Scientific Program Analysts

Sarah is excited to join NHGRI supporting the ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) and impacts of genomic variation of function (IGVF) programs. She recently graduated from Christopher Newport University with a BS in Biochemistry and minors in Spanish and Leadership Studies. At CNU, she performed research subcloning gfp and BA0150 into pENTR for Gene-expression studies. She also interned at a molecular biology lab in Costa Rica where she researched the underlying causes of various forms of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and the experiences of patients with this condition. She is passionate about rare genetic disease research and hopes to continue her education in individualized genomics and health in graduate school.

Afia is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Impact of Genetic Variation on Function (IGVF) program. She recently graduated from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC with a B.S. in Biology. During her time at Catholic, she conducted research on HLH-8, a bHLH transcription factor, in the model organism, Caenorhabditis elegans. She plans on pursing her interests in genomic medicine, rare genetic diseases and biomedical ethics in graduate school. 

Jake is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting H3Africa, dGTEx, Comparative Genomics, and the GWAS catalog. He is a recent graduate of the University of Montana in Missoula, MT with a BS in Biology, a BS in Microbiology, and a minor in Biochemistry. During his time at the University of Montana, he leveraged phylogenetics to discover the origin of nitrogen fixation genes in strains of the cyanobacterium Acaryochloris marina, and comparative genomics techniques to study cyanobacteria near the thermal limits of life in Yellowstone National Park.

Vanessa is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Division of Extramural Operations. She has a diverse educational background encompassing an MPH in Epidemiology and a BS in Health Administration from George Mason University. She has spent the last 6 years in a range of healthcare roles, spanning both clinical and administrative spheres. She is passionate about utilizing the power of research and medical knowledge to drive significant changes that target health disparities in our communities, and to foster positive transformation that leads us to achieving health equity.

Ben is excited to join NHGRI supporting the Technology Development and Small Business programs, as well as Clinical Trials Oversight Group. He comes from the Biopharmaceutical industry where he spent time manufacturing life-saving medicines and troubleshooting the production process. While working, he also completed his M.S. in Biotechnology with a specialty in Biotechnology Management and holds a B.S. in Kinesiology from the University of Maryland. His interests lie in drug development, drug accessibility, and helping further the goals of NHGRI by participating in projects that improve our knowledge of medicine and help increase research efforts.

Amber supports the Extramural Training Team program. She recently graduated from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia with a bachelor’s degree in biotechnology and molecular biology. She is interested in genetic epidemiology and health disparities.

Nick is excited to join the NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Computational Genomics and Data Science program (CGDS) along with the GWAS Catalog. He recently graduated from the University of Montana with a B.S. in biology, concentrating in genetics and evolution, and a minor in psychology. Prior to joining the NHGRI, he worked with the US Forest Service in the eDNA program, utilizing environmental DNA to assist in the survey of rare and invasive wildlife. He has a strong interest in the intersection of genomics with data science and hopes to pursue a higher education in bioinformatics.

Madji is excited to join NHGRI as the Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Bridge to Artificial Intelligence (Bridge2AI) program. She graduated from the University of Maryland Baltimore County with her B.S. in Translational Life Science Technology on the Bioinformatics Track. During her time at UMBC, she interned at a molecular biology lab where she studied the effects of COVID-19 by inducing HTB-182 cells and investigating the expression of the protein CCL19. She has an interest in computational genomics and plans on pursuing higher education in Bioinformatics.

Mike is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Computational Genomics and Data Science (CGDS) Program. He recently graduated from New Mexico State University with a BS in Computer Science, and a minor in Biology and Bioinformatics. Prior to joining NHGRI, Mike was an NIH MARC Fellow at New Mexico State University, where he researched how DNA methylation can be used to characterize functional genes using bioinformatics tools and computational biology. 

