Dean’s Day is our annual showcase of student research featuring poster sessions during which students present their work to the multidisciplinary Pitt Public Health community.
To participate, students must prepare and submit an abstract. All currently matriculated Pitt Public Health students are eligible to compete, with the exception of the previous year’s first place master’s and doctoral winners. The 2024 deadline to submit abstracts was March 11.
2024 Schedule
Tuesday, April 2
Sessions 1 and 2
- Session 1, 10 a.m.-Noon
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- Rebecca C. Bilden, Health and Policy Management PhD student
Examining Barriers to Buprenorphine Treatment for OUD: X Waiver Elimination and Increasing Support and Education for Providers - Kaleigh A. Connors, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Therapeutic Delivery of Potent Neutralizing Human Monoclonal Antibodies Improves Survival After Aerosol Exposure to Rift Valley Fever Virus - Elizabeth Roy, Human Genetics MPH student
Equity in Insurance Coverage of Infertility Services for People with Sickle Cell Disease - Dylan J. Tuttle, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Complement Activation as a Mechanism of Protection by SARS-CoV-2 mRNA Vaccine in Men with HIV-1 - Kaley Jean, Human Genetics MPH student
An Exploration of the Disparities Toward the LGBTQ+ Population in Clinical Trials - Gabriela Slizewska, Human Genetics MS student
Perceived Value of Non-Diagnostic Genetic Testing in Hypermobile Patients - Urekha Karri, Human Genetics PhD student
Evaluation of Novel Missense Variants in Haploinsufficiency of A20 - Katherine Callaway Kim, Health and Policy Management PhD student
Impact of the 2018 Angiotensin-Receptor-II (ARB) Recalls and Subsequent Drug Shortages on Patients with Hypertension - Melaina Jacoby, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Viral Tropism for Lymph Node Cells is a Sculptor of Systemic Cytokine Responses to Alphavirus Infection - Namhyun Kim, Epidemiology MS student
Association Between Food Intake Timing and Maternal Glycemia During Pregnancy - Adrianna I. Acevedo-Fontánez, Epidemiology PhD student
Abdominal Myosteatosis and Cognitive Function: Insights from CARDIA Study - Veronica Rodriguez De Leon, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences MPH student
Barriers Identified by Healthcare Professionals Concerning the Participation of People Living with HIV in HPV-Related Cancer Clinical Trials in Puerto Rico
- Rebecca C. Bilden, Health and Policy Management PhD student
- Session 2, 3-5 p.m.
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- John Villandre, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD student
Vuse Golden Tobacco E-Cigarette Usage Induces Bulk Polyubiquitination in Alveolar Epithelial Cells - Bridget Mayrer, Biostatistics MS student
K-Means Clustering Analysis to Determine Hormone Aromatization Characterization of Progesterone Treated and Placebo Treated Patients with Traumatic Brain Injuries - Madeline Peterson, Biostatistics MS student
A Comparison of Classification Trees to Logistic Regression for Exploring Predictors of Patient Outcome after Traumatic Brain Injury - Ziyuan Wang, Epidemiology PhD student
Prevalence of the AHA Life's Essential 8 in Midlife Women and its Prospective Associations with Total Mortality and Cardiovascular Diseases Events: The Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN) - Adrianna I. Acevedo-Fontánez, Epidemiology PhD student
Alcohol Consumption and Its Relation to Ectopic Adiposity in African Caribbean Men - Nina Heilmann, Epidemiology PhD student
Cardiorespiratory Fitness Associations with HR-pQCT Bone Parameters in Older Adults: The Study of Muscle, Mobility and Aging (SOMMA) - Emily Hrach, Human Genetics MS student
Assessing Patient Perceptions and Understandings of Genetic Testing After Recurrent Pregnancy Loss - Stephanie Creasy, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, PhD
Using Concept Mapping to Adapt and Tailor a Post-Incarceration Clinic Model for Sexual and Gender Minoritized Adults in Cuyahoga County, Ohio - Alexandra Larson, Human Genetics MS
