Rebekah obtained her PhD in Veterinary Science at the University of Kentucky in 2011, where she utilized the axolotl salamander as a novel vertebrate model for articular cartilage maturation and repair. She was later awarded an individual NIH Kirschstein Post-Doctoral Fellowship to study in The Translational Research Program in Pediatric Orthopaedics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Decker’s research at CHOP investigated developmental mechanisms guiding articular cartilage morphogenesis during development and after injury. She was recognized as an Outstanding Young Investigator by the Osteoarthritis Research Society International in 2013 and 2014. In late 2016, Dr. Decker started a new position as an Investigator at The Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation in La Jolla, CA. As part of the Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research, she currently focuses on basic science and preclinical drug discovery research across multiple disease areas. 

LinkedIn profile

Tom was raised in the Chicago Suburbs and received a B.Sc. in Honors Biology at the University of Illinois-Champaign-Urbana in 2006. Pursuing his curiosity, he got involved with tissue regeneration research using large animals (horse, pig, goat) at the University of Illinois. Then knowing he wanted to test gene function, Tom started graduate school at Texas A&M University to learn and apply genetic engineering techniques. His mentor’s lab moved to the Biology Department at the University of Kentucky, where Tom completed his PhD in 2014 studying the effects of autophagy on reproductive tissues. Tom then stayed at the University of Kentucky to begin a postdoc with a new faculty member to study tissue regeneration and immunology in African spiny mice. During his time as a postdoc, Tom contemplated his career path and spent one year as an instructor with the Biology Department. In 2019, Tom jumped out of the academic cycle and became principal scientist with a local start-up company, Enepret, Inc. They use synthetic biology to engineer yeast and plants to be sustainable sources of triterpenes, such as squalene. Tom is also currently a senior scientist with Coltneck Labs, a contract research organization in Lexington, where he has successfully scaled-up SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic testing for multiple groups around the Bluegrass. Additionally, Tom is actively involved with the Lexington small business community and is also a co-founder of the skin-care brand, Tritera.

LinkedIn profile

LinkedIn profile

Tavis is originally from Texas and grew up in a number of cities as his family was working in diplomacy. He obtained his Ph.D. in Pathobiology from the University of Texas at El Paso. Although his main area of work was in molecular and biochemical parasitology, he has also travelled across the USA and to Asia to study cancer and hypertension. While working in several fields, Tavis also managed lab activities and budgets. He now applies all of his experience into TruDiagnostic™ to produce high quality DNA methylation data to report biological age and consumer health assessments. Outside the lab, Tavis spends his free time cooking, dancing and tinkering with electronics. 

LinkedIn profile

Valerie is a Senior Project Manager in the Data Sciences Platform at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard where she manages software development for the Data Donation Platform and genomic data ingestion for the NHGRI Analysis Visualization and Informatics Lab-space (AnVIL). Prior to joining the Broad Institute, Dr. Reeves managed clinical trial software development and a clinical concussion research program. Dr. Reeves earned her PhD in 2012 from the University of Kentucky's Department of Physiology and went on to complete postdoctoral training at the University of Pittsburgh.

LinkedIn profile

Ana is the Associate Director of Global Medical Communications at Ionis Pharmaceuticals, a leader in antisense technology-mediated therapies. She holds a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Utah and is fully accredited as a Certified Medical Publication Professional (CMPP) by the International Society for Medical Publication Professionals.  

Ana began her career as a research associate and medical writer before managing publications for therapeutics organizations both small and large. During her time in the industry, she has led publication strategy from department inception to near-patent-expiry post-marketing, across the globe (including Emerging Markets) and has produced 50+ manuscripts and countless other publications. Ana is passionate about career development and peer mentoring and has been active in the local career mentoring scene. 

LinkedIn profile

Eliane graduated in Molecular Biology and Genetics from University of Lisbon in Portugal. She moved to Sweden where she completed her PhD in Medical Sciences between Karolinska Institutet and Lund University with a focus on the role of the tumor microenvironment in resistance to targeted therapy. Following her PhD, she moved to Boston where she worked as a Research Fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, focusing on high-throughput drug screen analysis in Lung Cancer. Afterwards, she transitioned to industry and currently works as a scientist/genomicist in the Medical Affairs department at Foundation Medicine, Inc. Her main role is to lead and serve as a subject matter expert for scientific educational outreach activities. These include participation in molecular tumor boards, analysis and interpretation of genomic findings, publication ideation and generation. 

