Stories

I am the Director of the Community Building Unit of the Massachusetts Office for Refugees and Immigrants (ORI). ORI is the state agency tasked with oversight of the resettlement process for individuals and families fleeing to safer ground from persecution, war, and other threats. In this role I wear a lot of hats: I have significant fiscal, programmatic and staffing oversight serving to support the resettlement and post resettlement social adjustment needs of approximately 2,500 refugees per year.

I manage the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) for the Boston Public Schools. FFVP is a USDA grant program targeting high-need elementary students. The kids get a fruit or vegetable snack either between breakfast and lunch, or lunch and end-of-day. Many children from low-income communities get most of their calories from the National School Lunch Program, and adding a fruit or vegetable snack to their day is a great way to increase number of servings in the day.

I am currently working as an emergency veterinarian at a high volume, 24 hour animal hospital. In this position I have been fortunate to gain an extensive amount of clinical experience in a short time frame. In the Fall of 2013 I will be transitioning from my clinical position to one more focused on policy and populations. I have been awarded a Science and Policy Fellowship with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This fellowship allows doctoral level clinicians and researchers to apply their technical knowledge in a branch of government. Fellows gain practical experience working at the intersection of science and policy at the federal level. My placement is at the National Science Foundation, and I will be working in the Dimensions of Biodiversity Program.

I am a clinical trial project manager at MAVERIC (Massachusetts Veteran Epidemiology Research and Information Center), which is part of the Boston VA Healthcare System. In my role, I manage the progress of multi-site trials from the planning stage through data analysis and publication. At MAVERIC, we do large trials that are relevant to the veteran population, so our current projects include research on suicide prevention, lower limb amputation, diabetes, renal disease, and heart health.