Press Releases

AADOCR Announces AADOCR MIND the Future Class of 2022-2023

September 9, 2022, Alexandria, VA, USA – The American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR) is pleased to announce the program participants (mentees) for the third cohort of the AADOCR Mentoring an Inclusive Network for a Diverse Workforce of the Future (AADOCR MIND the Future). 

AADOCR MIND the Future Cohort 3: 

Class of 2022-2023

Hend Alqaderi

Hend Alqaderi
Harvard University 
Boston, Massachusetts

Tumader Khouja

Tumader Khouja
University of Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania

Genevieve Romanowicz

Genevieve Romanowicz
University of Oregon,
Eugene

Mariana Bezamat Chappel

Mariana Bezamat Chappel
University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Marshall Padilla

Marshall Padilla
University of Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia

Mairobys Socorro

Mairobys Socorro
University of Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania

Emily Chu

Emily Chu 
University of Maryland,
Baltimore

Jay Patel

Jay Patel
Temple University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Rong (Rose) Wang

Rong (Rose) Wang
University of Missouri,
Kansas City

Cristiane Franca

Cristiane Franca
Oregon Health & Science University, Portland

Sarah Peters

Sarah Peters
The Ohio State University, 
Columbus

 

The participating mentors assigned to Cohort 3 are:

  • Ana Bedran Russo, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Marco Bottino, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • Azeez Butali, University of Iowa, Iowa City
  • Lucia Cevidanes, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • Patricia Diaz, University at Buffalo, New York
  • Nisha D'Silva, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • Mary Farach-Carson, UT Health Houston, Texas
  • Margharita Fontana, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • Mina Mina, University of Connecticut, Farmington
  • Jacques Nör, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • Stefanie Russell, New York University, New York

“The arrival of this third cohort shows once again the success of our MIND the Future program,” said AADOCR President Jane Weintraub. “To be joined by such a remarkable group of new researchers leaves little doubt that the future of the program, and of AADOCR, is in good hands.”

In 2020, AADOCR was awarded a five-year grant of more than $1.3 million by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) in response to FOA RFA-DE-19-007: NIDCR Mentoring Network to Support a Diverse Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Research Workforce. The grant project dates are March 2020 through February 2025 (Grant No. 5UE5DE029439-02). Principal Investigators for the grant are AADOCR’s CEO Christopher H. Fox, David Drake, Professor of Microbiology, University of Iowa and the Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, and Effie Ioannidou, Director, University of Connecticut Dental Clinical Research Center. The NIDCR program partner is Anissa Brown, Chief of Research Training and Career Development Program.

The primary goal of this NIDCR-funded program is to establish a mentoring network that will support a diverse pool of early career investigators, including individuals from diverse backgrounds (e.g., see Notice of NIH’s Interest in Diversity), in developing independent research careers dedicated to improving dental, oral and craniofacial health. Please see the AADOCR Website for more details.

The program will offer one year of educational activities and interactive opportunities between mentors and mentees to support the development of a diverse oral and craniofacial biomedical research workforce. Once the mentees complete the program in September 2023, they will continue as program alumni and will remain engaged in the program. 

About AADOCR
The American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR) is a nonprofit organization with over 3,000 members in the United States with a mission to drive dental, oral, and craniofacial research to advance health and well-being. AADOCR is the largest division of the International Association for Dental Research which has over 10,000 members. Learn more at www.aadocr.org.