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Jasmine A’Lycee Davis
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Jasmine Davis, a first-year Master of Public Health Student at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, is interested in infectious disease research and how HIV progresses into AIDS due to environmental exposures and stressors. She received her Bachelor of Science in biology from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. During undergraduate, Jasmine completed research alongside her professor and classmates studying cachexia and the Hippo signaling pathway on fruit flies. Upon graduating, she was offered a position at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), where she was a research technician studying developmental biology on mice. While at BCM, she was a part of the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium. Currently, Jasmine is a student volunteer in Dr. Denise C. Vidot's Global Cannabis and Psychedelics Research Laboratory. In addition, she participates in active research with her advisor and mentor, Dr. Naresh Kumar, studying environmental science, and works for Dr. Patricia Jones, of University of Miami Hospital, who is studying chronic liver conditions and cancer. Long-term, Jasmine would like to conduct research in low- and middle-income countries to assess health disparities and prevent both acute and chronic infections. This summer, Jasmine is going to be working with Dr. Marvin Reid from the University of West Indies in the Cannabis, HIV, and Depression project in Kingston, Jamaica.
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Alexandra Amaya
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Alexandra Amaya, a graduate student pursuing a Master's in Health Administration with a concentration in Health Management and Policy at the University of Miami, is passionate about advocating for health care reform. For over four years she has worked as a clinical research coordinator on NIH-funded trials focused on vulnerable populations. Additionally, she is a research assistant collaborating with company officials on case study projects for an AI-powered outpatient rehabilitation marketplace. Her interests include leveraging AI and technology to revolutionize patient-centered care, while also enhancing economic efficiency and maintaining high standards of quality. As a MHRT grantee, she will spend Summer 2024 in Colombia, working alongside MHRT mentor Dr. Diego Lucumi at the Universidad de los Andes to address the challenges, needs, and capacities of diverse communities to achieve equitable disease prevention strategies. Alexandra has a B.S. in psychology with a minor in sociology from Florida State University. Her goals include driving positive change through the implementation of innovative solutions, promoting equity and sustainability within the health care system, and improving outcomes for individuals across all socioeconomic backgrounds.
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Andrea Jacobo
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Dr. Andrea Jacobo has over a decade of experience in community health initiatives. She joins the Summer 2024 MHRT Program as a postdoctoral trainee at the Universidade Federal da Bahia in Brazil. There, under the mentorship of Tatiane Araujo dos Santos, she will work on a research project focused on establishing a comprehensive data flow methodology for health workers' health information by conducting surveys on data production, and developing and validating data flows and systems change. Dr. Jacobo, formerly a visiting instructor within the Rhodes College Urban Studies-Health Equity Program and the Public Health Director for the Memphis-Shelby County Health in All Spaces grant, has a proven track record of implementing evidence-based health programs and leading strategic planning for policy and systemic change. Her work emphasizes community-centered approaches to health disparities. She holds a Doctorate in Public Health from UC Berkeley, a Master's in Public Health from The University of Memphis, and a bachelor’s degree in exercise physiology from the University of Miami. Her academic work has focused on integrating health equity through intersectional community health research. Beyond these academic and professional roles, she is a spoken word artist and storyteller who draws on her first-generation Afro-Dominican heritage to bridge communities across various cultures and disciplines. Her creative pursuits in community health, culture, and the arts are complemented by her use of design thinking for community and organizational capacity building. |
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Anuradha Ramdas
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Anuradha “Anu” Ramdas, a Master of Public Health student at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, is excited to work on projects at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica during Summer 2024 as part of her MHRT participation. She earned her B.A. in Health Science with a concentration in Women’s Health, served as president of Global Medical Brigades, and was co-director of Mental Health in Medicine and Diversity in Medicine for the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) at Florida Atlantic University. Her interest in women’s health, mental health, and health disparities has led her to serve her community as a volunteer, mentor, and leader. As president of the Public Health Student Association and senator of the Graduate Student Association, Anuradha organizes and fosters connections between local communities and the student body while enhancing opportunities and experiences for graduate students. Her work on “Estimating the differences in Caesarean section (C-section) rates between public and privately insured mothers in Florida” was named Best Overall Premed Poster by AMSA; she went on to present at national and international conferences. Her plans include a career in research, with the desire to expand on health disparities literature in the Caribbean. She hopes that through research and advocacy, we can reduce disparities and achieve health equity. |
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Daisy Lopez
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Daisy Lopez is a bilingual Chicana first-generation college graduate who has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Miami. Currently a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California-Los Angeles Semel Institute, she graduated from Princeton University with a B.A. in psychology. She then worked as a research assistant in the psychology department at the University of Southern California with Dr. Steven Lopez. In L.A., she worked on a community project aimed at informing and motivating the Latine community to seek early treatment for serious mental illness with the overall aim of reducing the duration of untreated psychosis. These experiences influenced her research interests, which center around the role of culture on the illness trajectory of psychotic spectrum disorders, cultural adaptations for empirically based treatments, suicidality, and serving various marginalized and underrepresented communities such as ethno-racially marginalized and LGTBQ+ communities. Daisy aims to help these communities through an academic career that includes community-based work, collaboration with individuals with lived experience, dissemination and advocacy efforts, policy change, and mentorship. This summer, Daisy is in Mexico working with Dr. Oscar Galindo in the project Cultural Risk and Protective Factors of Depression, Anxiety, and Suicidality Among Mexican Caregivers of Patients with Cancer, at the Instituto Nacional de Cancerologia (INCAN).
