Class notes

1961

Eugene M. Edynak, A&S '61, Med '64 (MD), a retiree, authored Mirth, Medicine and the Military: A Vietnam Survivor's Memoir With Poetic License, published by Archway Publishing in November 2023. The book details his role in creating the Army Surgical Hospital at the III Corps 5th Forces C Team in 1966 and 1967.

1966

Sheldon D. Glass, Ed '66 (MEd), is national medical director at Baltimore-based BayMark Health Services, the largest provider of substance abuse services in North America, and a founding and current member of the National Advisory Council of the Johns Hopkins School of Education. He has been a part- or full-time faculty member in the School of Medicine's Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences since 1968. Both he and his wife, Saralynn Glass, Ed '72, '77 (MS), received the Champions in Education Award from the Johns Hopkins School of Education for their leadership and innovation in advancing the quality of education, human services, or public safety. She is a founding member of both the School of Education's National Advisory Council and its Alumni Council, where she has fostered innovation and ensured quality in education.

1982

Chi Van Dang, Med '82 (MD), is scientific director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in New York City and the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Cancer Medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He received the 2024 AACR-Margaret Foti Award for Leadership and Extraordinary Achievements in Cancer Research at the American Association for Cancer Research's national meeting in April.

David F. Martin, Med '82 (MD), is executive director of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. He received the 2023 Honored Surgeon Award from the North Carolina Orthopaedic Association at its annual meeting for his notable influence in the promotion of the highest standards of orthopaedic care. Additionally at the meeting, the David F. Martin, MD, Endowed Orthopaedic Resident Leadership Award was announced, which will recognize a deserving Wake Forest orthopedic resident in his honor.

1983

Emmett Cunningham, A&S '83, Med '86 (MD), BSPH '91 (MPH), is co-founder and executive chairman of Eyconis, a company that develops, manufactures, and commercializes TransCon ophthalmology assets globally.

Ann Rosenthal, Med '83 (MD), is the Will and Cava Ross Professor of Medicine in the Division of Rheumatology at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) and chief of the Rheumatology Division. She also is medical director of the Zablocki VA Translational Research Unit and associate chief of staff for research at the VA Medical Center. She and her husband, Benson Massey, Med '83 (MD), a professor specializing in gastroenterology at MCW, report that their daughter, Ellen Schmitt, joined them on the faculty of MCW as an assistant professor, specializing in geriatrics.

1987

Keith Ablow, Med '87 (MD), is the founder of life coaching and consulting platform Pain 2 Power. Since 2015, he has published an annual list of ways to change your life. In December 2023, he posted "24 Ways to Change Your Life in 2024" on keithablow.com.

1988

Marisa Bartolomei, Med '88 (PhD), is Perelman Professor of Cell Developmental Biology; professor of genetics and co-director of the Epigenetics Institute, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine; and director of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine Program in Reproductive Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. She received the 2024 March of Dimes Richard B. Johnston, Jr., MD Prize, in recognition of her efforts to advance the science and understanding of pregnancy, birth, and prenatal development.

Joshua Hare, Med '88 (MD), is the Louis Lemberg Professor of Medicine at the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami and co-founder, chairman, and chief scientific officer of Longeveron, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing cellular therapies for life-threatening congenital heart diseases and chronic aging-related conditions. He was inducted into the National Academy of Inventors as a fellow in June 2023, is a double board-certified cardiologist, and is the founding director of the Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute at the Miller School of Medicine. During the past 15 years, he has received more than $25 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health.

1990

Yolanda Becker, Med '90 (MD), is vice president and chief medical officer of LifeGift, a health services organization serving residents of 109 Texas counties who need organ transplants. She also is a member of LifeGift's strategic governance council. In these positions, she provides clinical operational leadership and medical direction in organ and tissue procurement activities to maximize and optimize organs available for transplantation, medical therapy, and research. Becker also has a dual appointment as professor of medical education and surgery, and director of career and professional development at the Burnett School of Medicine at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth.

Jack Hobaugh, Engr '90 (MS), is a shareholder in the Corporate and Business Department of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. He was appointed to a two-year term as chair of the International Association of Privacy Professionals KnowledgeNet Denver chapter. As chair, he helps the organization build the privacy profession in Denver through educational and networking opportunities.

