SparkTalks Presenter Profiles | Jan 15, 2026

Vice Chancellor for Engagement

Bio: A native of the southside of Chicago and a proud graduate of Chicago Public Schools, Dr. Lionel E. Allen, Jr. most recently served as Clinical Associate Professor of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) and Co-Coordinator of the Urban Education Leadership Program where he taught a signature pedagogy course on cycles of inquiry, a course on improving education organizations, and co-led the full-year residency course for aspiring school leaders. Dr. Allen has over twenty years of experience as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and chief academic officer. He recently detailed his experience as the first turnaround principal in the state of Illinois in the book Fighting the Good Fight: Narratives of the African American Principalship (2022) in a chapter titled “How Should I Feel About That? Renaissance 2010 and School Reform in Chicago.” He is also the co-founder and design team member of the Aspire Fellowship, a program designed to diversify the principal pipeline by preparing teacher leaders of color to enter principal preparation and certification programs. In July of 2025, Dr. Allen was appointed Interim Vice Chancellor for Equity and Diversity at UIC. Dr. Allen received his baccalaureate degree from Northwestern University and his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Illinois Chicago. He recently authored the book Lead with C.A.R.E.: Strategies for Building Culturally Competent and Affirming Schools.

Presentation Title: Lead with CARE

Abstract: Transforming schools requires a comprehensive shift in our approach to education and our collective mindset. The rhetorical slogan that emerged from the pandemic called us to “reimagine education.” Tragically, the field has not heeded Winston Churchill’s call to “never let a good crisis go to waste” and has reverted to traditional ways of educating students. The hope that the pandemic would catalyze educational innovation has fallen victim to creatures of habit and comfort. On one side of our proverbial mouths, we champion education reform, and on the other, there is an outright refusal to interrogate the cultural norms, attitudes,

mindsets, and habits that govern students’ experiences. The laser-like focus on quantifiable results has drastically undermined the experiences of all students, particularly those who have been historically marginalized in schools. What educators have refused to accept is that, despite conventional wisdom, we do not control results. Standardized tests, despite the value we attach to them, are produced by for-profit companies and paint, at best, an incomplete picture and, at worst, a fundamentally inaccurate picture of what a student knows and can do. Oppressive rituals, such as standardized testing and tracking, coupled with punitive and exclusionary disciplinary practices, destroy what should be rich and rewarding academic experiences for students. The results-driven and high-achievement-at-all-costs cultures that plague many schools and school districts fuel educational inequities and jeopardize the social, emotional, and intellectual health of students. African American, Latino, and other marginalized student groups, like diverse learners, English Language Learners (ELLs), and students who live in poverty, find themselves victims of school practices and school cultures that fail to meet their needs adequately. The academic failure and social exclusion that often characterize these students’ experiences can be mitigated through the establishment and maintenance of cultures of C.A.R.E. This framework presents a straightforward theory of action. If schools prioritize student experiences over results and establish a culture built on Cultural Responsiveness, Affirmation, Relationships, and Empowerment, then they will dramatically improve the academic experiences of often marginalized student groups, leading to improved outcomes.

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Associate Professor, Visiting Foreign Researcher Saga University
College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts

Bio: Associate Professor Brian Anderson is an academic industrial designer with interests in ethical innovation and advanced fabrication. Anderson’s research proposes new materials and aesthetics by developing and investigating novel integrations of traditional, conventional, and digital making. His work merging leading-edge and traditional techniques establishes and elaborates intersections of disparate knowledge domains associated with localized domestic and international making processes from the scale of artisans to industry. The products and outputs of his research embody an overarching commitment to the ideal of sustainable production, and function as boundary objects that critically interrogate and demonstrate innovative intersections of design, science, and culture.

Presentation Title: A Three Minute Story About Heritage and Horizon

Abstract: Japan has an extraordinarily deep tradition of technical excellence and attention to aesthetic experience and nature that evolved within an island nation of unique geological and geographic features. Today, Japan is simultaneously emerging and aging; futuristic and traditional; and simultaneously isolated and global. With a territory of finite natural resources and a culture of renowned ingenuity, Japan is positioned as a necessary and likely world leader in sustainable ways. Challenging global conditions and the critical necessity for imaginative responses and experimentation mark Japan as a compelling laboratory setting not only for itself but for the world.

This ongoing research aims to produce creative results that mutually illuminate new paths of hope for the regional ceramic industry as well as other industries in Japan’s Saga Prefecture. Early outcomes demonstrate promising models of sustainable production in a specific context of pressing societal changes and overarching ecological stress.

