News and Congratulations
We are thrilled to celebrate the incredible achievements of our newest graduates, who have officially earned their Master’s Degrees through the Clinical and Translational Investigation Program at Weill Cornell Medicine!
This milestone marks the culmination of an intensive journey filled with rigorous academic training and rich, interdisciplinary mentorship. Our graduates have mastered key competencies in study design, biostatistics, bioinformatics, epidemiology, data management, and grantsmanship—skills that are essential for advancing clinical and translational research. In recognition of their dedication and excellence, each graduate was presented with the Cornell University Seal, symbolizing their commitment to scientific integrity, innovation, and impact, at the Convocation Ceremony on May 14, 2025.
We were especially proud to honor the Class of 2025 at the Commencement Ceremony held at Carnegie Hall on May 15, 2025—a truly memorable celebration of their hard work and accomplishments.
This year, 11 outstanding scholars graduated from the CTSC Master's Program. Each of these exceptional investigators brings a distinct and inspiring vision for the future of translational medicine, contributing meaningfully to the mission of the Clinical Translational Science Center. While advancing their careers as instructors, nurses, research fellows, and assistant professors, they have also successfully completed the rigorous Master’s Degree program. We are incredibly proud of their achievements and are pleased to recognize the graduates listed below:
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Erin Elizabeth Berube, MSCTI, BS is a research assistant in the department of Biomechanics at Hospital Special Surgery, whose research focused on predicting early graft failure in ACL reconstruction—a quantitative imaging, knee stability, and patient-specific knee modeling approach.
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Christine Clark, MSCTI, MD, MSc is an Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology at WCM, whose research explores differences in acoustic and aerodynamic parameters among vocal fold polyps, pseudocysts, and cysts.
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Lasha Gogokhia, MSCTI, MD is a Gastroenterology Fellow at WCM studying the impact of dietary fiber supplementation on fecal microbiota transplantation efficacy and mucosal immunity in ulcerative colitis.
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Melissa Medina-Rivera, MSCTI, PhD, MSc is a Lecturer in Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University, Ithaca whose research explores a loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for the clinical diagnosis of cytomegalovirus in urine: a proof-of-concept study.
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Himanshu Nagar, MSCTI, MD, MS is an Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology at WCM whose research focuses on Radiomics and Genomics of Prostate Cancer Treated with Radiotherapy.
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Lee Solomon Gottesdiener, MSCTI, MD is an Infectious Diseases Fellow at WCM, whose research explores screening for Fluoroquinolone-Resistant Viridans Group Streptococci in Neutropenic Patients Undergoing Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation.
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Romy Kallas, MSCTI, MD is a Rheumatology Fellow at Hospital for Special Surgery whose research focuses on Evaluation of type I Interferon as a predictor of disease phenotype and subclinical autoimmunity in antiphospholipid syndrome.
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Lauren Ambler Robinson, MSCTI, MD is an Assistant Professor specializing in Pediatric Rheumatology at Hospital for Special Surgery, whose research focuses on Characterization of the Anti-RBC Immune Response in Childhood-Onset Systemic Lupus erythematosus (cSLE).
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Jaclyn Rosenzweig, MSCTI, MD is a CTSC funded KL2 Scholar and Assistant Professor in Pediatrics at WCM who investigates the Effects of the LSD1 Inhibitor IMG-7289 on Proliferation, Differentiation, and Leukemia Initiating Potential in Pediatric Relapsed and Refractory AML Models.
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Grace Terry, MSCTI, BSbc is a CTSC funded TL1 Trainee and doctoral student at Hunter College whose research is on Investigating the therapeutic potential of Agomelatine in Alzheimer's Disease.
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Jonathan Thaler, MSCTI, MD is an Infectious Diseases Instructor at WCM, whose research looks at Clinical and Biologic Predictors of Thrombosis in Persistently Antiphospholipid Antibody Positive Patients: Prospective Analysis of the International APS ACTION Clinical Database and Repository.