January 21 - 26, 2024

Shirmia Artis is a Research Project Coordinator with the All of Us Research Program at Baylor Scott & White Health. Shirmia has been with the program since 2017. Shirmia is the Quality Assurance and Biobank Lead and oversees four different Central and North Texas sites. Shirmia comes from a background in laboratory and compliance with 20 years of experience. Shirmia graduated from Trident University International with a Master’s degree in Health Science, Public Health Epidemiology. She is currently a Ph.D. student at Walden University, obtaining her doctorate in Public Health Epidemiology. She is a member of the Alpha Beta Kappa (ABK) Honors society and the National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS) Honors Society. Shirmia plans to continue working in research to become a Principal Investigator. Shirmia has two kids, one boy and one girl, and two grandsons. She likes to dance, play poker, watch plays and musicals, and enjoy life outdoors in her past time.

Adebola Bamidele is a first year medical student at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) South Georgia in Moultrie, GA. She received her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry at the College of Wooster in 2019. In 2021, she received her master’s degree in biomedical sciences from Quinnipiac University.

During her undergraduate career, Adebola conducted a project titled: The Effects of Phytophthora sojae Effector Protein PsAvh110 on the PHO Regulon within Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Currently, Adebola is working with Dr. Holly Horan to investigate the relationship between genetic factors associated with endometriosis and demographic variables such as race and age. The research that she is conducting aligns with her future career goal of becoming an OBGYN.

Jonica Carlton Best is a first-year student at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine South Georgia in Moultrie Georgia. Before entering medical school, she commissioned as an Officer in the United States Air Force and currently holds the rank of Second Lieutenant. Upon completion of medical school, Jonica hopes to specialize in psychiatry.

Jonica has also received her undergraduate degree from Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia. Here, she graduated Magna Cum Laude from the Honors College with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology. While at Columbus State, Jonica worked as a waitress, sandwich artist, and volunteer in the emergency room. Also, in her undergraduate career Jonica completed research on topics ranging from altruism, adverse childhood trauma, and prosocial behavior. Her senior thesis examined how cults are perceived in society. Upon graduation, Jonica worked full time as an autism therapist and behavioral health aide. Currently, she is working with Dr. Eboni Winford on research exploring societal attitudes on rape culture.

Georgina Boateng was born and raised in Ghana, West African. She migrated to the United States with her sisters at the age of 13. She graduated from East Carolina university with a degree in Biology and Neuroscience. She is a first generation first year medical school at PCOM South Georgia and serves as a first generation chair at her medical school. She also serves as a stakeholder for the Sickle Cell Disease Implementation Consortium Research. She loves her family and hopes to become a neonatologist later on in the future.

Erika Ventura Castellon obtained her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Kentucky in December 2018. After graduation, she gained experience as a pediatric bedside nurse at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in the Pediatric Transplant and General Pediatrics/Hematology/Oncology units. She is currently a first-year Ph.D. student at the University of Maryland School of Nursing. Her research interests include: pediatrics, health literacy, family caregivers who are primarily Spanish speaking in the setting of a solid organ transplant, and caregiver wellbeing. Erika is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) and currently serves as the President of the NAHN DC Metro Chapter. Through her involvement with NAHN, she was introduced to the All of Us Research Program and has been working on raising awareness of the program as well as the importance of participating in research in the community.

Selena is a second-year medical student at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. She attended UC San Diego for her undergraduate studies where she earned her B.S. in Biochemistry and Cellular Biology, and later her M.Sc. in Biology. Her professional interests include working with underserved communities to improve healthcare access and studying the genetic and social determinants of health in immigrant and refugee communities. In her Free Time, she enjoys ice skating, rock climbing, and exploring the outdoors.

Amarachi Chukwunyere is creating her educational pathway in fulfilling her career ambition to be a part of the crucial healthcare process serving vulnerable populations. A sophomore, Pre-nursing major at Winston-Salem State University, Amarachi seeks to become a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM). Working as a CNM will allow her to provide gynecological services and counseling beyond labor and delivery, and reproductive health for lowincome communities. A well-rounded student, excelling in and outside the classroom, Amarachi also serves as an American Heart Association Undergraduate Research Assistant for the Department of Health, Physical Education and Sport Studies (HPSS). In this role, Amarachi is gaining hands-on research experience regarding cardiovascular disease and its impact contributing to overarching health inequities. Her research interests include food and nutrition insecurity and its association with poor cardiovascular outcomes. Amarachi, also known as “Amara” is a native of Raleigh, North Carolina. Her list of accomplishments and extra-curricular activities include membership as a Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) Scholar, United Negro College Fund (UNCF) Scholar, Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT) Career Prep Scholar, Epsilon Tau Sigma (ETS) Allied Health Honor Society member, and an End of Right Pathway mentor providing support to children and youth engaged in the Raleigh juvenile justice system. In her spare time, Amarachi embraces multi-culturalism and inclusion by exploring new foods, new activities, and new destinations.

Pearl Hill is an undergraduate student and prospective concentrator of Neuroscience and Cognitive function. Born and raised in the heart of North Carolina, maintaining a healthy lifestyle was not seen as a priority during her upbring. Naturally gifted with an inquisitive mind, this lack of exposure organically sparked her curiosity to test and explore various areas of healthcare. Pearl continues to take on new challenges and opportunities for growth in the medical field with hopes to contribute to the future of this industry in a significant way. Pearl currently serves as a board member in the Female Minorities in Medicine group operating as chair of the Networking Program, whose primary focus is to cultivate a network of like-minded women in medicine by expanding resources and encouraging collaboration. Pearl aspires to pursue a career of purpose in medicine as she works towards becoming a physician. Pearl is currently working with Dr. Min Tang-Shomer to discover connections between socioeconomic status and mental disease.