1993

Trudy Gaillard, Nurs '93 (MSN), is associate professor at the Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Florida International University. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

1996

Jeff Booth, A&S '96, is deputy director for astronomy and physics at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California Institute of Technology. He oversees implementation of missions toward launch and operations, ranging from CubeSats studying the sun to partnerships with international space agencies to flagship telescopes to search for the signs of biosignatures in exoplanets. At JPL, he has overseen the formulation of a number of space missions for NASA through initial design and development.

Debbie Ricker, BSPH '96 (MPH), is the interim president of Hood College. Her appointment was effective July 1. Previously, she was provost and vice president of academic affairs at Hood and, prior to that, was department chair for the biological sciences department, associate dean of academic affairs, and founding dean of the Division of Academic Services at York College of Pennsylvania.

Bryan Young, Peab '96, is a Peabody bassoon faculty member and board chair of Chamber Music America, where he furthers the organization's mission advocating for the small ensemble music field. He also is principal software engineer at Expel.

1998

Janet Selway, Nurs '98 (Cert), '04 (DNS), is associate professor and specialty director of the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner program at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

1999

Terry Eberhardt, Peab '99, is the executive director of the Denyce Graves Foundation, which advances equity and inclusion in American classical vocal arts. He was previously music coordinator in the Howard County (Maryland) Public School System and associate artistic director at Young Artists of America.

2002

Sara Rodriguez, Nurs '02, '04 (MNPH), BSPH '04 (MPH), is lieutenant governor of the state of Wisconsin. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2003

Rita Rastogi Kalyani, Med '03 (MD), BSPH '09 (MHS), is professor of medicine in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. She has been named president-elect of Medicine & Science on the American Diabetes Association's 2024 national board of directors.

Khoi Than, A&S '03, Med '07 (MD), is a tenured professor of neurosurgery and orthopedic surgery at Duke University Health System.

2004

Jennifer Linker, SAIS '04 (MA), and Steve Forde, Bus '08 (MS), co-founded Second Curve Strategies, a boutique bipartisan government relations and advocacy firm, headquartered in Washington, D.C. The firm handles government relations, coalition building, advocacy communication, political strategy and engagement, and reputation management.

Martha Sylvia, Nurs '04 (MNBA), '09 (PhD), is president of ForestVue Healthcare Solutions and associate professor in the College of Nursing at the Medical College of South Carolina. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2005

Katherine Scafide, Nurs '05 (MSN), '12 (PhD), is associate professor in the School of Nursing at George Mason University. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2008

Ivan Butina, SAIS '08 (Dipl), '09 (MA), is a knowledge management manager at UNICEF's New York City headquarters, where he leads the development and implementation of UNICEF's first knowledge management strategy. He created the organization's first leadership development program for young staff titled YoU Are Leaders. He contributed "Communities of Practice for Action" to the book Communities of Practice at the World Bank, published by Routledge in March 2024.

2009

Jason Liebowitz, A&S '09, Med '13 (MD), is assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City.

Melinda Sawyer, Nurs '09 (MSN), BSPH '17 (DrPH), chief quality and patient safety officer at UnitedHealth Group, was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2010

Ashanti Edwards, Bus '10, is director of diversity and inclusion at the American Geophysical Union, where she spearheads the organization's initiatives to foster a culture of diversity and inclusivity within the scientific community. She is an executive board member at the Institute for Creative Community Initiatives and has served as co-investigator and principal investigator on grants from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the National Science Foundation, and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund.

Andrew Farber Miller, A&S '10, completed a two-year toxicology fellowship at Atrium Health Care System in Charlotte, North Carolina, in June. In August, he accepted an attending physician appointment in the Emergency Department at St. Luke's University Hospital in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Beatriz Martin Villalba, Med '10 (MA), is an art educator in Richmond, Virginia. She received the 2024 Richmond Arts Award in Arts Education from the Richmond Arts Coalition. She was recognized for her Budding Artists nature drawing program, Faces of Richmond exhibition, and Culture Days exhibitions with elementary students from Richmond schools, among others.