Clinical Trial Knowledge Among Adults with Inherited Retinal Dystrophy (IRD) - Lauren Carlson, Epidemiology PhD student
Areal BMD at Baseline Predicts HR-pQCT Parameters 14 Years Later: Findings from the Osteoporotic Fractures in Men (MrOS) Study - Zachary Clemens, Environmental and Occupational Health, PhD
Arsenic-Induced Mitochondrial Dysfunction Interrupts Intercellular Communication in Regenerating Muscle Cells - Veronica Rodriguez De Leon, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, MPH student
Trends in Lifestyle Risk Behaviors for Cancer Among People Living with HIV (PLWH) in Puerto Rico from 2015 and 2021 - Emily Nicholls, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD
An Analysis of Birth Outcomes in Relation to PM 2.5 Exposure Among Environmental Justice Communities in Southwestern Pennsylvania - Isabel Martin, Epidemiology MPH student
Identifying Structural Barriers to Breast Cancer Screening Within 10 Neighborhoods in Allegheny County: A Community-Based Approach - Yuchen Sun, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD student
Maternal Blood MicroRNA Signatures and Associations with Maternal Smoking Status: Potential Impacts on Tissue Development and Inflammatory Responses - Nan Sheng, Human Genetics MS student
Measures of Adiposity as Predictors of Type-2 Diabetes Status in Samoan Adults
- John Villandre, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD student
Wednesday, April 3
Sessions 3 and 4
- Session 3, 10 a.m.-Noon
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- Katherine Callaway Kim, Health and Policy Management PhD student
Drug Shortages in the U.S. and Canada: A Multi-National, Cross-Sectional Study - Basma Dib, Epidemiology PhD student
Understanding the Impact of Selection Biases Inherent in Perinatal Research Across Different Causal Inference Approaches: A Simulation Study - Nicole Weise, Human Genetics MS student
Prenatal Genetic Counselors’ Perceptions of their Disability Training and Preparedness for Addressing Disability in Practice: A Thematic Analysis - Elian Buchi, Human Genetics MS student
A Prospective Study Assessing Cancer Patients’ Perceptions Regarding the Value of Cancer Genetic Counseling - Gayatri Dholakia, Human Genetics MS student
Regulation of acvrl1 and its Implication on Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia - Megan Zieber, Human Genetics MS student
Analyzing Accessibility and Suitability of Online Krabbe Disease Resources - Yi (Emma) Lu, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD student
Brain Cellular Responses to Peripheral Inflammation in Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease - Victoria Kostour, Human Genetics MS student
U.S.-Trained Genetic Counselors’ Perspectives on International Rotations: A Thematic Analysis - Grace Waldow, Human Genetics MS student
Further Investigation of the First-Tier Status of Fragile X Testing for Pediatric Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Diagnostic Yield and a Comprehensive Chart Review - Christine Crasto, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Syndecan Proteoglycans Promote Infection by Heparan Sulfate Binding Alphaviruses - Shuwei Liu, Human Genetics PhD student
Associations Between DNA Methylation and Cognitive Function in Early-Stage Breast Cancer Patients - Emma Ford, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences MPH student
Resource Mapping for Fathers in Allegheny County - Vatsala Rangachar Srinivasa, Epidemiology PhD student
Retrospective Whole Genome Sequencing Surveillance for Healthcare-Associated Human Metapneumovirus Transmission - Elizabeth Roy, Human Genetics MPH student
Evaluating Stakeholder Engagement in Risk-Based Environmental Standards: A Dry Cleaning Case Study - Emma Gay, Epidemiology PhD student
Association Between Skeletal Muscle Energetics and Perceived Physical Fatigability: The Study of Muscle, Mobility and Aging (SOMMA)
- Katherine Callaway Kim, Health and Policy Management PhD student
- Session 4, 1-3 p.m.