Maikel Hislop is a laboratory technician at the Yale School of Public Health. He received his bachelor’s in Biology & Medical Laboratory Research in 2021 at the Hogeschool Utrecht. Maikel is mainly involved with multiple longitudinal pneumococcal carriage studies and SalivaDirect studying saliva-based SARS-CoV-2 testing. Maikel volunteers through the Yale School of Public health assisting on a SARS-CoV-2 testing site, that offers free tests to refugees. His areas of interest include public health, clinical research, and health disparities.

Sahra Ibrahimi is a doctoral student in the Maternal and Child Health program at the University of Maryland (UMD) in College Park. As lead author, Sahra has more than six years of research experience. Prior to completing her master's in public health, Sahra worked as a Technical Project Officer at Abt Associates on the Health Financing and Governance (HFG) project, a 5-year global contract awarded by USAID and implemented in 40 countries. Her research focuses on reproductive health, and currently, she teaches FMSC110, Families and Global Health, and she was a teaching assistant for FMSC310 Maternal, Child and Family Health, in addition to being a research assistant for El Camino Project.

Sahra was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and came to the U.S. at age 14 for the Seeds of Peace Program in 2009, after which she received a full scholarship to attend the Ethel Walker High School in Simsbury, CT. She graduated from Smith College in Northampton, MA, with a BA in Economics and fulfillment of pre-med requirements in 2017. You can learn more about her @ https://sites.google.com/sahra-ibrahimi.

Farhana Islam is a third-year undergraduate student at Xavier Univeristy of Louisiana. She is majoring in Public Health Sciences and minoring in Biology. Since the summer of 2021, Farhana has been a student research assistant with Dr. Felicia V. Wheaton, who has been serving as her mentor. Farhana and Dr. Wheaton utilized the 2020 Health and Retirement Study to examine age, gender, race, and ethnic disparities in the impact of COVID-19 on older adults, as well as potential mediators. She completed the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research training and helped submit an IRB application, conducted a literature review and managed references in Zotero, gained practice writing a research manuscript, utilized SPSS for data management and analysis, and completed a journal peer review. Farhana was also given the opportunity to create and present scientific posters and presentations at Xavier’s summer research symposium and national conferences including the 2021 American Public Health Association (APHA) and Gerontological Society of America (GSA). In addition to being a full-time student, Farhana is also the President of Xavier’s Muslim Student Association. She has organized interfaith service events and several community service events. Her areas of interest include infectious disease epidemiology, global health, public health, health equity, and health disparities.

Feel free to connect with her on LinkedIn!

Raymond Kao is a Clinical Research Coordinator at UCSF in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. He currently works on recruitment and coordinating participant activities for the All of Us Research Program at UCSF. He graduated from UCSB in 2019, where he majored in Biological Sciences. After graduation, he worked as an EMT working mainly in underserved communities. He has also volunteered with various organizations throughout the Bay Area. After witnessing the various health disparities in marginalized communities, he realized his calling to medicine and is applying to medical school next cycle.

He immigrated from Taiwan to the US in 2004. As an immigrant, his family faced difficulties accessing healthcare. His personal background informs his research interests, which are immigrant health, increasing Asian-American representation in biomedical research, and addressing health disparities in healthcare.

Sharla Kirkpatrick is a sociology and psychology student at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. She is a second year undergraduate student completing her fourth semester and she is set to graduate May 2024. In the past year since discovering research she has quickly developed a love for producing it. She was recently selected to be a 2021-2022 1890 Center of Excellence for Nutrition, Health, Wellness, and Quality of Life Health Disparities Scholar. Sharla is passionate about uncovering health disparities within the black community and low-income populations. Her research interests include uncovering barriers to achieving balanced nutrition, diet, and physical activity within these communities.

Andy Lai is a native New Yorker and currently a third-year medical student at Saint George’s University School of Medicine completing his clinical clerkship rotations in New York City. Prior to attending medical school, Andy graduated from Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition Dietetics and completed Stony Brook Medicine’s Dietetic Internship Program to become a licensed Registered Dietitian. After receiving his license, Andy worked in different community hospitals in the Bronx, NY for over 2 years prior to starting medical school to broaden his medical knowledge to better provide and care for others. Andy is passionate about helping people improve their health and aspires to become a physician to serve his community.

Adriana C. Mares (@AdrianaCMares) is a student at the University of Texas at El Paso/Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso. In 2020, she received her Master of Science in Public Health and Biological Sciences on a full-ride scholarship, Terry Foundation, and was the recipient of the Academic & Research Excellence Award and was named a Top Ten Senior.
Mares is also the recipient of the 2021 Appreciation Award presented by her city’s teaching hospital and medical school, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso and University Medical Center, for her ongoing commitment and dedicated service to medical education, community, and patients.
Inspired by her current research and encouraged by mentors, she is motivated to pursue a career in academic cardiology and interventional cardiology. Her research interests include all aspects of structural and congenital heart disease, pharmacologic strategies of pulmonary hypertension, integration of precision medicine into cardiovascular care, and the application of artificial intelligence in cardiac imaging. Mares is a keen researcher, particularly recognized for her research pertaining to cardiovascular medicine, and clinical studies such as pLATINum which she leads as the principal investigator. She has published more than 20 peer reviewed scientific publications and abstracts. She has been elected to the American College of Cardiology’s Inaugural Medical Student Leadership Group and serves on its Editorial Board. In conjunction with her studies, Mares is Founder and President of the Institute of Cardiology at El Paso (ICEP), ambassador of the NIH All of Us Research Program, and committee member of her local American Heart Association chapter and pulmonary hypertension support group (El Paso PHighters Support Group).
Outside of medicine, Mares enjoys playing polo, poetry, creative writing, traveling, hiking with her poodle, and most of all, spending time with her family.
Feel free to connect with her on LinkedIn!

David Meawad is a second-year Honors College student at the University of South Florida majoring in Biomedical Sciences and minoring in Healthcare Administration. He has conducted research at the University of South Florida with Dr. Roone Wilson on the effects of minority parental unemployment on childhood outcomes. David is the Social Chair on the Judy Genshaft Honors College Student Planning Board. He is also a basketball coach at the Countryside Rec. David aspires to pursue a career in medicine and become a practicing physician. David is currently working with Dr. Aliza Ben-Zacharia to explore the human microbiome literacy among individuals.

Sara Meawad is currently a first-year medical student at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in South Georgia, where she also serves as a student co-director for the Health Career Collaborative Program in the efforts of influencing and introducing young adults to the field of science and medicine. Sara graduated with her Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Sciences from the University of South Florida. She also graduated with her Master of Science degree in Medical Sciences from the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine. She was recently inducted as an AHEC Scholar, which is a two-year commitment where students are prepared to practice medicine in rural and medically underserved areas through a didactic and hands-on curriculum, as well as special leadership and community service projects, to achieve core competencies in topic areas, such as Interprofessional Education and Practice, Social Determinants of Health, and Cultural Competency, among many other disciplines. Sara is currently working with Dr. Stephanie Cook to investigate the impact of being an ethnic minority with a low household income on cardiovascular health.

Esosa Frances Mohammed is a social work student at East Tennessee State University, and she is scheduled to graduate in May 2022 with a masters degree in social work with a clinical and rehabilitation focus. Esosa’s interest in becoming a social worker can be summarized by Earl Nightingale when he says, “we are at our very best, and we are happiest when we are fully engaged in work we enjoy on the journey toward the goal we have established for ourselves.” Her goal is to help clients cope, manage, and overcome problems such as poverty, abuse, and addiction through counseling, connect clients with needed resources, and empower them to create change in their own lives. Personal experience has shown Esosa that individuals and groups can learn ways to improve their lives and cope effectively with the right support and skill set. Esosa’s time at ETSU has instilled in her a strong desire to help improve lives, and she firmly believes that research is one of the pathways to achieving successful health outcomes. Esosa is a TN AHEC Scholar and recipient of the outstanding thesis in Arts and Humanities award 2018 after completing her first masters degree in Liberal Arts with a concentration in Gender and Diversity. Her current research interests include enhancing resilience in marginalized groups, developing a resilience scale, harm reduction in substance use and restorative programs, and qualitative research methodology. As a graduate student, Esosa is learning to explore issues across academic disciplines, methodologies, and theories. She is inspired daily by her four beautiful children, and in her Free Time, she likes to take pictures because she believes that capturing every moment gives her the chance to go back and relive those exciting, joyful, or even poignant moments of life.

Deblina Mukherjee is a second-year medical student at St. George’s University School of Medicine. Additionally, she is a content author, a high school biology teacher, a research assistant, and a tutor. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Biological Sciences from Rutgers University in 2018, she worked as a high school biology teacher at the Academy for Urban Leadership Charter School from 2018 to 2020 where she found her true purpose. She aims to serve underrepresented and underserved populations by educating the next generation. In the next ten years, Deblina sees herself as a pediatrician as well as a medical school professor who focuses on serving the community by educating its youth.

Sohini Mukherjee is a highschool student at West Windsor Plainsboro Highschool South. In the past year Sohini has participated in research in the topics of The effect of social determinants of health on self-rated mental health in Asian Americans and a topic of recent interest, epidemiology of the Covid -19 pandemic.

Sohini was born and brought up in Plainsboro, New Jersey. She enjoys taking part in local volunteer work with the WWP Education Foundation in order to raise money in order to support other foundations such as Toys For Tots and even organized a mask drive during the pandemic. Sohini is also a tutor in the areas of math and science and works for a nonprofit called Medicine Encompassed to create resources for the pharmacology section.

Jean Ryu is a third year undergraduate student at the University of Alabama pursuing a dual degree in psychology, anthropology, and biology. They hope to medical school and work in obstetrics and gynecology. Jean is working with their mentor, Dr. Holly Horan, on a maternal and infant health research needs assessment, a perineal trauma prevention case study, and on a perinatal self-advocacy project supported by The University of Alabama's VitAL program. Their 2021 MSRS poster, "Interprofessional Prevention of OASIS" won the People's Choice Award. For this year's MSRS symposium, Jean plans to continue research that highlights the experiences of perinatal care for trans, gender-queer, and non-binary populations.

Daniella Salawu earned her Associates in Science (AS) degree from Harold’s Washington College in 2014. Afterwards, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree (BA) in Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in 2017. During her undergraduate years, she interned and volunteered in community interventions, hospitals, and non-profit organizations. After graduating from UIC, she became a referral specialist at AIM Specialty Health/Anthem. Simultaneously, she earned a Master of Science (MS) in Biomedical Sciences at the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science. Within this university, she became an HCOP (Health Careers Opportunity Program) Ambassador. She serves as a mentor to undergraduate and post-baccalaureate students. Furthermore, she participated in experimental curriculum and engages in experiential learning opportunities that emphasize the health needs of the surrounding communities.

At Regis University, she is pursuing dual degrees in Doctorate in Pharmacy (PharmD) and Master of Science in Health Informatics (MSHI). In addition, she is pursuing a certificate in Pharmaceutical Industry Affairs. During her first year, she was nominated and won the most Supportive P1 Award. Despite her academic pursuits, she participates in other experiential learning: Global Health Pathway (GHP) and AHEC Scholars. As part of GHP, she participates in service projects domestically or internationally. Currently, she volunteers at the student clinic at the Haven of Home homeless shelter. Simultaneously, she is enrolled in a one credit course that covers interprofessional Global Health topics. At the end of the course, she will earn an academic concentration in global health. As an AHEC scholar, she completes 40 hours of community service and 40 hours of self-paced didactic curriculum each year. The curriculum covers various health topics such as: interprofessional education, behavioral health integration, practice transformation, social determinants of health, cultural competency, and current and emerging health issues in Colorado. This program is a two-year commitment. She is currently a second-year pharmacy student. While maintaining a 3.81 GPA, she works part-time in an independent Compounding Pharmacy. In conclusion, she is working hard towards becoming a Clinical Pharmacist.

