Biography:

Dr. Clark is a neuroscientist and the senior program manager of the University of Minnesota’s Medical Discovery Team on Addiction (MDTA). His work as an electrophysiologist focused on glial cell activation of neuronal G protein-coupled receptors and the impact of this activation on the excitability of neurons. Recently, Dr. Clark has shifted focus to community organizations and expanding the MDTA’s public outreach in general. To this end, Dr. Clark provides presentations on the neurobiology of addiction to several recovery organizations in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. He also partners with the Twin Cities Recovery Project (TCRP) to visit encampments weekly, providing harm reduction supplies and information on recovery programs and is collaborating with TCRP on a study evaluating the impact of recovery center programs on recovery capital and long-term recovery. With colleagues from Harvard Medical School, TCRP and Black Faces Black Voices, Dr. Clark has also been an integral part of the four person team planning and coordinating the annual Boots on the Ground Summit, a summit focused on community-based programming to reduce stigma and racial disparities in access to substance use disorder services.

Biography:

Karrie Molitor is the MnDRIVE Program Manager for Discovery and Treatments for Brain Conditions. She manages the program’s administrative operations and organizes neuromodulation events, outreach activities, and fellowship opportunities. She is also the Administrative Manager for the Medical Discovery Team on Addiction and the MnDRIVE Liaison for the Louis Stokes/MnDRIVE NorthStar STEM Alliance Summer Research Internship program for misrepresented undergraduate minority scholars. Karrie’s educational background includes a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Minor in Art from Minot State University in North Dakota. She has professional experiences as a pharmaceutical auditing specialist, a family advocacy program assistant for the United States Air Force, a psychiatric residential treatment advisor, as well as an art teacher at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch. She began her work journey at the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Department of Neuroscience in 2018.