Garrett's research focuses on the transport proteins (amino acid permeases) involved in the uptake of amino acids in yeast cells. This work has several applications beyond an understanding of nutrient uptake, including a contribution to the development of amino acid transport control within bread and brewing industries and advancements in human neurodegenerative disorder research.
Garrett attended North East Surrey College of Technology in Surrey, UK, where she was a member of the Institute of Biology (B.Sc. equivalent). She later earned her M.Sc. in chemistry at Trent University and her Ph.D. in biochemistry and biophysics at Texas A & M University. Garrett's courses at Hamilton include genetics at the introductory level and molecular biology at the senior level. Garrett consistently keeps students involved in her research as summer assistants, senior thesis students, and senior fellows.
Among Garrett's published works, she has contributed to the Journal of Bacteriology, and Molecular and General Genetics. For the past 16 years, Garrett has been continuously funded by both the NIH and the National Science Foundation (NSF.) NIH grant includes support for her project, "Genetic Analysis of Yeast Mitochondrial Protein Import", from July 1987 to June 1991 and "Regulation of Nitrogen Metabolism in Yeast", from September 1986 to February 1989. Garrett has been an ad hoc member of the Microbial Physiology and Genetics I Study Section of NIH and a panel member for the NSF Undergraduate Curriculum and Course Development in Engineering, Mathematics, and the Sciences.
Garrett served on the Committee on Academic Policy and Committee on Appointments at Hamilton College. She is currently Chair of the Biology Department and participates in a wide variety of campus activities including the planning of the new science facilities and the events of the Kirkland Project, which is a study of gender, society, and culture at Hamilton that questions social issues within the community. In 1998, Garrett organized a national conference "Communicating Science" on campus and she has served as an ad hoc member of the National Education Committee of American Women in Science.
