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PACT Speaker Series
Pitt Alumni Connecting with Trainees, or PACT, is a way for Pitt trainees to engage with former graduate students and postdoctoral trainees from the University of Pittsburgh's Schools of the Health Sciences who are involved, lead by example, and are ready to help guide you to even greater accomplishments. Through this new program, the OACD provides opportunities for you to meet with alumni who are out there succeeding in a diversity of career paths available to you!
Career Conversations with Doctoral Alumni
Meet our health sciences doctoral alumni! In this virtual series, UPPDA Executive Board members will converse with Pitt alumni about their career trajectories and, following the question and answer format of the conversation, you will be able to ask your own questions. Learn about current occupations and career paths of our alumni while also mastering how to conduct informational interviews so that you are prepared for the next stage of your career.
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February 6, 2024Career Conversation with Abby Stahl, PhD *RECORDING AVAILABLE*
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Time: 3:30-4:30pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Desire Casares Marfil, PhD, (School of Medicine, Dept. of Pediatrics) will conduct an informational interview with Abby Stahl, PhD, now a Scientific Advisor in Genetic Medicine at Eli Lilly & Co. Join this session to learn about her journey and her current career!Bio: Elizabeth (Abby) Stahl received her bachelor’s degree in Bioengineering and her PhD in Cellular and Molecular Pathology from the University of Pittsburgh. At the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, she studied tissue-resident macrophages during aging and lipidosis, as well as the host immune response to synthetic biomaterials and xenogeneic tissues in the laboratories of Drs. Bryan Brown and Andrew Duncan. After her PhD, she became a postdoctoral fellow at the Innovative Genomics Institute at the University of California, Berkeley working under the guidance of Drs. David Savage and Jennifer Doudna. Efforts in the Doudna lab include engineering new methods of non-viral delivery of CRISPR-Cas9, with a focus on increasing genome editing efficacy and decreasing immunogenicity. Abby has received recognition and funding from the NIH for her work as well as the 2021 Postdoctoral Achievement award from UC Berkeley for service during the COVID-19 pandemic for developing a new diagnostic PCR test that was used for routine testing of the campus community. Abby recently accepted a Scientific Advisor role in Genetic Medicine at Eli Lilly & Co. in Boston, Massachusetts where she continues to perform discovery research and development of CRISPR therapeutics. Outside of the lab, Abby is passionate about teaching and mentorship in STEM, and has been involved with outreach programs for the past 10 years including Investing Now, Bay Area LEEDs, and the SEED Scholar program. Abby served as President of the BGSA in 2016 and has been invited to guest lecture on topics of immunology, CRISPR genome editing, and career development.
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February 20, 2024Career Conversation with Jonathan Duvall, PhD *RECORDING AVAILABLE*
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Time: 12:00-1:00pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Jianan Jian, PhD, (School of Medicine, Dept. of Urology) will conduct an informational interview with Jonathan Duvall, PhD, now a Research Biomedical Engineer with the Department of Veterans Affairs and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pittsburgh in the Human Engineering Research Laboratories. Join this session to learn about his journey and his current career!Bio: Dr. Jonathan Duvall is a Research Biomedical Engineer with the Department of Veterans Affairs and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh in the Human Engineering Research Laboratories. He received a bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering (2010), a master's in Rehabilitation Science and Technology (2013) and a PhD in Rehabilitation Sciences (2018) all from Pitt. Dr. Duvall's research involves designing and evaluating assistive technology and conducting scientific research which increases the independence and quality of life for people with disabilities. He also co-founded PathVu which evaluates and maps sidewalks and other pedestrian pathways for accessibility.
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March 4, 2024Career Conversation with Julianne Baron, PhD, CPH, RBP *RECORDING AVAILABLE*
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Time: 12:00-1:00pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Megan Mahlke, PhD (School of Medicine, Dept. of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology) will conduct an informational interview with former Pitt graduate student, Julianne Baron, PhD, CPH, RBP, now the President and Owner of Science and Safety Consulting. Join this session to learn about her journey and her current career!Bio: Julianne L. Baron, PhD, CPH, RBP, is the President and Owner of Science and Safety Consulting, a woman-owned small business with specialized expertise in biosafety, biorisk management, public health, emergency preparedness, training development, and scientific communication. She has a PhD in Infectious Diseases and Microbiology from the University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public Health. Dr. Baron completed a postdoctoral fellowship through the National Biosafety and Biocontainment Training Program (NBBTP) at the NIH in Bethesda, MD. She has obtained her Certified in Public Health (CPH) credential, is a Registered Biosafety Professional (RBP), and has professional certifications in both Biorisk Management and Cyberbiosecurity.
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March 25, 2024Career Conversation with Lycia Neumann, PhD, MPA *RECORDING AVAILABLE*
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Time: 12:00-1:00pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Chantele Mitchell-Miland, PhD, MPH, (School of Medicine, Dept. of Medicine) will conduct an informational interview with former Pitt graduate student, Lycia Neumann, PhD, now the Senior Director of Health Services Research at the Alzheimer's Association. Join this session to learn about her journey and her current career!Bio: Lycia Neumann is a member of the scientific team of the Alzheimer's Association as the Senior Director of Health Services Research. Before taking this role, she was a Senior Health Researcher and Evaluator at Highmark Wholecare, a Medicaid and Medicare managed care organization based in Pittsburgh, United States, and the Research and Evaluation Strategic Coordinator at Instituto Oncoguia, a Brazilian cancer patient advocacy organization. With over 25 years of experience planning, managing, and evaluating health and social programs, Lycia has authored, reviewed, and coordinated publications about citizen-driven community development, evaluation of public policies and programs, aging, and population health.
