CV
EDUCATION
PhD California Institute of Technology (2018), Microbiology
BS University of Maryland, College Park (2010), Microbiology, Cum Laude with High Honors
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Rockefeller University, New York, NY
Postdoctoral Fellow (2018 - Present)
Advisor: Dr. Daniel Mucida, Laboratory of Mucosal Immunology
Functions of intestinal immunoglobulin A
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA
Graduate (2012 - 2018)
Advisor: Dr. Sarkis Mazmanian, Division of Biology and Biological Engineering
Thesis: Colonization of the intestinal surface by indigenous microbiota
Committee: Dr. Dianne Newman, Dr. Victoria Orphan, Dr. Raymond Deshaies
University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Undergraduate (2008 - 2011)
Advisor: Dr. Vincent Lee, Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics,
Biochemistry and genetics of cyclic-di-GMP signaling in Pseudomonas aeruginosa
GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS
2019-2022 - Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship (DRG-2362-19)
2019-2021 - Pilot Project Grant, Rockefeller Center for Basic and Translational Research
2013-2016 - NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (DGE-1144469)
2012-2013 - NIH/NRSA training grant (5-T32-GM07616)
2009-2010 - HHMI Undergraduate Research Fellowship
2009-2010 - National Consortium for Measurement and Signature Intelligence Research Scholarship
AWARDS
2018 - Milton and Francis Clauser Doctoral Prize for the outstanding doctoral thesis at Caltech
2018 - Lawrence L. and Audrey W. Ferguson Prize for the outstanding doctoral thesis in biology
2018 - Three Minute Thesis, Caltech: 2nd Prize and People’s Choice Award https://vimeo.com/260316307
2014 - International Society for Microbial Ecology Travel Award (ISME Seoul 2014)
2013 - American Association of Immunologists Young Investigator Award
2010 - P. Arne Hansen Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Thesis in Cell Bio. / Molecular Genetics
2010, 2008 - University of Maryland Outstanding Chemical and Life Sciences Student
TEACHING
Topics in Molecular and Cellular Biology (Bi250a)
Teaching Assistant (2015)
Professor David Prober
Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology
Principles of Biology (Bi1)
Teaching Assistant (2012-2014)
Professors Dianne Newman and Margaret McFall-Ngai
Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology
General Microbiology (BSCI223)
UndergraduateTeaching Assistant (2009)
Professor Dan Stein
Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, University of Maryland
TALKS
2023 (selected) - Keystone Symposium: Microbiota-Immune Interactions, Snowbird, UT
2020 (invited) - Drexel University Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Philadelphia, PA
2020 (selected) - NIF Winter School on Advanced Immunology, Osaka, Japan
2018 (invited) - Antibody Engineering and Therapeutics, San Diego, CA
2018 (selected) - Beneficial Microbes Conference, Madison, WI
2016-17 (selected) - California Microbiome Meeting, La Jolla, CA
2014 (selected) - International Society for Microbial Ecology Meeting, Seoul, South Korea
2013 (selected, best talk award) - La Jolla Immunology Conference, Salk Institute, La Jolla, CA
MEMBERSHIPS AND ACTIVITIES
Ad hoc reviewer (direct): ISME Journal, Microbiome, Microbial Ecology, JOVE, Metabolites
Ad hoc reviewer (through advisor): Science Translational Medicine, Nature, Nature Microbiology, Nature Medicine, Nature Biotechnology, Cell, Cell Host Microbe, Immunity, Journal of Experimental Medicine, PNAS
Mentorship workshop RockEDU (2019)
Caltech Biology graduate student-invited seminar series Chair (2013-2015)
Caltech Teaching Conference Speaker (2013-2014)
🕺 Caltech Dance Show performer (2013-2016), and director (2015-2016)