Aficionado of genome organization and function who also enjoys building programs that connect science with society. My work spans computational genomics, science communication, public engagement, and science policy, with a focus on making scientific discovery more accessible, trustworthy, and impactful. Across research, nonprofit leadership, and media, I am interested in how scientists can create knowledge while also strengthening the communities they serve.
Education
2026–2021
PhD, Bioinformatics & Computational Biology
UNC Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC
Graduate Certificate in Innovation for the Public Good
2021–2017
BA, Cellular & Molecular Biology
Occidental College · Los Angeles, CA
Minor in Public Health
Research Experience
2031–2026
Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Gilliam Postdoctoral Scholar
Scavuzzo Lab | Case Western Reserve University · Cleveland, OH
2027–2026
Fulbright Scholar
Gabriele Lab | San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-Tiget) · Milan, Italy
2026–2022
Graduate Research Assistant
Phanstiel Lab | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) School of Medicine · Chapel Hill, NC
Developing and applying software in R, performing microscropy (DNA FISH) and -omics techniques (Hi-C, RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, CUT&RUN/ChIP-seq) to investigate the role of 3D chromatin structure in response to environmental stress
Lead outreach, partnerships, and strategic growth initiatives to expand engagement in science policy, elevate early-career voices, and strengthen connections between researchers, policymakers, and the public
Launched Science For Good, a nonprofit organization that empowers researchers to engage with communities, policymakers, and the public through creative science communication, advocacy, and outreach
2024
Science Policy Intern
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of the Director · Bethesda, MD
Assist in developing a public vision and framework for including patient and community voices in the design and conduct of NIH-funded clinical research. Help plan public consultations to develop recommendations regarding engagement methods for research employing novel technologies and will be prototyping equitable and inclusive approaches for patient and community engagement. Work can be found here.
2021–2020
Data Science Intern
University of Utah David Eccles School of Business Sorenson Impact Center · Salt Lake City, UT
Work alongside the data science team to provide customized data analysis for clients, write code, learn best practices around data sharing and security, as well as create data visualizations and dashboards. Familiarity with Tidyverse set of packages within the R programming language
J.P. Flores, Andrea A. Perreault, Zack Drum, Chenxi Xu, Doris Cruz Alonso, Gelila Petros, Yijia Wu, Ivana Y. Quiroga-Barber, HyunAh Kim, Isha Sahasrabudhe, Justin Demmerle, Gang Greg Wang, Danfeng Cai, Douglas H. Phanstiel
Jing Li, Shizhe Liu, Sunghwan Kim, Jacob Goell, Zachary Allen Drum, John Patrick Flores , Alex J. Ma, Barun Mahata, Mario Escobar, Jeong Hyun Ahn , Rosa Selenia GuerraResendez, Yuhao Zhou, Bo Yu, Michael R. Diehl, Gang Greg Wang, Douglas H. Phanstiel, and Isaac B. Hilton
Eric S. Davis, Sarah M. Parker, Nicole E. Kramer, J.P. Flores, Manjari Kiran, Douglas H. Phanstiel
Policy & Outreach
2026
Science communication and public engagement training as a required component of STEM graduate education
Accepted at the ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
Rose M. Albert*, Brendon E. M. Davis,*, Miles J. Arnett, Abhilasha Bellapu, Rebecca C. Blyn, Dimitris Boufidis, Cael Dant, Isako Di Tomassi, Kassandra Fernandez, Amanda Finn, JP Flores, Stacy Godfreey-Igwe, Shaurita D. Hutchins, Priyam Joshi, Hannah Kubinski, Andrew H. Mattson, Clare F. McCann, Erin Morrow, Anna Rader Groves, David Ramotowski, Alex Rich, Emily K. Selland
Miles Arnett, Dimitris Boufidis, Cael Dant, Brendon Davis, Isako Di Tomassi, Kassandra Fernandez, Amanda Finn, JP Flores, Saul J Flores, Alex Lando, Erin Morrow, Disha Patel, Anna Rader Groves, David Ramotowski, Alex Rich, Emma Scales, Lani Tran
Building Tomorrow’s Biomedical Workforce Webinar Series
Frontiers in Research Metrics & Analytics · Remote
Building Tomorrow’s Biomedical Workforce Webinar Series: A series of two webinars will cover broad systemic issues facing graduate and postdoctoral trainee populations in their education, training and career development; improving training environments by developing greater inclusivity, increased wellness and effective mentoring relationships; and will address needed government and institutional policy changes, systemic reforms, and federal government policies and actions.