Saga Prefecture is the historic birthplace of ceramic production in Japan. Since the seventeenth century, the small town of Arita in Saga Prefecture has been synonymous with the finest Japanese porcelain production. Despite this long-established excellence and acknowledged heritage, the future of ceramic production in an era of dematerialization, globalized production, and increasing generational apathy is very much uncertain.

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Clinical Associate Professor
Retzky College of Pharmacy

Bio: Scott Benken is a board-certified critical care clinical pharmacist (BCCCP) and academic leader who blends critical care expertise with a passion for transformative education and servant leadership. Currently, he serves as a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice at the University of Illinois Chicago, Retzky College of Pharmacy and as a Clinical Pharmacist in the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) at UI Health. Since 2024, he has served as Residency Program Director for the PGY2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency Program. He has been passionate about growth as an educator as evidenced by his obtaining a master’s degree in health professions education (MHPE) from the UIC College of Medicine Department of Medical Education, completion of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Academic Leadership Fellows Program (Cohort 20), and current pursuit of a PhD in HPE. Lastly, he has been honored as a Fellow in both the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (FCCP) and the American College of Critical Care Medicine (FCCM).

Presentation title: Journey toward Critical Thinking: Media’s Influence on Critical Care and Emergency Medicine

Abstract: Critical thinking has long been recognized as an essential outcome of pharmacy education, yet strategies to meaningfully foster its development remain elusive. Defined as reasonable and reflective thinking that guides decisions on what to believe or do, critical thinking encompasses interpretation, analysis, inference, evaluation, explanation, and self-regulation. Professional organizations, including the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), have emphasized the importance of cultivating these skills in pharmacy curricula. Research suggests that critical thinking is best promoted within a structured and intentional framework that incorporates a thoughtful learning environment, modeling of expert reasoning, guided feedback, and deliberate opportunities to challenge assumptions.

In response to this educational need, we designed and implemented an innovative elective course, Media’s Influence on Critical Care and Emergency Medicine, specifically aimed at advancing critical thinking in third-year pharmacy students. First offered in 2023 across the Chicago and Rockford campuses, the two-credit elective enrolled 21 students. The course leveraged the unique framework of analyzing portrayals of critical illness in popular media as a springboard for critical inquiry, reflection, and discourse. Each week, students viewed a media clip depicting a clinical scenario and engaged in small-group case analyses to compare the representation against textbook knowledge, identify inaccuracies, propose revisions, and evaluate the implications of inaccurate portrayals. These analyses were posted to a shared discussion forum, presented in class, and critiqued through peer and faculty feedback.

The course was intentionally designed around four key elements shown to promote critical thinking. First, a thoughtful learning environment was cultivated by adopting elements of the “Thinking Classroom” framework: presenting authentic problems, emphasizing group work, encouraging transparency of thought, prioritizing questioning, and ensuring opportunities for consolidation. Second, modeled critical thinking was provided by weekly contributions from interprofessional faculty experts, including pharmacists, physicians, and nurse practitioners, who presented their own analyses alongside the students’ work. Third, guidance and support were delivered through detailed faculty feedback on all case analyses, coupled with probing questions to deepen reasoning. Finally, prompting to challenge assumptions was embedded throughout class discussions, peer reviews, and reflective assignments, culminating in an end-of-semester essay synthesizing individual growth in critical thinking.

Preliminary outcomes suggest that the course not only engaged students in active and collaborative learning but also meaningfully advanced their ability to question assumptions, synthesize evidence, and articulate complex reasoning. Students highlighted the value of diverse faculty perspectives, the iterative feedback process, and the reflective components in promoting intellectual growth. By bridging the gap between popular media representations and authentic clinical realities, the course succeeded in transforming everyday content into a powerful educational tool.

This elective represents a novel and replicable strategy for embedding critical thinking skill development in health professions curricula. Through its intentional design, interdisciplinary involvement, and emphasis on reflective, problem-based learning, it demonstrates a promising model for integrating critical thinking across health professions education. Future work will focus on assessing the longitudinal impact of this approach on clinical reasoning and professional practice.