My name is Alexia Smalling and I am representing TIRR Memorial Hermann. I graduated with a B.S. from Texas Tech University and I currently work as an outreach representative and research assistant at Independent Living Research Utilization. I have a personal interest in addressing healthcare disparities, racial and gender injustices, disability rights, activism, healthcare education and equity.

Jaelyn Stepter is currently a third-year pharmacy student at Xavier University of Louisiana College of Pharmacy. She originally was born in Baton Rouge Louisiana, but moved and spent the majority of her life in Jacksonville, FL. Before attending the College of pharmacy at Xavier, Jaelyn attended the University of North Florida where she majored in Biomedical Science.

Jaelyn is currently employed at Walgreens Pharmacy as a Pharmacist Intern where she performs the common duties of a pharmacist, verifies and fills prescriptions, as well as educates and counsels patients on their medication. Her professional long-term goals are to expand upon a career in clinical pharmacy as well conducting research. After graduating from the college of pharmacy, Jaelyn plans to go onto a two-year residency program to gain more information and knowledge to enhance her clinical expertise in addition to expanding her skills in research and administration.

Jaelyn’s current research is centered around patients with diabetes and co-occurring peripheral artery disease. With the guidance of Dr. Chamika Hawkins-Taylor, they will characterize patients with these two disease states based on their demographics to determine who is at a greater risk for limb loss.

During Jaelyn’s matriculation in the college of pharmacy, she has had the privilege to serve and hold leadership roles in many professional organizations, along with having the privilege of being inducted into Phi Lambda Sigma Pharmacy Leadership Society and Rho Chi Honors Society. Jaelyn believes that each experience has taught her a different lesson and has molded her into the passionate and determined professional she is today

Darani (Ashley) Thammavongsa is a second-year, Health Care Genetics Masters student at the University of Connecticut. In 2019, she received her Bachelor’s degree from Southern Connecticut State University. She is a member of the Genome Ambassadors Program(GAP) at the University of Connecticut’s Institute of Systems Genomics. She is also a laboratory technician to Dr. Anne Wyllie at the Yale School of Public Health, where she is studying saliva-based antibody testing of SARS-CoV-2 by utilizing multiplex immunoassays. Ashley volunteers as a patient navigator for the Yale Haven Free Clinic, which works with the uninsured adult population in New Haven, and has gotten the pleasure to work with a diverse patient population. Her areas of interest include public health, clinical research, personalized genetic medicine, chronic health diseases, and mental health disorders. Feel free to connect with her on LinkedIn!

Jessica Trinh is a first-year medical student at Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Rochester, MN. She is among the first-generation in her family to attend college, completing a Bachelor of Science degree in neuroscience at Yale College. She completed her senior thesis in the Modern Diet and Physiology Research Center in Dana Small’s lab where she studied taste, olfaction, and craving. Following her undergraduate studies, she attended culinary school at Le Cordon Bleu London completing a culinary nutrition program

Born and raised in Rockford, IL, Jessica is passionate about addressing health access disparities and working with underserved communities throughout her medical career. During college, she served as Co-Director of the Education Department for Yale’s student-run HAVEN free clinic and interned at CitySeed, a food justice nonprofit based in New Haven, CT. She previously worked at Center for Asian Health Equity in Chicago, IL as an intern in the Chronic and Infectious Disease Department. Currently, she is a Medical Student Ambassador for the Asian Engagement & Recruitment Core of the Asian Health Coalition, a national community engagement partner for the All of Us Research Program. In her Free Time, she enjoys cooking and baking for others, running along scenic trails with too many geese, and watching TV shows with friends.

Menglin is a third-year graduate student in the Department of Human Development and Family Science at Auburn University. She received her bachelor’s degree in Global Studies in Human Sciences from Auburn University in 2019 and graduated with Summa Cum Laude honor. She has been working as a Graduate Research Assistant for Dr. Francesca Adler-Baeder on her project Alabama Healthy Marriage and Relationship Education Initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Family Assistance since she started graduate school. Menglin’s primary research interests are couple relationships and their health behaviors and outcomes in terms of how couples influence each other’s health choices and how they co-regulate their health together. She’s also interested in studying those questions in the context of Couple Relationship Education (CRE) by applying her knowledge on community-based programming and program evaluation. Menglin has a passion for doing research and she has been demonstrating that by participating and presenting at university-level, regional, and national conferences. Her poster on couple and family functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic won top graduate student poster award in Auburn University’s annual research symposium in 2021. Menglin is a very active and engaging departmental citizen and she loves to devote herself in services for the department and the university. She serves as the President of the Graduate Student Organization (GSO) in the department aiming to help fellow graduate students to enjoy their own journeys in grad school. She also demonstrated her service through serving on multiple committees both at the college and university level including college research symposium planning committee, university academic honesty committee, and department thesis panel for first-year graduate students.

Michael Yi is a 3rd year medical student at the Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) exploring specialties and is passionate about minority and disadvantaged populations. He has published in the Journal of First-Generation Student Success, created multiple social media videos to improve awareness of health issues in minority communities, led numerous school-wide events attended by 250+ members, and has been a mentor for First-Generation Asian-American students and prospective medical students.
In his Free Time, Michael enjoys reading, snowboarding, and finding new restaurants. Please email myi@som.geisinger.edu to contact Michael.

Dr. Mazhar Adli is an associate Professor at Northwestern Medical School, Robert H Lurie Comprehensive cancer center, and the department of ObGyn. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (NC, USA) in 2007. He completed his postdoctoral training from Harvard Medical School at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT in 2012.

