“Ask Me”: A Guide to Connecting with Current

Students, Faculty and Staff

Please feel free to reach out to any of the individuals listed below as they are eager to help you in any way possible!

Contents First Year Students .................................................................................................................................................................. 2

Second Year Students ............................................................................................................................................................. 5

Third Year Students ................................................................................................................................................................. 5

Fourth Year Students .............................................................................................................................................................. 6

Faculty and Staff ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8

First Year Students

Abdi Ahmed abdiahmed@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of South Florida

Ask Me About: • Equal Access Clinic • Adjusting to med school after gap years • Life as a first year

Richie Artola - Panelist richard.artola@ufl.edu UG: Florida Gulf Coast Univ.

Ask Me About: • Non-traditional • Veteran transition • Spanish speaking volunteer opportunities • Ophthalmology interest • AAMC representative/conferences • Arts in Medicine • Latino Medical Student Association • Student National Medical Association

Mitsy Audate mitsy.audate@ufl.edu UG: University of Miami Class of 2023 Vice President & Class Advocate

Ask Me About: • Anything!

Michael Bacchus michaelbacchus@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Central Florida

Ask Me About: • Admissions Welcome Committee • Anything!

Rachel Baker rachel.baker@ufl.edu UG: Calvin College

Ask Me About: • Out of state • CMDA (Christian Medical & Dental

Association) • UFCOM community • Daily med school life • Married while in med school • Dog mom

Mallika Bhatta mbhatta@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida

Ask Me About: • Wellness • Time management • White Coat Company

Hannah Burris hannah.burris@ufl.edu UG: University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill

Ask Me About: • Research • Transitioning to med school • Interest groups (Surgical Subspecialties;

American Physician scientist Association)

Joe Calpin jcalpin@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Georgia Grad: Univ. of South Florida

Ask Me About: • Equal Access Clinic officer • Shadowing • Weekly schedule examples • Interest groups (Surgical subspecialties,

Anesthesia, Emergency Medicine) • Non-traditional (3 gap years, 2 jobs, 1

masters) • LGBTQ+

Sanaz Dovell, PhD – Panelist sdovell@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida Grad: Florida Atlantic Univ.

Ask Me About: • Non-traditional • Married with children in med school • Global health trips

Ethan Holland eholland1@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Notre Dame Grad: Univ. of South Florida

Ask Me About: • Admissions Welcome Committee • Fun facts about Gainesville • Out of State

Margaret Ann Kreher mkreher@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida

Ask Me About: • Gainesville life • Research • Collaborative Learning Groups • Curriculum

Ryanne Lehenaff rlehenaff@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida Grad: Univ. of Florida

Ask Me About: • Why UF • Admissions Welcoming Committee • Internal Medicine Interest Group (co-

president) • Mobile Outreach Clinic • Research Mentorship

Torie Livingston torie.livingston@ufl.edu UG: University of Georgia Grad: Brown University

Ask Me About: • Out of State • Admissions Welcome Committee • Leadership opportunities

Erin Locey erinlocey@ufl.edu UG: Duke University

Ask Me About: • White Coat Company • Anesthesiology • Research • Out of state for undergrad

Michelot Michel mmichel5@ufl.edu UG: Florida International Univ. Class of 2023 President & Academic Chair

Ask Me About: • Anything! • Student input on the program

Ashton Naumann ashton.nauman@ufl.edu UG: Washington Univ. in S.t Louis

Ask Me About: • Anything! • Equal Access Clinic • Emergency Medicine Interest Group • Work/life balance • Out of State • Housing • Life without a car in med school • Step1 & academic resources • Intramurals (soccer & sand volleyball) • Shadowing

Kristin Smith kris07@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida Grad: Univ. of Florida

Ask Me About: • Non-traditional (matriculated 3+ years after

undergrad) • Collaborative Learning Groups • Interest groups • Finding physician mentors • Significant others while in med school • Working while in med school

Kathryn Thompson kathrynmthompson@ufl.edu (407)516-0539 UG: Mount St. Mary’s Univ.

