in the pool, he took full advantage of his academic opportunities to earn three degrees from the university, culminating with his doctorate in Physical Chemistry in 2003.
As he explained in his Ted Talk, Souza relied on connections made through his favorite sport on the road to co-founding a nanotechnology company. Today, his work continues under the banner of Greiner Bio-One, pioneering ways to make continued advances in a complex field.
"Without the sport, I wouldn't have gone to GW and I probably wouldn't have stayed in the U.S." said Souza, who was inducted into the GW Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004. "I'm American because of GW. Otherwise, it wouldn't have happened."
Souza has quite the #OnlyatGW tale. He graduated high school in Brazil before making the move to D.C. with his diplomat father in 1990.
Naturally, Souza sought out opportunities to play water polo, a sport he'd played at a high level back home. As a member of D.C. Polo, he met Callie Flipse, who was then coaching at GW.
Flipse offered Souza a scholarship, sold him on the idea of joining the Buff and Blue and helped him navigate the university admissions process.
"As you get older, you start to think of the people that did something that really changed your life," Souza said. "There's absolutely no question that Callie was one of those people for me."
Souza's English was limited at the beginning, but his newfound Buff and Blue family made the process easier every step of the way. It helped that teammate Rick Mehedff was also Brazilian, so they could converse in Portuguese in and out of the pool.
"When you have to learn, you learn," Souza said. "You've got to eat. You've got to survive."
In the pool, Souza made the transition look seamless, emerging as a versatile jack-of-all-trades capable of shining in any spot in the offense. Playing under Flipse and later Head Coach Andy Turnage, he scored at least 80 goals in all four seasons, becoming a four-time team MVP and four-time All-Conference First Team selection. Twice, he led the Buff and Blue to the final of the CWPA Eastern Championship.
Along the way, he made unforgettable memories and lasting friendships.
"For me, sports were, of course, critical to integrate, to improve my understanding of the language, but really, it was just a lot of fun to be a part of GW water polo with those guys," Souza said.
Souza's studies kept him in Foggy Bottom long after his collegiate water polo career had finished.
His research using gold nanoparticles to manipulate cells, under veteran chemistry professor J. Houston Miller, allowed him a spot at the forefront of an emerging field of study.
In total, he was part of the GW Chemistry Department for about a dozen years.
"I'm sort of a gut feeling kind of guy," Souza said. "If whatever I'm doing feels right, I just keep pushing."
Souza moved on to become a post-doctoral fellow and Odyssey Scholar at the University of Texas' M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston to develop the nanotechnology for cancer treatment applications.
Of course, he sought a place to play water polo. It was at the pool that he met Thomas Killian, a physicist and former Harvard water polo student-athlete.
"Water polo, it's a small community," said Souza, who competed against Killian when he was a member of the Crimson. "You always find connections with people. It's less than six degrees of separation, definitely."
Souza and Killian, along with pals Rob Raphael and David Lee, hatched the idea for their company, Nano3D Biosciences, over a weekly dinner meeting for half-priced burgers in a local Irish pub.
Launched amid the Great Recession in 2008, Nano3D Biosciences was a true start-up with Souza drawing no salary for the first year, but the friends persevered, driven by a belief in the technology and work ethic honed as water polo student-athletes.
"I joke that we didn't know enough: Because if we knew how hard it was going to be, maybe we would've taken an easier path," Souza said. "Ignorance is bliss, there's a little bit of truth in that."
It's been an enjoyable run that reached a new chapter in late 2019 when Germany-based Greiner Bio-One bought the technology.
Souza relocated from Texas to Charlotte, N.C., with his wife Kristin and children Olivia and Ian, to continue his work.
Still great friends with Killian, Raphael and Lee, Souza is grateful for a partnership born out of his dueling passions for science and water polo. He echoes the theme of his Ted Talk in explaining why it's worked so well.
"The idea, the science, it all came from friends," Souza said. "When you resonate with people on different levels – if you're friends, if you play water polo – things amplify. Your chances for success go much higher."