LinkedIn profile

Sophia is the Manager of Science Initiatives and Outreach at Research!America in Arlington, VA where she manages the Civic Engagement Microgrant Program and provides organizational and logistical support for a Science CEO group. Prior to joining Research!America, she began her postdoctoral research at the University of Kansas in Medicinal Chemistry and completed it at the University of Kentucky in Pharmaceutical Sciences (due to a laboratory relocation). While at UK, she served as Vice President of the Society of Postdoctoral Scholars. Sophia holds a dual major PhD in Pharmacology and Toxicology and Environmental Toxicology from Michigan State University. Her research interests were centered on opioid pharmacology, opioid addiction, and depression. Sophia is also an active member of her professional society where she currently serves on the Science Policy Committee. 

LinkedIn profile

Chhaya is currently a Senior Program Officer in Knowledge Creation and Research at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, Missouri. Previously, she held a postdoc at the University of Kentucky, serving as Assistant Director of the Center for Equality and Social Justice. She holds an MA in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Kansas (2014), and a PhD in Applied Anthropology from the University of Kentucky (2018). Her research has explored whiteness, urban inequality, and food systems in the US. 

LinkedIn profile

Jessica graduated in Biological Sciences and holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Brazil. After moving to the United States and embracing her dream of being a scientist, she worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Kentucky for 4 years until she found her passion in developing relationships with Health Care Practitioner, sharing the newest scientific discoveries, and working as a bridge between science and the medical community. After almost a year intentionally seeking out a career outside academia, she recently transitioned to her current role in Industry as a Medical Science Liaison. 

LinkedIn profile

Maureen is the Collections Manager of Insects at the Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH). The FMNH Insects, Arachnids and Myriapods collection contains approximately 13 million prepared specimens, and she is responsible for training and supervision of staff in their collection related duties, overseeing loans and other transactions, and supervising the digitization and databasing of specimens. As an insect taxonomist and systematist, she is especially interested in the diversity and phylogeny of horse flies (Diptera: Tabanidae). Her research focuses on using museum specimens to perform revisionary work on horse flies, potentially finding and describing new species. Maureen is also interested in phylogenomics, using next generation sequencing data for phylogenetic analyses, which allow us to better understand the evolutionary history of horse flies and the relationships within them. 

LinkedIn profile

Morris has directed Graduate Student Professional Enhancement (GSPE) at the University of Kentucky since 2007 and has served as Assistant Dean of the Graduate School since 2010.  GSPE oversees campus-wide career and professional development activities for graduate students. Before transitioning to administration, he taught literature and writing for ten years as a professor of English at Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, Kentucky.  He holds a master’s in English from Western Kentucky University and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Kentucky.  In addition to graduate student development, his research and teaching interests are the history and theory of the short story internationally.  He has been a frequent presenter and panelist at the International Conference on the Short Story in English and is editor of Home and Beyond: An Anthology of Kentucky Short Stories (University Press of Kentucky), Conversations with Wendell Berry (University Press of Mississippi), and Every Leaf a Mirror: A Jim Wayne Miller Reader (with Mary Ellen Miller, University Press of Kentucky). 

Joseph received his Bachelors of Science in Biochemistry from the University of Bath, United Kingdom, and his Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Kentucky. He subsequently joined the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) where he completed his postdoctoral training in the Human Addiction Psychopharmacology lab. He then became Program Manager of a multi-investigator research group administering several NIH funded research projects focused on neuroimaging of mental illness. During his postdoc, he was an active member of the UIC Postdoctoral Association allowing him to find his passion for postdoc career & professional development and helping the next generation of scientists and scholars. He thus became the inaugural Associate Director of Postdoctoral Affairs at UIC and then returned to his alma mater to become the inaugural Director of Postdoctoral Affairs at the University of Kentucky. 

Ashley splits her time as a Senior Consultant at CELT and as the Assistant Director of Graduate Student Professional Enhancement for the Graduate School. In both capacities, she provides instructional support for graduate teaching assistants and coordinates the pedagogy track of the "Grad Degree +" program, which offers credentialing in thematic areas of teaching and learning. Ashley also consults with faculty on inclusive teaching pedagogies, student engagement strategies, and collaborative pedagogies. Before joining CELT, Ashley was a teaching assistant for UK’s Department of History, where earned her PHD and was awarded the campus-wide Provost Outstanding Teaching Award. Ashley continues to teach courses in history, civic engagement, women's and gender studies, and in the Preparing Future Faculty program.

Phyllis received her PhD in Anthropology from Vanderbilt University in 2021 and is currently a University Research Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Johnson's research involves the development and application of computational methods to address difficult archaeological questions surrounding ancient economies, site formation processes, and social structure. Dr. Johnson has over 15 years of archaeological experience in the Eastern US and Mesoamerica, and her current research combines experimental archaeology with novel machine and deep learning techniques to the examination of stone tool production to illuminate ancient actors, such as commoners and women, who are often rendered invisible in the archaeological record. Dr. Johnson is also keenly interested in equity issues in both research and education and is actively involved in supporting women in archaeology

From Kathmandu, Nepal

MS: University of Louisville (2019)

PhD: University of Louisville (2020) on Photovoltaics

Postdoc: University of Kentucky Center for Applied Energy Research

Research: Synthesis and application of bimetallic catalysts for CO2 capture and reduction to formic acid

LeAnna joined the Department of Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation as a Lyman T. Johnson Postdoctoral Fellow sponsored by the UNited In True racial Equity (UNITE) Research Priority Area. Her research interests analyze how Black womxn and femme organizers cope and care for themselves at historically and predominantly white universities. She hopes to advance research in which policymakers create systemic change and educational resources that center the demands of Black womxn and femme organizers to improve racially gendered experiences in academia. LeAnna received her Ph.D. in Comparative Ethnic Studies in 2021 from the University of Colorado Boulder, a M.A. in Pan-African Studies from the University of Louisville in 2018, a B.A. in Psychology from Berea College in 2016, and a B.A. in African and African American Studies from Berea College in 2016.

Sudip received his Ph.D. in entomology from Purdue University in 2020 under the advisement of Dr. Ameya Gondhalekar. He received his M.S. in entomology from New Mexico State University with Dr. Alvaro Romero and his B.S. in Agriculture from Tribhuvan University, Nepal. During his graduate studies, he made significant contributions to urban pest management, specifically identifying novel control strategies using botanical insecticides to control the common bed bug and the Turkestan cockroach, and documenting how these compounds can overcome pyrethroid resistance and synergize with other insecticides. This work has been recognized nationally through numerous awards, scholarships, peer-reviewed publications, and press releases. Currently, Dr. Gaire is a Postdoctoral Research Scholar at the Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky working under the direction of Dr. Zachary DeVries, focusing on urban pest biology and control, and public health research. Besides research, teaching, and extension, he enjoys social service in the community and professional organizations.

Jong is currently a postdoctoral scholar of Chemistry at the University of Kentucky. He received Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2013, in which he performed research on the thermal decomposition process of organic compounds at the molecular level using methylated furans. He provided critical chemical evidence for bioethanol production, and he also learned various experimental techniques at the state-of-the-art level. After that, he built up his career with Professor Yuan-Pern Lee of Taiwan and Professor Dong-Sheng Yang of the University of Kentucky, researching chemical reactions between molecules/atoms in the gas phase. In the spring of 2017, Jong decided to apply his experiences in physical chemistry to biological systems. He has worked on synthesizing inorganic compounds targeting mitochondria and figuring out the mechanism of action. He is currently focusing on the synthesis of gold complexes and proving their biological effects (mainly anti-cancer and anti-fungal) through in vitro and in vivo experiments. He holds various patents and papers in this field.

Katharine is an environmental archaeologist specializing in climate change and coastal societies in the ancient past. Her work combines information from tree rings, shells and animal bones, radiocarbon dating, and chemical analyses to better understand how people experienced and interacted with their environments. A native of the coastal mid-Atlantic, she earned her B.A. from the University of Virginia, her M.A. from the University of Chicago, and her Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. She has worked on projects in Georgia, Florida, Ireland, Switzerland, Greece, and the Southwest U.S. as well as Kentucky. Katharine is passionate about advancing archaeological science methodologies, developing collaborative, interdisciplinary projects, and using information about the ancient past to improve sustainability, resilience, and social justice in the 21st century. 

Sathya is a Veterinarian from the southern part of India. For Master’s degree dissertation, she studied stress levels in buffaloes during delivery. She had delivered live calves out of difficult deliveries in all sorts of animals and performed c-sections in hefty buffaloes of northern India. She moved to the ‘real’ UK for PhD where she studied the electrical activity of hypothalamic neurons in rats in response to appetite stimulating peptides. As a post-doc, she started isolating and imaging heart cells from rabbits and rats. She went back to India and was studying the actions of a hormone called ‘Kisspeptin’ in animals. She is back again to the UK in the USA to study diabetic cardiomyopathy at Dr. Sanda Despa’s lab, Dept. of Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences, College of Medicine, where she has been under training for 3.5 years now. Maybe because she is a vet, she is interested in working with animals, and would like to move on to a research industry involving animal models.

Katarina is a zoologist and reproductive biologist with a particular interest in non-model small mammal species. Originally from Germany, she studied and subsequently, conducted research in South Africa as a postdoc and researcher. There she studied the reproductive cycles and environmental factors that affect the reproduction of two fascinating small mammals, the South African spiny mouse and the eastern rock sengi. In doing so, she has considerably contributed to a better understanding of the biology of these two unique African mammals. In addition, she has been interested in how the social environment affects reproduction and she has studied social suppression in the most social mammal societies, colonies of the naked mole-rat and Damaraland mole-rat. Stress caused by aggression from the breeding female has been suggested to suppress reproduction of non-breeding individuals and Katarina’s research aimed to discover how stress is experienced in a mole-rat colony in response to different natural environments and artificial stressors. To support her research, Katarina uses non-invasive methods to measure hormones used frequently in wildlife research and animal welfare, but which also open up more opportunities in other biological fields. At the University of Kentucky, she has returned to her initial research on spiny mice and investigates the menstrual cycle in the only menstruating rodent found to date. Additionally, she is adding new techniques in cell and molecular biology to her technical skills by working on the development of a transgenic spiny mouse. 

Allison is a University Research Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Entomology, working with Dr. Clare Rittschof. She received her undergraduate degree in Agricultural Biotechnology from the University of Kentucky, and then completed a dual-degree PhD in Integrative Biology and Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior at Michigan State University. Her PhD research focused on how honey bee foragers make moment-to-moment foraging decisions in an environment that is constantly changing around them, as well as how those decisions differ between species. As a postdoc, she is continuing her research on honey bee foraging behavior by studying how neonicotinoid pesticides influence the exploratory behavior of honey bees that are searching for new food resources. In addition, she is expanding her research to use genomic and transcriptomic methods to examine the molecular mechanisms underlying changes in behavior induced by pesticide exposure.  

Maryam is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Kentucky who works on a large space-based project funded by NASA and The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). In this project and in order to study the structure and evolution of the galaxies, they observed a galaxy for almost a year using the Hubble space telescope and several other space-based telescopes. She had started her graduate studies in 2016 at the University of Kentucky. She had joined Prof. Gary Ferland’s group in 2017 to develop the Cloudy Code (a widely used astronomical code developed by Gary Ferland) and to perform photoionization modeling. It was during her Ph.D. studies that she could solve a mystery that had been remained unsolved for 5 years. As part of NASA's major "UV Initiative", The STScI awarded an additional 198 orbits on the Hubble Space Telescope for a new project, with the innovative title "AGN STORM2", to study a different galaxy, Mrk 817.  Maryam is one of the 17 scientists who proposed the project. The STScI awarded a grant to the University of Kentucky to support Maryam as a postdoctoral scholar to continue her work. You can find her papers at NASA ADS.