He started his independent laboratory at the University of Virginia, School of Medicine as an assistant professor in 2012 and rose to the associate professor rank. Dr. Adli joined the Feinberg School of medicine in January of 2020. His laboratory is developing cutting-edge genome editing and manipulation tools to understand genome organization in healthy and disease settings. The Adli lab has strong expertise in epigenomic mapping and CRISPR-based genome and epigenome manipulation technologies. His lab pioneered efforts to map and identify genome-wide Cas9 off-targets and binding specificities and developed computational CRISPR off-target prediction tools. The lab continues developing and utilizing CRISPR-based functional genomic tools to manipulate and monitor a wide range of genomic features, including chromatin imaging, targeted epigenetic editing and editing, and high throughput CRISPR screenings.

The ultimate research goal in the Adli lab is to understand key drivers of aberrant genome regulation in disease settings such as cancer. To achieve this, his laboratory utilizes genomic and epigenomic mapping, editing, and imaging approaches to understand genome regulation in normal and cancer settings. His laboratory integrates experimental tools (genome mapping and editing tools) with large-scale computational data analysis approaches to tackle significant challenges in genome regulation and understand the fundamentals of aberrant genome regulation in cancer and other diseases.

Dr. Brittney Anderson grew up on a small family farm in Alabama. She attended Duke University for her undergraduate studies, majoring in Psychology, pre-med. Upon completion of college, Dr. Anderson obtained a Master’s Degree in Rural and Community Health from The University of Alabama. She received her medical degree from UAB School of Medicine in Birmingham, AL in 2014. Dr. Anderson then completed her family medicine training at The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa Family Medicine Residency Program. She recently completed a fellowship in the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) Health Equity Fellowship.

Dr. Anderson has a passion for rural and underserved populations. She practices family medicine in Demopolis, Alabama and has a faculty appointment as an assistant professor in the Department of Family, Internal, and Rural Medicine at The College of Community Health Sciences in Tuscaloosa, AL. She enjoys teaching medical students and family medicine residents. In 2020, she was presented with the University of Alabama School of Medicine Distinguished Young Alumni Award. Dr. Anderson is a member of the UAB School of Medicine Admissions Committee, is the current Secretary/Treasurer of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama, and is the President of the West Alabama Medical Association, a collaborative group of African-American healthcare providers from the West Alabama area.

Dr. Anderson’s career interests include minority health disparities, particularly in Alabama’s Black Belt, and identifying and addressing social determinants of health. She is dedicated to increasing recruitment and retention of students who are under-represented in medicine and reducing the shortage of Black physicians practicing in the U.S. Dr. Anderson enjoys participating in research projects related to her interests and is a co-investigator on a grant exploring disparities related to renal disease in Alabama.

Dr. Anderson enjoys traveling and has visited Ghana, West Africa, on multiple occasions to learn about the culture and practice of medicine there. She is a member of several community organizations and non-profit boards in the West Alabama region.

Dr. Ben-Zacharia is an Assistant Professor at Phillips School of Nursing, Mount Sinai Hospital and Hunter College. Dr. Ben-Zacharia is a full-time faculty and an assistant professor on a tenure track at Hunter College and is the Co-Director of the Research fellowship at the Phillips School of Nursing Beth Israel Mount Sinai. She is an adult/acute nurse practitioner with experience in acute care, neurology, and rehabilitation. Dr. Ben-Zacharia is a multiple sclerosis expert and a researcher. Dr. Ben-Zacharia developed multiple neurological educational programs for patients, nurses, physicians, and other health care providers. She is on the editorial board of MS Perspectives, a patient MS magazine. Dr. Ben-Zacharia has won multiple awards from the NMSS (Hall of Fame and educational award), the IOMSN (Research award), and Mount Sinai Hospital (rehabilitation, neurology service award and the Cullman Patients’ award).

Dr. Ben-Zacharia is known for her work in improving the care of patients with multiple sclerosis and other neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases such as, neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders and their care partners throughout the spectrum of their diseases. Dr. BenZacharia research interests involve technology use in neurology, palliative care in neurology, the effect of music on cognitive function in patients with neurological diseases and the impact of environmental factors such as body mass index on the progression of multiple sclerosis and on cognitive function and brain volume in patients with multiple sclerosis. Currently, Dr. BenZacharia is part of a neurology team from the northeast region of the USA (Yale University Neurology Center, Greenwich Hospital Neurology Center CT, Maimonides Hospital Multiple Sclerosis Center in Brooklyn, and Independence care System in NY) that is addressing the need for palliative care education among patients with neurological chronic illnesses.

Funded by the PSC-CUNY Foundation, Dr. Ben-Zacharia is collaborating with nurse researchers at Yale University and Mount Sinai to test an educational and technological model to improve the learning experience of undergraduate students of the complexity of the brain and related neurological diseases, focusing on multiple sclerosis.

Complete List of Published Work in My Bibliography: https://pubmed-ncbi-nlm-nih-gov.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/?term=Ben-Zacharia

Ross Baiers (he/they) is a health communicator, project manager, facilitator, and systematic thinker. He currently serves as Research Study Coordinator Senior for the All of Us Research Program at Northwestern University. Ross’s work at All of Us focuses on building equitable partnerships with community organizations and health providers in the Chicago area, with motivation to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in health research through community engagement. He also provides project management for internal and external projects in the areas of study recruitment, communications, engagement, and staff development.

Ross brings to his position a diverse set of research experiences that formed his passion for equity. He has worked in various research positions across the globe, most notably in Brazil, Peru, and Thailand; this work has spanned topics such as HIV prevention, rural indigenous health, and equitable built environments. In his current work, Ross also utilizes experience in data management, staff development & training, and social justice facilitation.