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- Rob Gresser, Environmental and Occupational Health MPH student
Fire Department Decontamination Protocols: Are they reducing toxicant exposures for ALL first responder? - Claire Lama, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences MPH student
Factors in Seeking Skilled Care During the Perinatal Period: An Exploratory Study in Golche, Nepal - Gopika Rajanikanth, Human Genetics MS student
Perspectives Surrounding Prenatal and Pre-Conception Genetic Counseling for People with Cystic Fibrosis Considering Parenthood - removed
- Runjia Li, Biostatistics PhD student
Doubly Robust Approach for Estimating the Conditional Average Treatment Effects (CATEs) on Time-to-Event Outcome with Competing Risk: A Case Study of ICU Patients with Sepsis - Shanshan Yao, Epidemiology PhD student
Metabolomic Pathways of Inflammation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction are Related to Worsening Healthy Aging Index and Mortality - Yilei Liu, Epidemiology PhD student
Global Trends in Outpatient Gabapentinoid Utilization: A Time-Series Analysis of 67 Countries - John Tukakira, Epidemiology MPH student
Trends in Age-Standardized Prevalence of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Senegal between 1976 and 2020 by Sex - Samantha Zhang, Epidemiology PhD student
Causal Mediation Framework to Identify the Impact of Influenza Vaccination on Patients’ Self-Reported Severity of Influenza Infection - Genet S. Assefa, Human Genetics PhD student
Age, Gender, and Hemoglobin Type are Associated with Levels of Hemolysis Cytoprotective Proteins in Individuals with Sickle Cell Disease - Linyi Chen, Epidemiology PhD student
Mediation Effect of Education on the Association Between Sex and Quality of Life Following Outpatient Acute Respiratory Illness - Katherine Novak, Human Genetics MPH student
Clinical Implications of Integrating Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) at the Residential Level of Eating Disorder Care for Adults with PTSD - Katie Carlson, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology MPH student
Disparities and Trends in Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Pathologic Testing Among Oropharyngeal Cancer Patients in the National Cancer Database - Sade Ashley Tukuru, Epidemiology MPH student
Creativity Matters: Evaluating the Impact of Student Access to Creative Outlets - Emmanuela Abraham, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences MPH student
Exploring the Unseen Wounds: The Impact of Unaddressed Trauma on Haitian Immigrants in Maryland - Alexander T. Riley, Epidemiology MPH student
Understanding the Factor Structure of Delinquency-Related Behavior in the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development-Social Development Study - Ang Le, Environmental and Occupational Health MPH student
The Impact of Language Barriers in Immigrant Worker Population’s Occupational Health in Chiang Rai, Thailand
- Rob Gresser, Environmental and Occupational Health MPH student
Thursday, April 4
Sessions 5 and 6
- Session 5, 10 a.m.-Noon
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- Na Bo, Biostatistics PhD student
Pseudo-Outcome-Based Meta-Learners to Analyze Treatment Heterogeneity in Survival Data: Application to Pediatric Asthma Care Under COVID-19 Disruption - Donald Bourne, Health and Policy Management PhD student
Early Impacts of a State-wide Alternative Payment Model for Rural Hospitals on the Utilization of Traditionally Low-Margin Service Lines - Haley Director, Health and Policy Management PhD student
Evaluating Utilization Patterns of Prenatal Genetic Testing Among Deliveries in the Greater Pittsburgh Region - Keaton Solo, Human Genetics PhD student
Medium-Chain Acylcarnitines Target Muscular Phenotypes of Long-Chain Fatty Acid Oxidation Disorders - Cynterria R. Wilson, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences MPH student
Fostering Trust and Advancing Health Equity: An Innovative Pilot Curriculum Rooted in Principles of Trustworthiness - Bianca Kun, Human Genetics MS student
Identifying Risk Factors Associated with Preterm Birth in Black/African American Women - Amro Nasser, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Antibody Dependent Complement Activation and DENV3 Disease Severity - Yueting Wang, Biostatistics PhD student
A Novel Bayesian Finite Mixture Model Approach for Clustering Mixed-type Variables and Censored Biomarkers - Sarah Scott, Epidemiology PhD student
Thriving Voices: Using Visual Voices to Explore Thriving in Young Adults after Teen Economic Abuse - Miranda Rae Aman, Environmental and Occupational Health MPH student
Unveiling Environmental Inequities and Health Disparities: A Multifaceted Study in Pittsburgh's Homewood Neighborhood - Reagan (Moffit) Garcia, Epidemiology PhD student
Estimating Cardiorespiratory Fitness Using a Usual-Paced 400-m Long Distance Corridor Walk in Older Adults - Bethany Hoschar, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Identifying RAGE Expression in Tissue Sections and Whole Blood from Cynomolgus Macaques - Michelle Sun, Biostatistics MS student
Age-Related Changes in Human Circadian Rhythms
This session will feature presentations from our inaugural graduating class of the Bachelor of Science in Public Health degree
- Sofia Choudhry, Nyasha Mafarachisi, and Chanita Russell
Exploring Comprehensive Sexual Education Models with Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania - Brittney Manu
Empowering Young Black Girls: A Culturally Relevant Approach to Sexual Education Curriculum Implementation and Evaluation - Ibukun Oladeinde, Brooke Shapiro, and Noelle Smith
Creating a Ladder of Engagement for Partners of Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania - Haliyat Oshodi
From Engagement to Action: Community Health Initiative in Kgope, Botswana
- Na Bo, Biostatistics PhD student
- Session 6, 2-4 p.m.
