I am a sixth year PhD student in the University of Pittsburgh’s chemical and petroleum engineering program. My thesis work can be divided into two areas:
Working at the cellular and systems level, my aim is to better understand the mechanisms driving observed immunoregulatory behavior to improve drug development. While initially using influenza A virus as the primary infection of study, I repeated network controllability studies to efficiently prioritize drug repositioning candidates for treating SARS-CoV-2 infection at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a queer, disabled woman in STEM, I am passionate about the advancement of underrepresented populations in STEM. I have had the opportunity to perform diversity and equity work in academia with Future of Research, the TAE Consortium, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute as a Gilliam Fellow. I am also an active advocate in the disability community for equitable access to education and technology. In my free time, I enjoy painting, union organizing with my fellow grad workers, and spending time with my cat, Poppy.