Sofia is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Human Biomolecular Atlas (HuBMAP) Program and the Knockout Mouse Phenotyping (KOMP2) Program. She recently graduated from St. Edward's University with a BA in Biology with a concentration in Allied Health Professions. Prior to joining NHGRI, she worked as Medical Research Intern at the Washington University School of Medicine where she used light sheet fluorescence microscopy to identify patterns of biological structures in the human kidney. She has an interesting in Genetic Counseling specializing in oncology and hereditary cancer screening.  

Nick is excited to join the NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Financial and Strategic Planning System (FSPS) and International HundredK+ Cohorts Consortium (IHCC). He comes from NCI as a clinical data manager, abstracting data from hematologic malignancy and chronic graft-versus-host disease clinical trials and working with related databases and reporting software. He graduated from the George Washington University with a BA in Biology and the Duke University School of Medicine with a Master of Health Sciences and physician assistant certificate of completion. He is a physician assistant by training.

Weini is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst for the Training, Diversity, and Health Equity Office (TiDHE), Phenotypes and Exposures Toolkit (PhenX), and Advancing Genomic Medicine Research (AGMR). She graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a BS in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. She has a strong interest in addressing health disparities and advancing health equity through the integration of technology and promoting diversity in genomics research.

Caprina is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Data Access Committee, Data Sharing Policy Groups, and Scientific Review Board. Caprina graduated from California State University Stanislaus with a BS in Organismal Biology and minors in Chemistry and Economics. Before joining the NHGRI, Caprina worked in various healthcare informatics and patient care roles. Caprina is interested in the study of genetic and genomic policy, ethics, and health disparities.

Jessica is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Specialist supporting the Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE) Network, the Implementing Genomics in Practice (IGNITE) Pragmatic Clinical Trials Network, and the Advancing Genomic Medicine Research (AGMR) Program. She recently graduated from the University of Michigan with a BS in Neuroscience and French. Prior to joining NHGRI, she was a NCI CURE Grant Fellow at the Fox Chase Cancer Center where she explored the mechanisms of cell death in HPV-positive cancers. She is interested in pursuing higher education focusing on medicine, research, and public health.  

Alauna is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Ethical, Legal, and Social Implication (ELSI) Research Program, the Phenotypes and Exposures Toolkit (PhenX), and the Genomic Medicine Working Group (GMWG). She recently graduated from Marquette University with a BS in Biomedical Sciences with a minor in Health Studies. 

Alessandra is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen) and the Centers of Excellence in Genomic Sciences (CEGS) program. She graduated from California State University, Northridge with a BA in Biology. At CSUN, she was awarded the NIH BUILD PODER Scholar Award and conducted research isolating and characterizing the FOXR1 promoter region. She recently interned as a genetic counseling assistant for a team of genetic counselors specialized in preimplantation genetic testing. She has a strong interest in genomic medicine, bioinformatics, and the intersection of computational science with personalized medicine.

Gaby is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Genomics Research to Elucidate the Genetics of Rare Disease (GREGoR) Research Program and the Human Genome Reference Program (HGRP). She recieved her BS in Biology from Trinity Washington University and is currently pursuing her MS in Human Genetics and Genomics at Southern California University of Health Sciences. She is interested in strategies that bridge the gap in medical genetics for marginalized communities and improving genetic literacy.  

Riley is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst for Molecular Phenotypes of Null Alleles in Cells (MorPhiC), Polygenic Risk Methods in Diverse Populations (PRIMED), and Multi-Omics. She recently graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, VA with a BS in Systems Biology. During her time at Virginia Tech, she helped develop novel techniques for bacteriophage classification of the order Caudovirales under the Aylward Lab. She will continue pursuing her interests in genomic data science and personalized genomic medicine in graduate school.

Olivia Zisa is excited to join NHGRI as a Scientific Program Analyst supporting the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen). She received a B.S. in Biology with a specialization in Cell Biology and Genetics from the University of Maryland in College Park, MD. Before joining NHGRI, she served as a Program Analyst in the Department of Justice (DOJ). She is interested in genomic medicine and hopes to pursue a higher education in bioinformatics.