2024
Flash Talk: Hyperosmotic stress induces complete rewiring of chromating interactions
Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD) Retreat · Chapel Hill, NC
2024
From where does it STEM? : Humanizing Science using science communication & storytelling
Seeding Postdoctoral Innovators in Research and Education (SPIRE) - IRACDA Conference · Chapel Hill, NC
2023
The role of 3D chromatin structure in response to environmental stress
Invited talk, McDaniel College Department of Biology · Westminster, MD
Hyperosmotic stress induces complete rewiring of chromatin interactions
Keystone Symposium: Chromatin Architecture in Human Disease & Development · Victoria, BC
2023
Hyperosmotic stress induces complete rewiring of chromatin interactions
10th Annual Mid-Atlantic PREP & IMSD Research Symposium · Blacksburg, VA
2023
Hyperosmotic stress induces complete rewiring of chromatin interactions
5th Annual Dr. Samuel M. Nabrit Conference for Early Career Scholars · Providence, RI
2023
Hyperosmotic stress induces complete rewiring of chromatin interactions
Duke Biomolecular Condensates Symposium · Durham, NC
2019
From Sequence to Activity: Synthetic Neuroexcitatory Peptides from Fish-Hunting Cone Snails
Southern California Conference for Undergraduate Research · San Pedro, CA
2019
From Sequence to Activity: Synthetic Neuroexcitatory Peptides from Fish-Hunting Cone Snails
Society for Intergrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting · Austin, TX
2018
From Sequence to Activity: Synthetic Neuroexcitatory Peptides from Fish-Hunting Cone Snails
Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting · San Diego, CA
Teaching Experience
2024
R & Multilevel Modeling (MLM) Workshop
C. Schiller Lab - UNC Chapel Hill School of Medicine
2024
Promoting Inclusivity in the Research Environment
JEDI Leadership Fellows Program · Chapel Hill, NC
Workshop allowing researchers to recognize systemic barriers to inclusion and their impacts on individuals and society, take concrete steps to build supportive relationships with those from marginalized groups, and use their advantages to promote an equitable lab environment
2023
BCB 723 Statistical Genetics & Genomics
Curriculum in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology, Department of Genetics · Chapel Hill, NC
2023
How to Learn to Code
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC
Summer miniseries about the basics of computer programming/coding for biological research
Curriculum Development Team & Teacher
2023
WinSpire `Dancing with Data!`
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC
Using the programming language R, high school students with marginalized gender identities, worked with data from Spotify. We explored which songs are the best to dance to, do homework to, cry to, and everything in between. Students gained experience in having fun in science, data wrangling & manipulation, data visualization, and science communication
2023
WinSpire `Digging Deeper`
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC
Workshop covering the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in science for high school students with marginalized gender identities
2023
Academic Support Program for Student-Athletes Tutor
Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost - UNC-CH · Chapel Hill, NC
2021
BIO 268 Biostatistics
Occidental College Department of Biology · Los Angeles, CA
Training & Certifications
2025
AIBS Communications Boot Camp for Scientists
Completed intensive training focused on enhancing science communication skills for diverse audiences. Developed expertise in message framing, media engagement, policy communication, and storytelling to effectively convey complex scientific concepts to non-expert stakeholders.
2023
edX The Inclusive STEM Teaching Project
Trained facilitator for the national, NSF-funded Inclusive STEM teaching Project (ISTP). ISTP supports the professional development of faculty, largely in STEM, as reflective, inclusive practitioners through a 6-week, free online course and associated learning communities. ISTP has reached 11,240 participants to date. Learning communities are small groups of faculty and sometimes PhD students and postdocs who meet to engage with the course content, contextualize it to the local department or teaching context, share their own experiences and create a community of practice. ISTP nationally trains facilitators like me to lead these learning communities.
2022
Effective Mentoring Training
Foundation for developing competencies and skills in effective communication, aligning expectations, assessing progress and understanding, addressing equity and inclusion, fostering independence, cultivating ethical behavior, and being able to articulate a mentoring philosophy to others