Christine Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy

Summer 2002 Fellow Biographies

		David Dowdy (IOM/Clinical Research) is graduating in May with a Master of Science in Epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. In the fall, he plans to enroll in the MD/PhD program at Johns Hopkins, with his PhD coming from the epidemiology department. His primary research interest is in the epidemiology of tuberculosis and other infectious diseases of worldwide importance. His Master's thesis (just completed) is a cost-effectiveness study of molecular diagnostic techniques for tuberculosis; he plans to present this research in an international conference this summer. He is well-known in the epi department at Hopkins not for his research, however, but for the cookies he brings with him to final exams and lab sessions where he serves as the TA. He is excited about his upcoming fellowship with the Clinical Research Roundtable in the IOM as a means to learn how to make his own research more meaningful from a policy perspective.
		Jennifer Dropkin (PGA/BISO) is a Master's candidate in Museum Studies (Natural History) at the University of Kansas, where she received a Bachelor of Science in Systematics and Ecology. Her fellowship work at the University of Kansas Natural History Museum has included collection care in Herpetology and the Herbarium, but she has also worked on exhibit preparation in Vertebrate Paleontology. This semester she is working on a bioinformatics outreach fellowship: she is developing a workshop to introduce grade-school children to information that they could get by querying museum databases that are available online. She is concerned with human-caused biodiversity loss and ecosystem disruption and hopes this fellowship will familiarize her with some of the institutional structures meant to ameliorate these changes. She would have liked to have said that she has improved as a folksinger and yoga practitioner, but both endeavors have suffered since she has resumed her academic studies.
		Wendy Edwards (DEPS/CSTB) is a PhD student in Computer Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She previously received her Masters In Computer Science at the University of Illinois, Springfield. Her advisor is Michael Loui, and her interests are software testing and reliability. In her free time, she swims and plays the oboe. She has lived in Central Illinois almost all her life and looks forward to spending time outside the Midwest. Contact by email.
		Julie Fritts (DBASSE/CFE) is a Masters candidate in Public Policy at Georgetown University, focusing on education policy. She previously received her BS in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University. Julie is originally from Michigan, spent six years in England, and has lived in DC for the past four years. In her free time she enjoys hiking, traveling, and trying to beat her husband at tennis. Next year, Julie will work as a research assistant for a Georgetown professor while she completes her Masters degree. Her career goal is to be involved in research and policy analysis regarding elementary and secondary education. During her fellowship, she will be working at the Mathematical Sciences Education Board (MSEB) in the Center for Education.
		Kristina Fuchs (PGA/STEP) is a Masters candidate in Public Policy with a minor is Science and Technology Policy at Columbia University. She graduated from the Universitý of Economics and Business Administration in Vienna, Austria and worked for Technical Assistance Programs in South Eastern Europe. In her free time she enjoys exploring New York’s neighborhoods, museums and art galleries. She has great enthusiasm for contemporary classic music and theatre, but says it’s hard to get cheap tickets. She is very interested in politics, reading, jogging and traveling. Contact by email.
		Rachel Hoffman (DELS/BEST) is a PhD candidate in Atmospheric/Physical Chemistry at the University of California, Irvine. She has been awarded the Department of Education GAANN fellowship and an honorable mention for the National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship last year. She hopes to utilize her fellow experiences to further her career in science advising on environmental regulations and policies. Outside of school, her greatest passion in life is world travel, which she says exposes her to a broad spectrum of people, ideas, and cultures. Her experiences have encompassed trips on five continents, including a study abroad program in Sydney, Australia. Contact by email.
		Elizabeth Hollenbeck (NAE/Engr. 20/20) is a Masters candidate in Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Irvine, where she plans to get her PhD in the same subject. The topic of her thesis will be in the area of Micro-opto-electro-mechanical systems (MOEMS). She has been to Washington DC once before on an fellowship with a government agency so she says she knows how to get around the city fairly fluently. Currently, she is working as a Teaching Assistant but will begin working in September with the NASA Johnson Space Center as a Graduate Student Researchers Fellowship recipient. Soon after, in December she will be marrying her long-time boyfriend and best friend. In her occasional free time, she enjoys reading and spending time with family. Contact by email.
		Jeff Kinder (PGA/COSEPUP) is a PhD candidate in Public Policy at Carleton University, in Ottawa, Ontario. He previously received a Masters in Science, Technology, and Public Policy from George Washington University. He did his undergraduate degree in physics at Miami University in Ohio. After many years in the Washington, DC area he and his wife (who is Canadian) decided to pursue professional opportunities in Ottawa. Jeff works with the Council of Science and Technology Advisors, a Cabinet-level advisory body. He is excited about coming back to add a new dimension to his Washington experience.
		Jason Lee (DELS/BCST) completed his PhD in Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in Spring 2002. His thesis focused on the deposition of metal oxides and metal carbonyls on silicon surfaces using solution chemistry. He previously earned a BS with Honors in Chemistry from the University of Maryland at College Park. Jason spent his summer at the Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Liverpool. His research is part of the efforts at the Centre for Bioarray Innovation. Jason is a native of the DC area and hopes to continue following the Terps and Redskins while overseas. Contact by email.
		Alan Lund (DEPS/NMAB/BMAED) just completed his PhD in Materials Science and Engineering at Northwestern University, and will be heading to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to do post-doctoral work in the fall. He looks forward to seeing and participating in the blood-and-guts of politics in general and science policy specifically this summer, and also to taking advantage of all the other great things that Washington D.C. has to offer. Outside of work, he enjoys reading about and discussing anything from philosophy, to economics, to literature, to his beloved Chicago White Sox. Contact by email.
		Parisa Morris (IOM/NBH) will be a graduate student in the biology department at Arizona State University, where she received a BS in the same subject. As a graduate of the Barrett Honors College, she focused her senior honors thesis on the study of infertility and assisted reproduction and the many dilemmas that arise when new technologies come to the forefront of medical treatment. She has spent the past nine months as a Science and Policy Fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, where she gained valuable experience in science policy, and she looks forward to extending her Washington experience this summer. She is in the process of applying to medical school for entrance in fall 2003. Contact by email.
		Kyra Naumoff (IOM/HSP) is a Masters candidate in Environmental Science, Policy and Management at the University of California, Berkeley, where she plans to begin her PhD in environmental health science in the School of Public Health in the fall. While her current research addresses the quantitative relationship between land use change and wildlife health, her broad interest is in the application of this knowledge for improved information dissemination, decision-making and policy creation. On-campus, she enjoys teaching both undergraduate and outreach students; off-campus, she relishes kayaking and white water rafting, camping, cycling and baking as many delectable desserts as possible. Contact by email.
		Susan Park (DELS/OSB) received her Ph.D. in oceanography from the University of Delaware in 2004.  Her dissertation focused on the range expansion of the non-native Asian shore crab Hemigrapsus sanguineus.  In the summer of 2002, she participated in the Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Graduate Policy Fellowship with the Ocean Studies Board.  During her fellowship, she worked on the OSB study on Non-native Oysters in the Chesapeake Bay.  In February of 2006, she returned to the Ocean Studies Board as an associate program officer.  Prior to joining the Ocean Studies Board, Susan spent time working on aquatic invasive species management with the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management and the Northeast Aquatic Nuisance Species Panel.  While invasive species issues remain her expertise, Susan is looking forward to working on and learning more about the many varied aspects of ocean policy that are currently affecting the nation and the globe. Contact by email (Updated 05/06)
		Traci Powell (DELS/BLS) received her PhD from Stanford University in genetics. She conducts research in the area of breast cancer genetics and has over seven years of experience studying the role of genetics in breast cancer and other human diseases. She has spoken nationally at human genetics meetings, as well as delivering guest lectures on genetic neuromuscular disease. She has served as a member of the Program for Genomic Ethics Society (PGES), which has investigated various genetic diseases and has developed recommendations for genetic testing. Traci believes she has developed a unique perspective on scientific issues that will add to the diversity of her committee’s work during her fellowship. Contact by email
		Katharine Rice (PGA/STL) is a JD candidate at Notre Dame Law School. She previously received a BS in Biology from Pepperdine University. She also fellowed for one year with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, working on a large toxic torts litigation. For this litigation, she worked with a team of paralegals to organize and execute an independent medical examination program of unprecedented size and scope. This afforded her the opportunity to work with some of the leading medical experts in toxic torts litigation. She is looking to couple her experience at the National Academies with her educational background in science and law for career in patent law. Contact by email.
		Jennifer D. Roberts (DBASSE/BCYF) is a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) candidate at Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health. She previously received a Masters in Public Health in Environmental and Occupational Health from Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health. She says that, as a woman of color in the environmental health field, she rarely sees faces of people resembling her own. For this and other reasons, she feels a certain amount of responsibility and devotion for the protection and safekeeping of health among disadvantaged and minority populations. Her goal is to eventually become a senior-level public health practitioner that analyzes and assesses complex environmental health risks and problems, particularly among vulnerable and unguarded populations. Contact by email.
		Amanda Sarata (NAE/Engr. Healthcare) received her M.S. from the University of Minnesota (Humphrey Institute). Amanda was a senior research analyst at the Minnesota Department of Health for two years where she worked in the policy areas of health quality and patient safety.  She then re-located to Seattle where she received her M.P.H. in Public Health Genetics in 2003. In the summer of 2002, she spent the summer in DC as a Science and Technology Policy intern at the National Academies where she worked on health care quality issues. In 2003, she moved to Washington, D.C. and accepted a position with the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetics, Health, and Society where she worked as staff to the Committee for two and a half years. Currently, she works full-time at the Congressional Research Service as their analyst in genetics policy.  In addition to her work, Amanda is pursuing a PhD in public policy, specializing in health policy, from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Amanda holds a B.A. in biology from Carleton College. In her free time, she enjoys playing soccer, hiking, playing the flute, traveling and cross-country skiing. (Updated 07/06)
		Mohan Seetharam (DELS/BESR) is a PhD candidate in Geography at Clark University, with interests in Cultural/Political Ecologies, Regional Development and Planning. He previously received a BS in Agriculture from the University of Western Australia. Mohan has traveled widely and has been working for several years on land use change and associated studies in southern India. He enjoys listening to jazz, reading, walking, and playing pool.
		Eric Sevigny (DBASSE/BCLJ) is a PhD candidate in Public Policy with a secondary field in Foreign Policy and International Security at University of Pittsburgh, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. He will have completed two years of coursework, with one year remaining, toward earning his doctorate by this summer. His current research interests in the area of drug policy include (i) drug offender sanctions and alternatives to incarceration and (ii) illicit drug use harm reduction practices and policy with non-addicted populations. He enjoys backpacking with his fiancée and dog, and is a faithful member of Red Sox Nation. Contact by email.