2011

Nicole Jiam, A&S '11, Med '16 (MD), is a neurotology and skull base surgery fellow at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear/Harvard Medical School and a faculty member at the University of California, San Francisco. She is also co-founder and chief executive officer of IIAM, a digital health startup that facilitates efficient, secure medical information exchange, and she is the co-inventor of a medical device for nasal inflammatory disorders. She received the 2024 Hearing Health Foundation Emerging Research Grant Award and the 2023 Doris Duke Physician-Scientist Fellowship Award to study neuroplasticity and neural responses to cochlear implant users. Her research focus includes cochlear implantation, complex sound processing, music perception, health tech, and flat-panel CT imaging.

Emese C. Parker, BSPH '11 (MPH), is a pregnancy- and motherhood-focused life coach and a women's health nurse practitioner. She received a 2024 Independent Press Award for her book To Carry Wonder: A Memoir and Guide to Adventures in Pregnancy and Beyond. The book was recognized in the pregnancy and childbirth category and was published in March 2023 by Larkwell Press.

2012

Sherri Johnson Wilson, Nurs '12 (DNP), is director of partnership development and a career pathways subject matter expert at Stride and is the founder of the Institute for Health and Social Equity. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023 and is also president of the Virginia Nurses Association.

2013

Eugene Shenderov, Med '13 (MD), is assistant professor in the Department of Genitourinary Oncology and Cancer Immunology and co-director of the Prostate Cancer Multi-Disciplinary Clinic at Johns Hopkins. He was awarded an annual gift of $20,000 from the Ethan J. Hollander Foundation for prostate cancer research. His lab focuses on understanding the mechanisms of the immune response to prostate cancer and the resistance to immunotherapy. He is also the founder and strategic and medical consultant of LifeImmune, a company that is developing a novel diagnostic test for drug, food, and environmental allergies.

Carl Streed Jr., Med '13 (MD), is associate professor of medicine at Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, research lead at the GenderCare Center, and president of the U.S. Professional Association for Transgender Health. He is a board member of Point Foundation, the nation's leading scholarship-granting organization for LGBTQ college students. Streed's work on LGBTQ health has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, and Doris Duke Foundation.

2015

Kathryn Locke-Jones, Ed '15 (MEd), a seventh-grade English language arts teacher from Hampstead Hill Academy, was named the Baltimore Teacher of the Year for 2024. Locke-Jones is also the co-founder of SL24 and Sean's House, two mental health nonprofit foundations dedicated to educating, assisting, and supporting high school– to college-age students struggling with depression.

Miyeon Oh, SAIS '15 (PhD), is Korea policy chair at RAND, where she focuses on challenges to East Asian security and prosperity that are of interest to the Republic of Korea and the United States. In the position, she works to expand RAND's Korean research portfolio, build partnerships, raise RAND's profile in the region, and mentor junior researchers. Previously, she was director and senior faculty lead of the Korea studies program in Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies.

2018

Kyle Jones, Peab '18 (MM), is an adjunct instructor of music at Northwest Missouri State University. He was one of 10 recipients of a 2023 Rocket Grant through the Charlotte Street Foundation and the Spencer Museum of Art in Lawrence, Kansas. He collaborated with composer Paul Berlinsky to curate a concert of baritone saxophone and electronics, presented at the Arvin Gottlieb Planetarium in Kansas City, Missouri, in February.

Tamar Rodney, Nurs '18 (PhD), is assistant professor and track coordinator in the Post-Master's Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certificate Program in the JHU School of Nursing. She was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2019

Hilo Tiago Carriel Da Silva, Peab '19 (MM), is a pianist and conductor, leading orchestras such as the São Paulo Symphony, the Minas Gerais Philharmonic, and Amazonas Philharmonic. He was a semifinalist at the 58th Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors.

Binu Koirala, Nurs '19 (PhD), assistant professor in the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2020

Kendra Mehling, BSPH '20 (MPH), and Alex Gould were married on June 1. She is a senior manager at Real Chemistry.

2021

Vanessa Battista, Bus '21 (MBA/MSN), Nurs '21 (DNP), senior nursing director of palliative care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2023.

2023

Hae Lee, Peab '23 (MM), is associate conductor of the Richmond Symphony and conductor of the Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra. He received second prize in the 2023 Kussewitzky Competition and was a finalist at the 58th Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors.