 | Alexis M. Stranahan, Ph.D.
Alexis M. Stranahan received her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Princeton University and continued her training as a postdoctoral
fellow at Johns Hopkins University before beginning an assistant professorship in the Department of Physiology at the
Medical College of Georgia. She is a Ford Foundation Fellow and has received several awards, including the C.J. Herrick
Young Investigator Award through the American Association of Anatomists, and an Early Researcher Award from the American
Psychological Association. Her research interests are in the areas of neuroendocrinology, synaptic plasticity, and the
neuroscience of aging. Just as neurons exhibit neurochemical, morphological, and functional heterogeneity, the process of
generating new knowledge benefits from the participation of individuals from diverse backgrounds. In this regard,
broadening access to research careers promotes excellence across all scientific fields.
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 | Caren Petrie Aronin, Ph.D.
Dr. Petrie Aronin received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering both from the University
of Virginia. In 2008 following her graduate studies with Dr. Edward Botchwey, she spent one year as an intramural
postdoctoral research fellow at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases with Dr. Rocky Tuan.
Currently, she is continuing her postdoctoral work under Dr. Ronald Germain in National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Disease. Dr. Petrie Aronin’s primary research interests combine the fields of immunology and bioengineering
to design new therapeutic strategies for regenerative medicine applications.
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 | Jonathan A. Deane, Ph.D.
Jonathan Deane is a Research Investigator at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation (GNF). After
Ph.D. training in immunology and signal transduction at the University of California, Irvine, he moved to the NIH
to study innate immunity, particularly looking at nucleic acid-sensing molecules. In 2008, he began running a research
group at GNF, where his group is exploring ways to target innate immunity for therapeutic purposes. He is convinced
that for science to progress to its fullest, a diverse set of backgrounds, perspectives, and approaches must be brought
to the table and incorporated into the scientific community.
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 | Marcus B. Jones, Ph.D.
Dr. Marcus Bryan Jones received his Ph.D. in Basic Medical Sciences and Microbiology in 2005, studying in the laboratory
of Dr. Martin J. Blaser in the Sackler Institute at the New York University School of Medicine. Dr. Jones did his
post-doctoral training at the Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) from 2005-2006 in the laboratory of Dr. Scott N. Peterson
in the Pathogen Functional Genomics Resource Center (PFGRC). He currently serves as a staff scientist at the J. Craig
Venter Institute (JCVI), formerly known as TIGR, investigating antibiotic resistance and the human microbiome.
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 | Tracie Locklear, Ph.D.
Dr. Tracie Locklear is a proud member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. Dr. Locklear graduated from High Point
University in 2001 with a B.S. in Biology/ minor in Chemistry. In 2008, she graduated from the University of Illinois
at Chicago with a Ph.D in Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, with a focus on Ethnobotany. Currently, Dr. Locklear
is a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Illinois at Chicago and her research focuses on investigating medicinal
and food plants of the Lumbee Tribe for breast cancer prevention. This work is funded by a grant from the National Institute of Health.
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 | Dana Crawford, Ph.D.
Dr. Crawford received her PhD in Genetics and Molecular Biology with Dr. Stephanie Sherman at Emory University in 2000.
Following her graduate studies, she spent two years as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer at the Center for Disease
Control and Prevention, and in 2006, she joined the faculty of Vanderbilt University's Center for Human Genetics Research
after a four-year post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Genome Sciences at the University of Washington with
Dr. Deborah Nickerson. Dr. Crawford's primary research interests include the broad field of genetic association studies
to identify genetic variations associated with human complex diseases or traits. Dana Crawford is Hispanic.
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 | Jameel Dennis, Ph.D.
I am a post-doctoral fellow at Virginia Commonwealth University. I earned my Baccalaureate of Arts degree in Philosophy and
Doctorate of Philosophy degree in Neuroscience from the University of Virginia. My previous research projects focused on
mitochondrial dysfunction in Parkinsonism and extracellular matrix dependent inflammation in renal fibrosis. I am currently
investigating oligodendrocyte morphogenesis during Central Nervous System development. My diverse training experience has
been an invaluable asset that has enriched the quality of my research and perspective of scientific investigation. Similarly,
I believe cultural diversity in scientific research also combines unique experiences essential for the advancement of science.
Jameel Dennis is African American.
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 | Dana-Lynn Koomoa, Ph.D.
Dana-Lynn T. Koomoa is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i. She received her Ph.D. from the
Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology and Biotechnology at Brown University, in the Spring of 2005. Her
current research interests include investigating the Malignant Progression of Neuroblastoma. She believes that increasing
diversity in Science is important because bringing people with diverse perspectives together will drive innovation and
enhance Bio-Medical and Life science research. Furthermore, she feels that increasing diversity in science will result
in more role models and mentors for underrepresented minority students who may be interested in science. Dana-Lynn Koomoa is Native Hawaiian.
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 | Fatima Rivas, Ph.D.
Fatima comes from a Salvadorian immigrant family and believes that she adds a different perspective to her research as a
Hispanic woman. Fatima attended Huntington Park High School and obtained her BS in chemistry from CSUDH. She earned her
doctorate degree in 2006 from UCSD and attributes much of her success to programs such as USTAR (NIGMS), which played
an important role in her decision to go to graduate school. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow at TSRI working
in the Nicolaou laboratory. Her current research areas are total synthesis of natural products and drug design. Fatima Rivas is Hispanic.
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 | David R. Wilson, Ph.D.
David Wilson is a Native American molecular immunologist who graduated from Arizona State University and is currently
at the NIH investigating the biological functions of the SIRT6 enzyme. He was raised on the Navajo Nation reservation
and strives to encourage younger Native generations into pursuing careers in science. Diversity at the bench gives rise
to diverse ideas pushing towards a common goal. Collections of ideas then enable research groups to choose which ideas
best fits the laboratories needs such as cost, time, man power, novelty of design etc.
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Download the poster presented on the Keystone Symposia Fellows Program at the 4th Conference on Understanding Interventions (2.9MB)