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Julio A. Martin
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Julio Martin is a doctoral candidate in the counseling psychology Ph.D. program in the Department of Psychology at the University of Florida (UF), where he studies the mental health of Latinx and LGBTQ families. Julio was born in Cuba, grew up in Miami, FL, and is passionate about promoting health equity for Latinx communities, emphasizing social justice, and Liberation Psychology. Julio completed his thesis project studying the parenting practices of Latinx LGBTQ parents and is now investigating moderators of mental health in parents of LGBTQ youth as his dissertation topic. Before joining UF, Julio completed a bachelor’s degree in psychology at Florida International University and a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy at the University of Miami. During this time, he focused on conducting therapy in Spanish with Miami’s Latinx community. After completing his Ph.D., he aims to continue working with Latinx undocumented communities to reduce mental health disparities. He is thrilled to be a MHRT trainee and strengthen his research with Latinx families while examining the mental health of Venezuelan families in Bogota, Colombia, in the Summer 2024 cohort.
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Rosseirys De La Rosa
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Rosseirys “Ro” De La Rosa, a third-year graduate student in the Department of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University, is interested in using epidemiological approaches and anthropological insights on identity and genetics to address medically related questions. Her graduate research focuses on how life experiences are embodied and shape Black communities in Latin America and how cultural elements can mitigate specific stressors. She is particularly interested in the intersections of biology and community. Specifically, she explores the role of social support in mediating health outcomes. She earned her Bachelor of Science in anthropology and human biology from Emory University in May 2022. Her work is currently focused on the Spanish Caribbean, particularly in the Dominican Republic. Rosseirys will be working with Brazilian mentors Dr. Anderson Reis de Sousa and Dr. Larissa Chaves Pedreira from the Universidade Federal of Bahia on the study “Ibero-American Clinical-Social Observatory of Men’s and Masculinities’ Health.”
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Lily Friedman
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Lily Friedman is a second-year graduate student at the University of Miami, pursuing a Master of Science in Prevention Science and Community Health. She completed her bachelor’s degree in public health and Spanish at Rutgers University – New Brunswick in her home state of New Jersey. Her primary research experience has focused on treatment of chronic disease in vulnerable populations, comprehensive sexual education, and tobacco control. She recently completed a two-year research assistantship at the University of Miami focusing on e-cigarette use, helping cancer patients quit smoking cigarettes through mindfulness, and smoking cessation within the construction industry in South Florida. Additionally, prior to her experience with the MHRT program in Summer 2024, Lily has volunteered and worked internationally—both with Students Helping Honduras from 2015 to 2017 and Reach A Hand Uganda in 2019. Her passion for public health centers around health equity, improving health literacy, and tackling disparities within health care and health education. This summer, at Nuevos Rumbos in Bogota, Colombia, she is conducting research with Dr. Augusto Perez Gomez into the influence of social media on the development of sentimental relationships.
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Lynda Jimenez
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Lynda Jimenez is a first-generation Mexican-American in her first year of graduate studies in the sociomedical sciences department at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. In addition, she is a graduate research assistant at Columbia’s School of Nursing for a study focusing on blood pressure outcomes resulting from experienced discrimination among sexual and ethnic minorities in New York City. Inspired by her work as a case manager at the Alaska AIDS Assistance Association in Anchorage, Lynda is pursuing a certificate in Infectious Disease Epidemiology. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and minored in Biology and Global Health at Dartmouth College. She will be a part of the MHRT program for Summer 2024 in Mexico City at the Instituto Nacional de Cancerología (INCAN). There she will conduct research surrounding childhood sexual abuse and PTSD outcomes among cancer survivors. She is excited to start collaborating with her mentors, Dr. Oscar Galindo, of INCAN, and Dr. Karina Gattamorta, of SONHS. Lynda aspires to take part in research and public health programs that mitigate health disparities faced by marginalized communities, specifically Latinas. She wants to continue advocating for pre-exposure prophylaxis use, increased health literacy, and adequate sex education to combat the prevalence and transmission of HIV.
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Sascha Frias-Kaehler
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Sascha Frias-Kaehler is a rising sophomore at the University of Miami studying public health on the pre-med track, graduating in Spring 2027. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, he works as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and is part of the Health Professions Mentorship program (HPM), focusing on increasing awareness in health disparities and increasing the number of doctors of color. As a research grantee with the Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Training (MHRT) Program, he will spend Summer 2024 under the mentorship of Dr. Handerson Silva Santos in Salvador, Brazil, at the Universidade Federal da Bahia. While in Brazil, he will participate in the Construction of the National Program for the Health and Safety of Health Workers, which aims to carry out research in the field of worker health to support the Ministry of Health’s preparation of the National Program for Comprehensive Health and Safety Care for Health Workers of the Unified Health System. In future, he plans to attend medical school and continue participating in health disparities research. |