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Distinguished Professor
Gender & Women Studies and History
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio: Jennifer Brier is a Distinguished Professor in the Program in Gender & Women’s Studies and History at UIC. She specializes in US sexuality and gender history as well as public history. Brier is the author of “Infectious Ideas: U.S. Political Response to the AIDS Crisis,” published by the University of North Carolina Press. As a curator, Brier worked with Jill Austin to produce Out in Chicago, the Chicago History Museum’s award-winning exhibition on LGBT history. She also curated “Surviving and Thriving: AIDS, Politics and Culture,” a traveling exhibition for the National Library of Medicine. Brier is at work on a major public history project called History Moves, a community-curated mobile gallery that will provide a space for Chicago-based community organizers and activists to share their histories with a wide audience. The two current projects are “I’m Still Surviving,” a transmedia living women’s history of HIV/AIDS; and “Listening for the Long Haul: A Living History of Long COVID,” a living history of Long COVID. She was named the 2018 UIC Distinguished Scholar of the Year in the Arts and Humanities, is an Organization of American Historians Distinguished Lecturer, and a 2019 University of Illinois Public Voices Fellow.

Presentation title: Listening to a Women’s History of HIV/AIDS

Abstract: What can we learn from putting women at the center of how we understand the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States? How can women’s lived experiences shape what it means to talk about health and wellness in the midst of structural inequality and violence? “I’m Still Surviving” is a digital health humanities project that asked almost 40 women living with HIV/AIDS to consider their life histories through conversations with one another. Recorded, transcribed, and collectively coded, the women’s narratives of their experiences form the center of an interactive website that details a rich and complex history of an illness that, in the United States, has rarely been understood to affect women. In the process, many of the women repeated the phrase, “HIV saved my life,” and it is through a collective embrace of their shared lived experiences that women felt both healthier and seen. To a person, every woman involved in the history project (or as they often called it, the herstory project), affirmed that medicine alone would never make her healthy. Hearing their accounts reveals how women changed the course of the global pandemic over the last 45 years and suggests how they managed to survive and thrive. Listening to the women featured on www.stillsurviving.net provides a lesson for historians and all academics to develop mechanisms to ensure people not trained as historians curate public history and are centered in research. Democratizing the process of interpretation, rather than extracting stories for placement in a written history, allows us all to imagine ways to share history in the service of historical belonging and social wellbeing.

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Clinical Associate Professor
College of Dentistry

Bio: Blase P. Brown is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences at the College of Dentistry and Director of Faculty Engagement for CAPPIER (Center for the Advancement of Interprofessional Practice, Education and Research). Dr. Brown facilitates students in the implementation of active learning in the DMD degree program. He also teaches Dental / Healthcare Ethics, microbiology topics, and oral healthcare for patients with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD). Blasé received his DDS and MS (Oral Biology) from Loyola University Chicago. He previously served as a dental officer in the USPHS and engaged in the private practice of dentistry in the Chicago area. Blasé’s research interests are in Dental Education and Interprofessional Education (IPE). His most recent study was a joint IPE project with the Colleges of Nursing and Pharmacy that incorporated standardized patient actors with IDD in an outpatient clinical setting. Blasé has co-authored a number for recent peer reviewed articles in dental education and completed a two-year tenure as an opinion columnist for the Chicago Dental Society Review. Outside of dental education, Blasé has transformed two of his interests, moral philosophy, and the history of science, into Honors College Seminars.

Presentation Title: Patient Voices: Using IPE Simulation to reduce bias and discrimination in healthcare for patients with disabilities

Abstract: The purpose of the interprofessional simulated experience in this educational initiative is to prepare collaborative ready healthcare professionals to care for individuals with disabilities. These individuals are often destined to live in poverty and experience high unemployment which are reflected in lack of access to healthcare, and other factor-related disadvantages in communities. In a 2022 survey of ADA physicians from the United States who practice in the outpatient setting (N = 714), a large percentage (71%) did not know who determines accommodations for these individuals and (68%) felt they were at risk for ADA lawsuits when caring for these individuals. In the same ADA survey physicians (36%) reported little or no knowledge about their legal responsibilities and (21%) could not identify who pays for needed accommodations. Other studies reveal that individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in the USA experience pronounced disparities in oral health care. Access to care is hampered by a shortage of providers trained and willing to treat patients with IDD. By utilizing individuals with disabilities as standardized patients (SP), this Patient Voices IPE experience addresses the preparation a new generation of clinical professionals to offer the highest level of care, having an outward purpose that includes caring for marginalized patient populations, and prioritizing a team-based / patient-centered approach.

