Ph.D.

Anandi V. Law, B.Pharm., MS., PhD, FAPhA is Associate Dean for Assessment, and Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Administration at Western University of Health Sciences. She received her B.Pharm., from University of Mumbai, India, MS in Pharmaceutics and PhD in Pharmacy Administration, both from the Ohio State University. Dr. Law is an established educator, researcher and mentor, who has served in pharmacy education for more than 20 years. Dr. Law’s career focus is pharmacist...

Dr. Chico is an Instructional Professor in the Department of Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics and jointly appointed with the Department of Medical Education at the Texas A&M University College of Medicine, Bryan, TX. She received her Ph.D. in Cell Biology at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX and completed postdoctoral training in Biochemistry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY. She has 16 years of experience teaching in the anatomical sciences (medical...

Dr. Nardia Aldridge is an Assistant Professor in the Occupational Therapy Department at Nova Southeastern University. She has a B.S. in Occupational Therapy, an M.S. in Gerontology, and a Ph.D. in Health Services with a Health Care Administration concentration. Dr. Aldridge's areas of interest are diversity in the profession, gerontology, health promotion, interprofessional activities, and community-based interventions that enhance older adults' quality of life. She is a big supporter of interdisciplinary approaches to client-centered care...

Dr. Liz grew up swimming and surfing in a lovely southern California town called Thousand Oaks, went to school in Arizona (Go Sun Devils!) to earn Ph.D. in Psychology with a focus on behavioral neuroscience, moved to Morgantown, WV for her postdoctoral fellowship in 2013, and launched her neuroscience research laboratory at WVU (Go Mountaineers!) in 2017, and recently joined the Green Wave (Go Tulane!) as an Assistant Professor in the Clinical Neuroscience Research Center....

Meryl Alappattu, DPT, PhD received her Doctor of Physical Therapy from the University of Florida (UF) in 2008 and completed a year-long residency in Cancer Rehabilitation and Pelvic Health at University of Florida Health in 2009. She graduated from the UF Rehabilitation Science PhD Program and studied the mechanisms of persistent and musculoskeletal pain, specifically female pelvic pain. She was supported by a Teaching Assistantship and an NIH T32 predoctoral fellowship during her time in...

Diane S. Allen-Gipson, a McKnight alumna obtained her doctoral degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences from Florida A & M University in 2000 and her Masters degree in Pharmacology and Toxicology in 1997. She is an Associate Professor with tenure in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the College of Pharmacy and have courtesy appointments in the Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Department of Bio-engineer at USF. She is also a Collaborative Member at...

Cara M. Sandholdt, PhD is an assistant adjunct professor in anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology for the family nurse practitioner and physician assistant programs at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis. Sandholdt is an expert in student-centered learning, learning technology and case-based learning methods. She has been a faculty member at community college, undergraduate and graduate level clinical and pre-clinical programs since 2007. She earned a Bachelor of Science from UC Davis...

Francine E. Garrett-Bakelman, MD, PhD, is an assistant professor of medicine and of biochemistry and molecular genetics. She received her BS in biochemistry from California State University-Fullerton, and an MD and PhD from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. She then completed clinical training in internal medicine and hematology/medical oncology as well as post-doctoral training at Weill Cornell Medicine. She joined the UVA faculty in 2017 as a physician scientist who cares...

Dr. Roni, a native of Bangladesh, earned his Bachelor and Master of Pharmacy degrees from the University of Dhaka and a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences with specialization in neuropharmacology from South Dakota State University. His graduate research focused on understanding the role of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor signaling in addiction and psychiatric disorders. Prior to joining UICOMP, he has taught pharmacology and toxicology as an Assistant Professor at Hampton University School of Pharmacy, Virginia and...

During this presentation the experiences of mentoring while in medical school, will be shared. Dr. Mendez is an associate professor, emeritus and director of the Community Engagement Office at Wayne State University. Brigid Jacob is graduating in June, Daniel VanZweden is rotating at area hospitals, and Kia Sweeney just started year 2.

As Research Associate Professor of Pulmonary Medicine in the Department of Medicine at UIC, I have been leading a team to study (1) the role of caveolin 1 and IL7 in the development of pulmonary hypertension; (2) why African Americans are more susceptible to the effects of respiratory infections using caspase-12 knockout mice; (3) role of caspase-12 and WWOX in acute lung injury, heart failure and hypertension. As Director of the RRC Cardiovascular Research Core...

Dr. Hector Rasgado-Flores is a Professor of Physiology and Biophysics and the Faculty Lead of the Chicago Medical School Community Health and Engagement. He has integrated his passions for science, music, and education into a career transcending traditional boundaries. His academic journey began at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), where he studied medicine, piano, and composition. This unique foundation foreshadowed his interdisciplinary approach to life and work. He later earned master’s and doctoral...

David R. Friedland, M.D., Ph.D., is Professor of Clinical Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery; Associate Dean for Clinical Research; Director of Clinical Artificial Intelligence Applications; and Director of the Clinical Research Services Core in Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. Dr. Friedland received his medical degree from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City where he also completed residency training in Otolaryngology-Head and...

Dr. Hassan Bencheqroun is a quadruple board-certified pulmonary and critical care physician with expertise in respiratory and exercise physiology, cardiopulmonary interactions, and the management of life-threatening multiorgan failure in critical illness. His clinical work focuses on severe lung disease and acute decompensation, including COPD and emphysema, asthma, lung cancer, bacterial and viral pneumonias, pulmonary fibrosis, pulmonary hypertension, chronic cough, and acute respiratory failure requiring life support. He also specializes in end-of-life decision-making in the ICU....

Dr. Lina M. D’Orazio is a Neuropsychologist, Clinical Psychologist, and Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. She is the Founding Director of the Cultural Neuropsychology Program and serves as USC’s Director of Cultural Neuropsychology, specializing in culturally informed neuropsychological assessment, clinical care, and research consultation across the Keck Medical Center. Dr. D’Orazio integrates evidence-based practice with an empathetic, humanistic approach to support cognitive, emotional, and behavioral health. She...

Dr. Ellison is an Assistant Professor/Associate Director of Clinical Training, Practicum Coordinator at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine & Science (RFUMS) in the Department of Psychology embedded within the clinical psychology doctoral program. She holds appointments both in Research and in the Mental Health Service Line at Edward Hines Jr., Veterans Affairs Hospital, as well as at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center. Dr. Ellison is a clinical neuropsychologist and researcher, with...

Joseph Alzagatiti, PhD is the Co-Founder and CEO of EndoFold, an AI-driven biotechnology startup pioneering modular, protein-based systems for next-generation therapies. He earned his PhD in Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology from University of California, Santa Barbara in 2025. Joseph founded EndoFold after winning first place at EVOLVED 2024, a global hackathon hosted by Lux Capital that highlights emerging talent at the intersection of software engineering and therapeutic design. His work bridges neurobiology, molecular biology,...

Kornelia Polyak, MD, PhD, is Professor of Medicine at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, and a co-leader of the Dana-Farber Harvard Cancer Center Cancer Cell Biology Program and SPORE in Breast Cancer. Dr. Polyak is an internationally recognized leader of breast cancer research. Her laboratory is dedicated to the study of human breast cancer with the goal of dissecting tumor evolution and use this information to improve the clinical management of breast cancer patients....

Dr. Hunsberger received her undergraduate degree in Chemistry from West Virginia University. She then went on to pursue her PhD under the mentorship of Dr. Miranda Reed at West Virginia University. There she studied glutamate’s role in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) using novel microelectrode array technology. After receiving her PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience, she moved to New York City for her postdoctoral position under the mentorship of Dr. Christine Denny at Columbia University. There her work...

Dr. Ryan Assaf is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Health and Society. He received his PhD in Epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles, Fielding School of Public Health where he also received his MPH and earned his BS at the University of California, Irvine. He completed his postdoctoral fellowship at the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative. Dr. Assaf is a social epidemiologist with expertise in substance use among socially marginalized populations....