Lab Alumni

Morganne Adroved

Morganne graduated from URI in 2018 with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology. She is currently a Clinical Trial Specialist at Ultragenyx, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing products and treatments for rare genetic diseases.

Alan Ardito

Alan graduated from URI in 2021 with a BS in Cell and Molecular Biology and is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Therapeutic Sciences Graduate Program at Brown University.

Paul Azzinaro

Paul graduated from the Howlett lab with an M.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2015. Paul is currently working with Homeland Security at the Plum Island Animal Disease Center.

Jeanne Beesmer

Jeanne received her MS from URI in 2009 and her PharmD degree in 2013. Currently, she is a pharmacist at Walmart in Suffolk County, MA.

Rebecca Boisvert

Rebecca received her Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology in December 2015, and performed postdoctoral research in the laboratory of Katharina Schlacher in the Department of Cancer Biology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Juan Cantres-Velez

Juan received his M.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2020. Juan is currently an MD-PhD candidate at University of Utah School of Medicine.

Michelle Cavanna

Michelle graduated from URI with an MS in Cell and Molecular Biology and received her PharmD degree in 2013. She is currently the pharmacy manager at Walmart in Barrington, RI.

Kelly Cybulski

Kelly graduated from URI with an MS in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2012, and is currently a senior research and development scientist at Pall Corporation in Westborough, MA.

Eden Francoeur

Eden graduated with a BS in Cell and Molecular Biology from URI in 2020. She is currently a PhD candidate in the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program at the University of Connecticut.

Andrew French

Andrew graduated from URI in 2018 and is now an Associate Scientist of Process Development at Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute in Manchester, NH.

Robert Fruggiero 

Robert graduated from URI with a BS in Biology and went on to complete his medical degree at New York Medical College, and his Family Medicine Residency at Brown University. Currently, he is a physician at Southcoast Physicians Group Family Medicine in Fall River, MA.

Jada Garzon

Jada graduated from URI in 2019 with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology. She is currently working towards her Ph.D. degree in Chemical and Systems Biology in the laboratory of Karlene Cimprich at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Sarah Harrison

Sarah graduated from URI in 2013 with a PharmD degree and is currently a Pharmacy Executive Network Director for Vizient, a health care performance improvement company.

Kathryn Henrikson

Katie is currently a Quality Assurance Product Support Specialist at Abbott.

Frederick Kolling IV

Fred graduated from URI in 2009 and received his PhD in Genetics and Genomics at the University of Connecticut. Currently, Fred is the director of the Genomics and Microarray Core at Dartmouth College, focusing on new technologies including automation and single cell genomics.

Stephanie Komjian

Stephanie graduated from URI in 2017 with a PharmD degree, and is currently a pharmacist at Ascension St. Vincent Fishers Hospital in Fishers, IN.

Jena Lerch

After Jena graduated from URI in 2013 with a BS in Microbiology, she continued her education at Rhode Island College and Florida International University, receiving her BS and MS in Nursing. Currently, she is a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner at RICBT in Providence, RI.

Kevin Lima

Kevin graduated from URI in 2015 with a BS in Clinical Laboratory Science and is currently a Medical Technologist at Miriam Hospital.

Nicholas Mamrak

Nicholas graduated from URI in 2017 with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology, and then his PhD in biomedical sciences at NYU working in the Laboratory of Timothee Lionnet in the Institute for Systems Genetics. Currently, Nicholas is a Ph.D. scientist at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Maurizio Mauro

Maurizio was a postdoctoral research fellow in the Howlett Lab from 2009 to 2013. Maurizio is currently a Senior Principal Scientist of Cell Biology at Protara Therapeutics.

Joe McClanaghan

Joe graduated from URI with a BS in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2014 and is now a third-year medical student at Drexel University College of Medicine. Before attending medical school, Joe worked as an EMT for Armstrong Ambulance Service and was a cancer researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital and Aileron Therapeutics.

William Mosher

William graduated from URI with a BS in Cell and Molecular Biology. He received his M.D. in 2018 at New York Medical College and then performed a residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He is currently an Attending Physician and Clinical Assistant Professor at UNC Chapel Hill.

Kayla Murgo

After graduating from URI in 2011, Kayla was a study coordinator on phase I/II clinical trials in the Early Drug Development Center at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She then received a MS in Landscape Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design and is currently a business development representative at Landscape Forms.

Mileena Nguyen

Mileena graduated from URI in 2021 with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology. She is currently a research assistant in the laboratory of Laurie Glimcher at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

Karissa Niera

Karissa completed her Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2017 and is currently a senior research scientist at LakePharma, a biotechnology company based in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Duncan Nunes

Duncan received his BS in Cell and Molecular Biology at the University of Rhode Island in 2019. He then worked as a Research Scientist at Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research. He is currently a Senior Research Assistant at TRIANA Biomedicines.

Carolyn Ortega

Carolyn graduated from URI in 2008 with a BS in Microbiology. She then obtained a MS in Public Health from Brown University in 2013. She is currently a Clinical Research Supervisor at Lifespan in Providence, RI.

Meghan Rego

Meghan received her PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology from URI in 2012. She is now the Director of Antibodies at Addgene, focusing on improving recombinant antibody yields.

Megan Reidy

Megan was a member of the Howlett lab in the summer of 2011, and is currently a program manager at HealthCore in Boston.

Suzanne Savage

Suzie graduated from URI in 2021 with a B.S. in Math and Cell and Molecular Biology. She then worked as a research assistant in the laboratory of Ruth Lehmann at the Whitehead Institute at MIT. Currently, she is a sales specialist for VWR, part of Avantor, a company involved in the distribution of research laboratory products.

Lauren Shanahan

Lauren graduated from URI in 2016 with a BS in Microbiology and is currently a research associate at Skyhawk Therapeutics in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Mae Shen

Mae graduated from URI in 2010 with a BS in Microbiology. She completed medical school and a residency in Internal Medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She is now a primary care physician in the Brown Physicians group, Internal Medicine of East Providence.

Sahar Sorek

Sahar graduated from URI in 2019 with a BS in Cell and Molecular Biology and is currently a third-year medical student at New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine.

David Vierra

David received his Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2017 and is currently a Scientist at Enko, a biotechnology company focused on crop health located in Mystic, Connecticut.

Elizabeth Vuono

Elizabeth received a B.S. degree in Biological Science from URI in 2011 and her Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology in December 2016. Elizabeth is currently a Scientist at Enko, a biotechnology company focused on crop health located in Mystic, Connecticut.