Originally from Brazil, she moved with her family to the United States in 2015 to pursue a Ph.D. in Public Health - Behavioral and Community Health Sciences - at the University of Pittsburgh. She graduated in 2019, and along with her doctoral degree, she attained graduate certificates in the Evaluation of Public Health Programs and Latin America Social and Public Policy. Lycia is committed to helping organizations be more effective by using research and evaluation to inform decision-making and by establishing purposeful partnerships to strengthen the impact of their work. Her work interests are in healthcare policy and programs, global health, health disparities, caregiving, and aging, both as an applied researcher and evaluator.
Lycia Neumann has a master's degree in Public Administration from Dalhousie University in Halifax - Canada (2003) and two Bachelor's degrees in Business Administration (1997) and Social Communications (1992). She is a member of the editorial board of Innovation in Aging, one of the scientific journals of the Gerontological Society of America. In addition, she serves on the Advisory Council of the Allegheny County Area Agency on Aging and the Board of Directors of Jeremiah's Place, a crisis nursery. Lycia is also a member of the American Society on Aging (ASA), the Gerontological Society of America (GSA), and the American Evaluation Association (AEA), and a former member of the Institute for Medicaid Innovation (IMI).
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April 11, 2024Career Conversation with Arthi Shridhar, PhD *RECORDING AVAILABLE*
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Time: 3:00-4:00pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Diego Hernandez Espinosa, PhD (School of Medicine, Dept. of Neurobiology) will conduct an informational interview with former Pitt graduate student, Arthi Shridhar, PhD, now a Scientific Program Lead and Senior Scientist at X-Therma Inc. Join this session to learn about her journey and her career!Bio: Dr. Arthi Shridhar has a unique background in the clinical translation of biomaterials, and has managed several highprofile government grants through the Department of Defense and Industry partnerships through her postdoctoral position at University of Pittsburgh in the lab of Dr. Stephen Badylak. Currently serving as the Scientific Program Lead and Senior Scientist at X-Therma Inc., Arthi oversees the R&D (Biology) Applications at X-Therma Inc. where her major contribution is toward end-to-end experimental development and implementation of preservation strategies for a host of regenerative medicine applications. She also serves as a project manager for X-Therma’s collaborators and partners, providing scientific guidance and ensure milestone completion. Most recently, she has delved into the regulatory space, where she is helping develop pre-clinical and clinical strategies for X-Therma’s products.
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April 24, 2024Career Conversation with Anne Sternberger, PhD
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Time: 3:30-4:30pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Shakti Dahiya, PhD, (School of Medicine, Dept. of Surgery) will conduct an informational interview with former Pitt postdoctoral associate, Anne Sternberger, PhD, now a Associate Director of Scientific Affairs at PRIME® Education. Join this session to learn about her journey and her career!Bio: Dr. Sternberger is an Associate Director of Scientific Affairs at PRIME® Education, an accredited provider of continuing medical education. She earned her B.S. at PennWest California, followed by a PhD in Molecular Plant Biology from the University of Ohio. Prior to her current position, she obtained postdoctoral research training in Evolutionary Ecology from the University of Pittsburgh Department of Biological Sciences. In her current role at PRIME®, Sternberger leverages real-world data, the latest clinical evidence, and innovative learning models to invoke positive change in health and wellness at the individual, system, and community levels. Sternberger specifically leads the Rare Disease and Ophthalmology therapeutic areas at PRIME®.
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May 8, 2024Career Conversation with Natasha Tilston-Lunel, PhD
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Time: 3:00-4:00pm ET
Location: Virtual
Description: Rachael Rush, PhD (School of Public Health, Dept. of Infectious Diseases & Microbiology) will conduct an informational interview with former Pitt postdoctoral associate, Natasha Tilston-Lunel, PhD, now an independent principal investigator at Indiana University. Join this session to learn about her journey and career!Bio: Dr. Natasha Tilston-Lunel is a molecular virologist interested in the interface between ecology and virushost interactions. Dr. Tilston received her PhD in Molecular Virology from the University of St Andrews, Scotland under the mentorship of the late Professor Richard M. Elliott. She then moved to the US in 2016 for her postdoctoral training with Professor Paul Duprex, initially at the NEIDL, Boston University followed by a couple of years at the Center for Vaccine Research, University of Pittsburgh. During her postdoctoral training Dr. Tilston investigated the therapeutic use of defective interfering viral particles. During 2020 her work shifted towards developing a measles virus (MV) vectored vaccine candidate for SARS-CoV-2. Dr. Tilston was awarded a K99/R00 pathway to independence grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) in late 2020 to focus on understanding the pathogenesis of various bunyaviruses. In September of 2022, Dr. Tilston moved to the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis to start her own lab as an independent principal investigator!
View past Career Conversations here!
SCIENCE Career Symposium
This annual event occurs as part of the Career Development Series. PhD alumni return to meet with trainees in person or during virtual roundtables to share their career trajectories and to discuss exciting careers covering a range of employment settings and job sectors! Learn more!
How Trainees Will Benefit
Attending the PACT speaker series and Science Career Symposium will expand your network of professional relationships, help you gain new perspectives on a variety of career options, and teach you how to conduct informational interviews.