Ask Me About: • Equal Access Clinic • Mental health in med school • Intramurals • Gainesville life • Housing • Interest groups • Research

Daniel Valladares dvalladares@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida

Ask Me About: • Admissions Welcome Committee • Pediatrics • Innovation in healthcare

Celeste Yergin, PhD cyergin@ufl.edu UG: University of Melbourne Grad: University of Virginia

Ask me About: • Non-traditional • Med school in your 30s • Jacksonville • Research • Dog mom • Moving from out of state (far)

Second Year Students

Andrew Dobry andrew.dobry@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Alabama

Ask Me About: • Anything! • Health Professions Scholarship Program • Research and discovery tracks • Curriculum • Extracurriculars • Housing

Patrick Perche patrickperche@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of South Florida

Ask Me About: • Anything! • Equal Access Clinic • NIH research • Anatomy

Patrick Rizk, MPH prizk122@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida Grad: Univ. of Florida

Ask Me About: • Anything! • Involvement • Being a triple Gator • Admissions Welcome Committee • LGBTQ+ • Social things

Third Year Students

Kyle Chan - Panelist kyle.chan@ufl.edu UG: University California, Berkeley

Ask Me About: • Being Out of State • Incorporating music and medical school • Third year clerkships • Pursuing anesthesiology

Sydney Look sydneylook@ufl.edu UG: Florida State Univ.

Ask Me About: • Pediatrics • White Coat Company • Chronic illness and manageability in med

school

Brittny Randolph - Panelist brandolph@ufl.edu UG: Barry Univ. Grad: Univ. of South Florida

Ask Me About: • Military and med school • Non-traditional • 3rd year clerkships

Fourth Year Students

Xiomara Brioso Rubio - Panelist xiomarabrioso@ufl.edu UG: University of Florida Matched: OB-GYN, Yale University

Ask Me About: • Equal Access Clinic Network • Obstetrics & Gynecology • Student National Medical Association • Latino American Medical Student Association • American Medical Women’s Association

Nathan Burriss nburriss@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Tennessee-Knoxville Matched: Radiology, Medical College of Georgia

Ask Me About: • Radiology • Out of State • LGBTQ+ • Equal Access Clinic • Research • Medical education • Anatomy

Laura Cline lcline@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Mississippi Matched: Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin

Ask Me About: • Pediatrics • Couples matching for residency • Out of State • Intramural sports • Attending UF athletic events • Gainesville foodie • Running trails and Florida races • Mentorship at UF

Wayne Dell - Panelist wayne.dell@ufl.edu Class of 2020 President & Academic Chair UG: University of Virginia Grad: Tsinghua University Matched: Radiology, University of Virginia

Ask Me About: • Radiology • LGBTQ+ • UF Community of Mentoring organization • Global trips • Remote Area Medical organization

Diana Halloran dia15911@ufl.edu UG: Wake Forest Univ. Matched: Emergency Medicine, Northwestern University

Ask Me About: • Emergency Medicine • Research • Jacksonville • Mentors

Nadine Hamed nhamed@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of Florida Matched: Ophthalmology, University of Florida

Ask Me About: • Ophthalmology • Collaborative Learning Groups • USMLE & STEP

Andrew Harris - Panelist andrewbharris@ufl.edu UG: University of Florida Research Fellowship: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Matched: Orthopaedic Surgery, Johns Hopkins

Ask Me About: • Orthopaedics • Matching into “highly competitive”

specialties • Research • STEP exam prep • Gainesville life

Michael Massengill, PhD mmassen2@ufl.edu UG: Univ. of South Florida Matched: Ophthalmology, University of Illinois

Ask Me About: • Ophthalmology • Research at UFCOM • Pursuing MD-PhD

Madi Turcotte - Panelist mturcotte@ufl.edu UG: University of Florida Grad: Oxford Match: Internal Medicine, Vanderbilt University

Ask Me About: • Clinical years • Hematology/oncology • Research • LGBTQ+ • Memes

Faculty and Staff

John Aris, PhD (352) 359-4787 (preferred) Associate Professor of Anatomy and Cell Biology Dept: Anatomy

Ask Me About: • Preclinical curriculum • Foundations in Medicine course director

(first semester course)

Miguel Chuquilin, MD - Panelist miguel.chuquilin@neurology.ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Neurology; Director of Neuromuscular Fellowship and Neurology Clerkship Dept: Neurology Division: Neuromuscular and Pain

Ask Me About: • Neurology • Clerkships

Beverly Dede, PhD - Panelist beverly@ufl.edu Program Director for Student Counselling & Development; Clinical Assistant Professor Dept: Community Health & Family Medicine

Ask Me About: • Confidential, personal counseling • Supporting students

& partners/spouses • Wellness activities

Irene Estores, MD - Panelist irene.estores@medicine.ufl.edu Associate Professor of Medicine; Director of Integrative Medicine Program Dept: Medicine Division: Internal Medicine

Ask Me About: • Internal & Integrative medicine • Collaborative Learning Groups (faculty

mentored groups of 7 students) • Faculty Mentoring

Ashley Ghiaseddin, MD - Panelist ashley.ghiassedin@neurosurgery.ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Neuro-Oncology Dept: Neurosurgery Division: Neuro-Oncology

Ask Me About: • Neuro-oncology • Diversity Initiatives • Mentoring • Ethics Committee