Ross received a Master’s of Public Health in Health Behavior & Health Education from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, where he specialized in Health Communications and Global Health; he also received a B.A. in Environmental Science from the University of Michigan.

Dr. Brown is currently Interim Associate Dean of Education, Quality Assurance, and Community Engagement in the College of Arts Science, Business, and Education Business (CASBE) at Winston-Salem State University (WSSU). Prior to her current position, Dr. Williams Brown served as the university’s chair for the Department of Health, Physical Education and Sport Studies (HPSS). Dr. Brown, a former high school physical education teacher and coach, is also an Associate Professor in the Department of HPSS. She serves on numerous university committees and is active in professional organizations. She also serves as the university’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Faculty Athletics Representative. Dr. Williams Brown's research interests include obesity prevention and intervention in children and college women, and cardiovascular disease interventions in women. She is also interested in community health outreach programs, especially those related to faith-based institutions. Her current research focuses on weight management and chronic disease in African American adults and obesity prevention in children. Through her work, Dr. Williams Brown has focused on addressing the social determinants of health and the overarching goal to obtain health equity for all persons. Her research efforts and other projects have helped her establish collaborative research relationships that undergird extensive community engagement and research productivity. Therefore, she now serves on various boards and committees including the American Heart Association (AHA) of the Triad, Addiction Recovery Care Association (ARCA), and the William G. White Family YMCA. Additionally, she is member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Personally, Dr. Williams Brown embraces opportunities to exercise, mediate, and engage in overall personal self-care and empowerment to reduce health disparities risk factors.

Stephanie L. Burke, MS, MHA, CHES is currently an Associate Professor of the Health Navigator program and Program Director for the Community Health Worker continuing education program at Prince George’s Community College. As a dedicated Public Health Professional, she has been influential in promoting better health outcomes in communities through prevention and educational outreach.

Through her leadership she has fostered a positive and collaborative organizational culture to aid in behavioral change that impacts communities on a global level. Ms. Burke is a highly motivated and passionate Public Health professional and offers expertise in population health management, cultural awareness training, health literacy, health communications, program development, implementation, and evaluation. In addition, she has years of expertise in community engagement, health coaching, program implementation, program development, creating effective health campaigns and programs that impact targeted communities.

Ms. Burke received a B.S. in Community Health, her Masters in Health Administration both are from Hofstra University and a second Masters in Health Communication from Boston University. She is currently a doctoral candidate in Public Health at Morgan State University. She is also a certified health education specialist (CHES).

Elizabeth Gross Cohn, RN, NP, PhD, FAAN was named a 2016 White House Champion of Change in Precision Medicine for her work at the intersection of precision medicine, public health and health equity. She is the Associate Provost for Research for Hunter College, and the Rudin Professor and Associate Dean for Research at the Hunter School of Nursing, City University of New York. She serves as the Engagement Lead Investigator for the New York City Precision Medicine Consortium of the All of Us Research Program, where she is also the chair of the Publication Board and the Incident Notification Board and for Screening for Cardiac Amyloidosis Using Nuclear Imaging for Minority Populations (SCAN-MP) and an NIH supplement which funded the work she will present today. Her work focuses on urban community-health, engagement of underrepresented communities, community-engaged research and the ethical, legal, social and scientific issues in precision medicine and public health. Her work with a Native American Reservation, the Unchung Nations Initiative to End Diabetes (UNITED) was funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, and a grant to strengthen resilience in communities (RESCUE) was funded by the New York State Department of Health. She is the co-director of Conversations New York, with a mission to promote more and better public conversations in New York.

Her work has been featured in the New York Times, on National Public Radio’s All Things Considered, in The Atlantic and in Men’s Health. She is the author of an Elsevier cardiology text, Flip and See ECG, now in its fourth edition. She is an alum of the Robert Wood Johnson Nurse Faculty Scholars Program.

Dr. Cohn received her Associate Degree from Nassau Community College, her bachelor’s Degree from the State University of New York at Purchase, her Master’s Degree and Nurse Practitioner from the State University of New York at Stony Brook and her Doctorate from Columbia University.

Dr. Stephanie Cook’s overarching research focus is to understand how structural- and individual-level minority stressors contribute to mental health, physical health, and health behaviors across the life span. Further, she seeks to understand how features of close relationships can exacerbate or buffer the negative effects of minority stress on health. Her work primarily focuses on young adults transitioning to adulthood who are at the intersection of racial/ethnic and sexual orientation status. In addition, much of her current work examines the links between minority stress (i.e., daily experiences of discrimination) and biological markers of stress (e.g. cortisol and c-reactive protein).

Dr. Cook’s substantive methodological and statistical focus is in the development and application of longitudinal study designs (i.e., intensive longitudinal designs) for determining the ways in which dynamic changes in features of minority stress (e.g., daily and momentary discrimination events) are associated with changes in risk behaviors and physical health (e.g., sexual risk and substance use, pre-clinical cardiovascular disease, and biological stress) among racial/ethnic and/or sexual minority young adults.

Dr. Cook is the Director of the Attachment and Health Disparities Research Lab (AHDL) which is currently made up of about 20 undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral fellows. She I developed an integrated theory of adult attachment (the Integrated Attachment and Sexual Minority Stress Model [IASMS]; i.e., the development, or lack, of strong socio-emotional bonds) and minority stress (i.e., social stress experienced by individuals in minority social groups) as a means to better understand and address the health needs of disadvantaged youth transitioning to adulthood. Dr. Cook and her team’s long-term goal is to continue creating, implementing, and refining sustainable interventions to reduce the influence of stress on health utilizing innovative methodologies.

TJ Exford, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Exercise Science in the Department of Kinesiology at North Carolina A&T State University. Dr. Exford's research interest involves examining stress and exercise lifestyle management programing on chronic diseases and related cardiovascular pathology. Specifically, Dr. Exford explores the effects of a culturally tailored Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and exercise programing on chronic diseases (hypertension, resistant hypertension, diabetes) as a primary and secondary prevention strategy in minorities burdened with health disparities. Dr. Exford's research evaluates the impact of a culturally tailored mindfulness-based stress management and exercise intervention on perceived stress, blood pressure, and physiological biomarkers (cortisol, c-reactive protein (CRP), Interleukin 6(IL-6)) in African Americans.

Dr. Holly Horan is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Alabama and a birth and postpartum doula. She received her PhD in applied medical anthropology from Oregon State University in 2019, with specializations in epidemiology and human development and family sciences. Holly is a mentor for Jean Ryu and Adebola Bamidele. Her research focuses on maternal stress and birth outcomes in Puerto Rico and perinatal care access and expansion in Alabama. She recently worked alongside colleagues in Puerto Rico to conduct a student on perceived maternal stress. Holly also recently served as the program coordinator for the Community Doula Program, a Medicaid-funded program providing doula services to priority populations in three counties in Oregon. She serves as co-investigator on a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Grant and an National Institutes of Health Consortium Grant, both of which focus on improving access to and expanding perinatal care services and support in the state of Alabama.

Jay-Anne Johnson is a recent graduate of James Madison University where she received her Bachelor’s of Science in Biophysical Chemistry with minors in Mathematics and Chronic Illness in 2021. While there she was announced as the first black woman to receive her B.Sc. in Biophysical Science at James Madison and in the state of Virginia. She originally was born in Kingston, Jamaica and later relocated to Virginia. She participated in undergraduate research where she studied the role of the E3 ligase in the Ubiquitination reaction using computational chemistry; specifically, MD, QM/MM, and Amber.

Jay-Anne is a proud member of the American Chemical Society and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated. She has mentored high school students with an interest in S.T.E.M. for the ACS Project S.E.E.D. She is also dedicated in introducing elementary school students the importance of S.T.E.M. through demonstrations.

Jay-Anne is about to start a post-Baccalaureate program at University of Richmond in Department of Chemistry. After the completion of her post-baccalaureate program, she hopes to pursue here MD/PhD. Her areas of interest incorporate public health and disparities, clinical research, and global health issues.

Sylvia Pena is a registered nurse from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She graduated with her BSN in 2017 from Marquette University and returned to Marquette in 2018 to obtain her PhD in Nursing and will graduate May 2022. She has worked at the local pediatric hospital in her city, Children’s Wisconsin, on the infant/respiratory unit for three years and currently works with the City of Milwaukee Health Department’s Covid-19 hotline. Additionally, Sylvia have been a research assistant with Marquette University for the last three years and has recently transitioned roles and is an assistant professor at Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her research interests include addressing health disparities within the Hispanic community. Her current, dissertation study examines the impact of nutrition literacy and neighborhood on diet quality in individuals of Mexican origin. She hopes to utilize findings from this study to guide intervention studies to promote diet quality in this population in the future.

Winston Price, M.D., FAAP, FACPE is a board-certified pediatrician and served as the 105th President of the National Medical Association.

Dr. Price serves as the President and Chair for the National African American Drug Policy Coalition and also serves as the Chair of the Southwest Georgia Area Health Education Center (SOWEGA-AHEC) which focuses its mission to recruit, train and retain a robust and highly qualified health workforce for 38 counties in SW GA. He also serves as Chief Information Officer for the W. Montague COBB/NMA Health Institute. The Cobb Institute is a health equity think tank and focuses on increasing the pipeline of researchers from currently URM and works on joint initiatives with the NIH All of Us Research Program. He was appointed to serve on the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health Council/Steering Committee.

He has served on numerous advisory boards including the Board of Directors of the National Center on Missing and Exploited Children The Childhood Influenza Immunization Coalition, The Adult Vaccine Advisory Group, the Merck Vaccine Division and Medimmune RSV Advisory group. He was recently appointed to serve on the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health Steering Committee and continues to represent the NMA on the National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit (NAIIS).

His past administrative experience includes serving as medical director for Aetna Health Plans, Clinical Dean for the American University of Antigua Medical School and Medical Director for Georgia’s Medicaid Managed Care Program.

He holds academic positions at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine as an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Director of Pathway Programs for the SW Georgia Campus; and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Medical College of Georgia. Dr. Price also practices clinical medicine serving a SW population in Georgia with a focus on preventive care.

My research centers on using careful measurement in field-based research both to understand how people can overcome adversity to succeed and how to promote prosocial development. I investigate resilience & healthy development primarily through the lens of executive functioning among disadvantaged adolescents; I investigate prosocial development through animal- and nature-based educational and service learning programs for children in diverse cultures. I also enjoy collaborating to apply my knowledge of experimental methods and statistics to a range of health and social science endeavors. My expertise includes traditional psychometric & item response theory analyses; instrument development; and longitudinal, multilevel (mixed) modeling, factor analysis, & structural equation modeling. I also have considerable experience conducting studies—including randomized control trials—in difficult, field-based settings.

I am a biomedical engineer. After getting my doctoral degree from Boston University, I wanted to pursue my long-term interest in understanding the brain. I did my first postdoctoral training in traumatic brain injury at University of Pennsylvania and my second postdoctoral training in neural materials at Tufts University. My first-hand experience in translational neuroscience and bioengineering laboratories had opened my eyes to the profound gap between our need to study fundamental features of nervous system function and the limited utility of existing cell/tissue systems for such work. I have spent many years developing innovative technologies to grow brain cells on 3D scaffolds outside the body, and developing neural-material interfaces to regulate neuronal functions during development and after brain injury. As a postdoc, I led the research team that developed the first functional brain cortex-like 3D tissue model having realistic responses to traumatic brain injury. In my own lab, I applied the technology to epileptic patient brain tissue and successfully regenerated human neurons into cell-cultured 3D models. I have also been developing and studying 3D brain cancer patient-derived tumor models that can recapitulate the native tissue and provide more realistic drug responses. It is my hope that these patient-derived tumor models can eventually be used as a “test bed” for personalized drug testing.

I have a passion for teaching the younger generation transferrable skills for a career in biomedical sciences. I have taught laboratory courses, workshops, and mentored many students both in engineering and medicine. I have also been involved in outreach activities to improve brain cancer awareness and to engage students in healthcare careers. My goal in these efforts is to bridge the gap between academic learning and real-world experience in health care. I find it most rewarding to be able to ignite the spark of curiosity and love for discovery in my students. I myself also benefit from the diverse experience and perspective of the students. We are all in this together on a path to seek truth and make changes, how fantastic!

Krista Sowell is an assistant professor in the Department of Health, Physical Education, and Sports Studies at Winston Salem State University. She received her Ph.D. in Nutritional Biology with an emphasis in Immunology from the University of California, Davis, in 2016. The University of California, Davis equipped me with the foundational knowledge on how nutrition and dietary patterns affect both short-term and long-term human health. Dr. Sowell’s research interests are improving nutrition through evidence-based nutrition education in vulnerable populations. Her prior research has included investigating maternal nutritional and immunological factors that altered Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) susceptibility in alcohol-exposed infants. The nutritional environment a fetus is exposed to during gestation has a life-long impact on many areas of human health, including birth defects, cognitive performance, obesity, and chronic disease risk. Her current projects are focused on providing underserved populations access to nutrition education to help improve maternal and long-term health outcomes and reduce health disparities. The MSRS All of Us program offers a unique opportunity to enhance the learning experience of students through fostering a research mentorship that will develop critical thinking skills along with oral and written communication skills.

Alan B. Stevens, PhD, holds the Vernon D. Holleman-Lewis M. Rampy Centennial Chair in Gerontology at Baylor Scott & White Health and serves as the Director of the Center for Applied Health Research (CAHR), a BSWH system level center that facilitates investigator-initiated, multidisciplinary efforts to impact population health management with health care delivery and implementation science research. He is also a Professor of Medicine and Public Health at the Texas A&M Health Science Center.

Dr. Stevens has dedicated his research career to investigate the clinical and organization issues related to care delivery of older adults and their caregivers. With over 25 years’ experience in academic medical schools and a leading integrated healthcare organization, Dr. Stevens is nationally recognized for his contributions to the fields of dementia caregiving, care transitions, and management of chronic diseases. In 2020, Dr. Stevens was appointed as the Principal Investigator (PI) of the NIH-funded All of Us Program at BSWH. In 2014, he was invited to serve a two-year term on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine study committee that produced the 2016 publication “Families caring for an aging America”. In 2016, Dr. Stevens joined the Texas Health Improvement Network as an Advisory Committee member. Currently, he is also serving as a Co-Chair of the Family Caregiving Advisory Council, established by the Recognize, Assist, Include, Support and Engage (RAISE) Family Caregivers Act of 2017, to provide recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services on effective models of both family caregiving and support to family caregivers, as well as improving coordination across federal government programs.

Dr. Stevens is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Gerontological Society of America. He completed his graduate training at the University of New Orleans, earning a Masters degree and a Doctorate of Philosophy in Applied Developmental Psychology

Dr. Felicia Wheaton received her Bachelor’s degree in biology and anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley and received her Ph.D. in Gerontology from the University of Southern California (USC). Felicia Wheaton recently joined the Department of Public Health Sciences in the College of Arts & Sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana as an Assistant Professor. She primarily teaches graduate courses in the Health Equity MPH program, including Computer Applications (SPSS), Collaborative Leadership, and a Health Equity Seminar. She loves teaching and mentoring students, and is always interested in new and innovative pedagogies.

Dr. Wheaton utilizes a variety of population-based surveys, including the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), to examine the impact of psychosocial factors on the health and wellbeing of older adults.

Eboni Winford, Ph.D., MPH, is the Director of Research and Health Equity and a licensed psychologist at Cherokee Health Systems in Knoxville, TN. In these roles, she provides direct clinical care to patients, contributes to workforce development in community health centers, and oversees research initiatives including those funded by the HRSA, the TN Department of Health, and the NIH. She also serves as the Clinical Director for CHS’s National Consultation and Training Program, which provides individualized on-site training to other primary care organizations as they seek to integrate their practices. She is on the board of directors for the Collaborative Family Healthcare Association, holds an appointed position on the American Psychological Association’s Ad Hoc Health Equity Committee, is secretary of the American Public Health Association’s Community Health Planning and Policy Development section, and serves as the 2nd Vice Chair of the National Association of Community Health Center’s Committee on Service Integration for Behavioral Health and HIV. Dr. Winford holds adjunct faculty positions in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at Meharry Medical College and in the Department of Psychology at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. She is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Interdisciplinary Fellow and a Health Equity Scholar in Cambridge Health Alliance’s Center for Health Equity Education and Advocacy. Dr. Winford earned her doctorate in Clinical Health Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and a Master of Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is a proud life member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated.

Dr. Kristeena Wright is a Senior Process Engineer in Gene Therapy at Pfizer in North Carolina. In this role she provides technical support for the production of breakthrough gene therapies. She earned a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from Marshall University and a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Duke University. Despite a transition from academia to the pharmaceutical industry, Dr. Wright remains immersed in biomedical research, particularly in women’s reproductive health. Her dissertation and postdoctoral work focused on biomolecular sources of pain in women with endometriosis and she has been invited to share her research and expertise at the national and international level. Kristeena’s goal is to bring advanced and personalized therapies into this area of medicine. Outside of science, Dr. Wright is passionate about spending time with her family, STEM mentorship, and weight training/fitness.