I earned my M.S in Orthopedic Sciences and Bone Biology and my Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from The University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences. My Master’s thesis research investigated the sexual dimorphism of bone marrow adipose tissue. With Dr. Jennifer W. Hill, I recently completed my dissertation research to uncover the physiological and behavioral functions of the understudied spexin/neuropeptide Q. I found that this peptide acts as an important neuromodulator in both thermogenesis and stereotypic behaviors, such as nest building. I will be starting as a postdoctoral fellow and UCSF IRACDA Scholar in the Ingraham Lab and am excited to investigate how estrogen-receptor neurocircuits control female reproduction and physical activity.
Awards:
2007 Mu Alpha Theta Mathematics & Science Scholarship
2007 Ministry Alliance Episcopalian Student Scholarship
2010 Campus Recreation Services Outstanding Service Award, University of Maryland, College Park
2016-2020 Northern Ohio Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate Scholarship, NSF
2019 NOA-AGEP Annual Research Symposium Outstanding Poster Award, Case Western Reserve University Research ShowCASE
2019 Frontiers in Reproduction: Molecular and Cellular Concepts and Applications Scholarship Fund, NICHD
2019 Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology Travel Award, Bloomington, Indiana