Jim Gorske, Med - Panelist jgorske@ufl.edu Learning Specialist

Ask Me About: • Academic support & accommodation • Tutoring • STEP prep

Nikolaus Gravenstein, MD ngravenstein@anest.ufl.edu Professor of Anesthesiology; Professor of Neurosurgery & Periodontology Dept: Anesthesiology Division: Multispecialty Anesthesiology

Ask Me About: • Anesthesiology • Clinical/Translational Research • Biotechnology • Mentorship • Simulation in medical education

Diane Howell, MD diane.howell@peds.ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Pediatrics; Associate Director of Pediatric Residency Program Dept: Pediatrics

Ask Me About: • Pediatrics

Katherine Huber, MD – Panelist huberk@shands.ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Medicine Dept: Medicine Division: Internal Medicine

Ask Me About: • Internal Medicine • Out-patient practices • Being a parent of a medical student

Saleem Islam, MD, MPH - Panelist islamsa@surgery.ufl.edu Professor of Pediatrics; Professor of Surgery; Director of Pediatric Surgery Dept: Surgery Division: Pediatric Surgery

Ask Me About: • Pediatric surgery • Pediatric gastrointestinal disorders • Research: Track Leader for Biomedical,

Clinical and Translational

Stephanie Karst, PhD – Panelist skarst@ufl.edu Associate Professor of Genetics and Microbiology Dept: Molecular Genetics & Microbiology

Ask Me About: • Research • MD-PhD program • Noroviruses, immunology

Jorge Lascano, MD jorge.lascano@medicine.ufl.edu Associate Professor of Medicine; Director of Adult Cystic Fibrosis Program Dept: Medicine Division: Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep

Ask Me About: • Collaborative Learning Groups (faculty

mentored groups of 7 students) • Pulmonary medicine

Mark Michels, MD – Alumni Representative drmichels@retinacarespecialists.com UF COM Class of 1985 Ophthalmologist

Ask Me About: • Research • Ophthalmology • Retinal surgery • Alumnus perspective

Wendie Moore, MD wkmoore2013@hotmail.com UF COM Class of 1992 Radiologist (retired)

Ask Me About: • Non-traditional (career change PA to MD) • Having children while in training,

working/practicing as a mom • Alumnus perspective • Scope of clinical opportunities at UF Health

Thomas Morrissey, MD, PhD – Panelist tom.morrissey@jax.ufl.edu Associate Professor and Clerkship Director of Emergency Medicine; Assistant Director of Emergency Medicine Residency Dept: Emergency Medicine

Ask Me About: • Emergency Medicine @ UF Health Jax • Work-Life Balance • Mentorship

Frank Orlando, MD forlando@ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Community Health & Family Medicine Dept: Medicine Division: Family Medicine

Ask Me About: • General Surgery • Well-being and stress reduction • Sports medicine

Donna Parker, MD - Panelist parkerd@ufl.edu Associate Dean for Diversity & Health Equity; Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Dept: Pediatrics

Ask Me About: • Pediatrics • Diversity and health equity • Health Disparities

Mariam Rahmani, MD rahmanim@ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Psychiatry; Director of Child Psychiatry Residency Dept: Psychiatry Division: Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Ask Me About: • Psychiatry • Child & Adolescent Psychiatry • Serving the community (especially children)

Albert Robinson, MD - Panelist arobinson@anest.ufl.edu Assistant Dean for Diversity & Health Equity; Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology Dept: Anesthesiology

Ask Me About: • Cardio-thoracic anesthesiology • Faculty mentorship • Diversity and health equity

Stephanie Ryan, MD – Panelist sfryan@ufl.edu Assistant Dean for Diversity & Health Equity; Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Dept: Pediatrics

Ask Me About: • LGBTQ+ liaison • Pediatrics • Diversity and health equity • Collaborative Learning Groups (faculty

mentored groups of 7 students)

Peter Sayeski, PhD - Panelist psayeski@ufl.edu Professor and Associate Chair of Physiology & Functional Genomics Dept: Physiology & Functional Genomics

Ask Me About: • Research Opportunities at UF • Phase 1 Medical Curriculum • Medical Education • Former West Coast resident

Elisa Sottile, MD - Panelist elisa.sottile@jax.ufl.edu Assistant Professor of Medicine; Associate Program Director of Internal Medicine Residency; Director of Internal Medicine Clerkship Dept: Medicine Division: Internal Medicine

Ask Me About: • Internal Medicine • UF COM Jacksonville

Maria Velazquez, MD mhvelazquez@ufl.edu Director of the Anaclerio Learning and Assessment Center

Ask Me About: • Learning and Assessment Center • Collaboration • Feedback