UJPDA Current Officers

Council: Lourah Kelly, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

Lourah Kelly is a Clinical Research Associate I in the Behavioral Health Division of the Calhoun Cardiology Center. Her Ph.D. is in Clinical Psychology, awarded from Suffolk University in Boston, MA. Her program of research focuses on the intersection of substance use problems and suicidality, particularly among young people. She is Principal Investigatory of a K99 Pathway-to-Independence Award, funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. This project includes intensive mentorship, training, and aims to develop an avatar-guided mobile health intervention for young adults with alcohol use problems and suicidal thoughts who present to the emergency department. Follow Lourah on Twitter.

Council: Roberto Vazquez-Munoz, Ph.D., M.Sc. (he/him/his).

Roberto is a first-gen postdoctoral fellow at the Department of General Dentistry in Uconn Health. He is a nanomedicine scientist with a transdisciplinary background with an M.Sc. degree in Microbiology and a Ph.D. in Material Physics. Currently, Roberto is studying the 1) interactions between probiotic bacteria and disease-associated oral microorganisms in health and disease; and 2) effects of antimicrobial metallic nanomaterials on MDR pathogens and their environment. He also develops STEAM (STEM+Art) resources for underrepresented groups, and actively promotes Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) activities and BioArt. Follow Roberto on LinkedIn. 
Council: Alexander Calderon