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- Molly Nelson and Persis Sunny, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology MPH students
Exploring Macrophage Phenotypic and Functional Diversity in Granulomas from Mycobacterium Tuberculosis-Infected Macaques - Alyssa Arreola and Ziyue Huang, Human Genetics MPH students
The Healthy Communities, Services, and Lifestyles (HCSL) Project: Elevating Community Voices to Shape a Future Healthy Lifestyle Institute in the Hill District - Rebecca Terrill, Human Genetics MPH student
Readability and Suitability of State Newborn Screening Program Websites - Elora Kalix, Epidemiology PhD student
Community Perceptions of Childhood and Prenatal Lead Exposure in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania - Qi Wei, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD student
Human Airway Epithelial Cells (HAECs) Exhibit Differential Viral-Related Immune Responses Under Type-2 (T2) Conditions - Daniel Lane, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology student
Targeting the Rate-Limiting Enzyme PFKFB3 in Neutrophils Alters Neutrophil Interactions with Mycobacterium Tuberculosis - Isha Sahasrabudhe, Biostatistics MS student
Unraveling the Role of BTNL9 Expression in Adipose Tissue: Insights Into Cardiometabolic Traits Through Genetic Analysis - Sam Bednar, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences MPH student
A Program to Reduce Post-Transplant Alcohol Use - Jiaqi Lyu, Environmental and Occupational Health PhD student
Preconception Exposure to Arsenic and Its Impact on Maternal and Fetal Health: Placental Transcriptome Analysis - Karmen Reynolds, Human Genetics MPH student
Pediatric Provider Attitudes Regarding the Diagnosis and Management of Familial Hypercholesterolemia - Sarah Cory, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Examining Phenotypic Characteristics of Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells (MDSCs) in Non-Human Primates - Xinran Liu, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences PhD
Social Well-Being Impacts of Long-term Mobility Device Use Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults in the United States - Kennedy Sawicki, Human Genetics MPH student
Public Health Professionals’ Knowledge of and Perceived Barriers to Implementing Trauma-Informed Care in Newborn Screening - Michelle Marti, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology PhD student
Genetic Ancestry Drives Differences in Dengue Virus Infection of Isolated Human Skin Cells
- Molly Nelson and Persis Sunny, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology MPH students
Congrats to our previous winners
- 2023 Winners
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Dean’s Day first place master’s: Harika Dyer, EPIDEM
Dean’s Day second place, master’s: Shravan Leonard-Murali, EPIDEM
Dean’s Day third place, master’s: Rina Mahoney, HUGENDean’s Day first place doctoral: Nathan Raabe, EPIDEM
Dean’s Day second place, doctoral: Arpita Tripathi, BCHS
Dean’s Day third place, doctoral: Ziling Mao, EPIDEMRosenkranz Award for the project judged to be the most significant contribution to the public health field: Samantha Rosenberg, BCHS
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award, master's: Aparna Ramani, HPM
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award, doctoral: Anna Lewis, IDMCatherine Cartier Ulrich Award, master's: Harika Dyer and Kayla Ortiz, BCHS
Catherine Cartier Ulrich Award, doctoral: Adrianna Acevedo-Fontanez, EPIDEM
Center for Public Health Practice: Dara Czernikowski, BCHSDepartment of Epidemiology master's award: Pooja Tallapeneni
Department of Epidemiology doctoral award: Lauren Shaver Roe
Department of Epidemiology health disparities award: Samantha Hernandez - 2022 Winners
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Dean’s Day first place master’s: Rachel Merritt, IDM
Dean’s Day second place, master’s: Monica Henderson, BCHS
Dean’s Day third place, master’s: Haley Director, HUGENDean’s Day first place doctoral: Chinwoke Isiguzo, BCHS
Dean’s Day second place, doctoral: Jessie Klousnitzer, EOH
Dean’s Day third place, doctoral: Alice Gao, HPMRosenkranz Award for the project judged to be the most significant contribution to the public health field: Bethany Flage, IDM
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award, master's: Emily Arthur, EPI
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award, doctoral: Donald Bourne, HPMDepartment of Epidemiology master's award: Teja Pulavarthi
Department of Epidemiology doctoral award: team of John Herberger, Rebecca McAdams, Alice Arcury-Quandt, Adrianna Acevedo-Fontanez
Department of Epidemiology diversity award: Carly Belz