The Patient Voices is in its fourth year as a Telehealth IPE simulation that includes students and faculty from UIC, Temple University, and Villanova University. The IPE teams incorporate students from dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, and nutrition. Students prepare for their Telehealth session by completing a two-hour online Health Advocacy module and completing the IPEC-SETT, which provides baseline self-efficacy for competence in collaborative practice. The simulation utilizes medication centric cases that focus on caring for patients with medical, oral health, and access to care needs. The case learning objectives are framed around the Interprofessional Education Collaborative Competencies (IPEC) and focus on interprofessional: teamwork and team-based practice, communication practices, roles and responsibilities for collaborative practice, and community and population health. Faculty facilitators utilize the Promoting Excellence and Reflective Learning in Simulation (PEARLS) debriefing method. Students repeat the IPEC-SETT at the conclusion of the session debrief.

Outcomes demonstrate improvements in a student’s self-efficacy for collaborative practice behaviors (CPB) and perception, comfort level & cultural competence when working with individuals with IDD. Significantly increased mean scores in competence for CPD (IPEC-SETT measurement) was demonstrated. CPB differences were evident among professions.

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Eliza J. and Pedro A. de Alarcon Professor for Child Health
College of Medicine Peoria

Bio: Dr. Amy Christison is the Eliza J. and Pedro A. de Alarcon Professor for Child Health in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria (UICOMP). She is a diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine, the Medical Director of Healthy Kids U at the Children’s Hospital of Illinois—a pediatric obesity care program. She also co-directs the Center for Healthy Development and Aging at UICOMP.

Her clinical and research interests center on childhood obesity prevention and treatment, including clinical outcomes, practice-based, and community-based research. She has played a leadership role in national research initiatives and academic organizations, including the first national pediatric obesity care program registry. She currently serves as Co-Chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Obesity COACH Network.

Dr. Christison is the college-wide Healthcare Systems Curricular Lead for the University of Illinois College of Medicine and was an AMA HSS Scholars Program mentor. She has led the design, implementation, and evaluation of HSS curricula in both undergraduate and graduate medical education.

Dr. Christison earned her medical degree from the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University and completed her pediatric residency at Comer Children’s Hospital, University of Chicago.

Presentation Title: Healthy Kids U: Applying a Chronic Care Model for Pediatric Obesity

Abstract: Healthy Kids U (HKU) is a pediatric obesity care program that applies a systems approach to tackling this complex chronic condition influenced by biological, behavioral, social, and environmental factors. That’s why we’ve built HKU around the Chronic Care Model (CCM), which emphasizes self-management, team-based care, family engagement, and community partnerships. It comprises 3 tiers of intervention offering multidisciplinary tertiary care for the most complex patients at the top, supporting capacity building and connection within the primary care setting, and leveraging community assets on a population level. In the tertiary care setting, this top performing clinical program is the only multidisciplinary clinic outside of Chicago in the state. HKU creates primary care capacity building among clinicians and healthcare systems through regional and national learning collaboratives, coaching, and co-management. In the community, HKU offers family-based lifestyle programming to support self-management. It partners with community-based organizations and coalitions to support prevention initiatives employing food and nutrition literacy in Head Start and after school program sites and increasing access to high quality food for by establishing good nutrition food policies within the charitable food system and testing mobile affordable fresh markets at our partner youth programming sites.

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Professor of Chemistry and Associate Vice Chancellor for Research
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio: Stephanie M. Cologna, PhD, is a Professor of Chemistry and Associate Vice Chancellor for Research. She received her B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Arizona, followed by doctoral studies at Texas A&M University. Dr. Cologna carried out post-doctoral training at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health.

Her independent research program was established in 2015 at UIC and is focused on integrating mass spectrometry-based proteomics and lipidomics along with mass spectrometry imaging to understand neurodegeneration and rare diseases. A significant component of the Cologna laboratory is focused on the fatal, lysosomal storage disorder, Niemann-Pick Type C including identification and validation of disease biomarkers using mass spectrometry technologies.

Dr. Cologna and her research team have been recognized for their work by the Robert J. Cotter New Investigator Award from the US Human Proteome Organization (2022), the UIC Rising Star Junior Research of the Year (2019) and she has received an NSF CAREER Award (2022). Dr. Cologna’s research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the US Food and Drug Administration and by several private foundations.

As an Associate Vice Chancellor for Research, Dr. Cologna works closely with faculty to foster collaborative team science, enhance faculty recognition and to expand the research portfolio.

Presentation Title: Navigating Rare Diseases

Abstract: Rare diseases, defined as affecting less than 200,000 individuals in the United States, collectively affect more than 25 million Americans and present as more than 7000 distinct diseases. Our research team at UIC has committed our efforts to studying the rare, neurodegenerative disorder, Niemann-Pick Type C (NPC). NPC is characterized by improper cholesterol metabolism in cells and results in progressive neurodegeneration and is ultimately fatal typically in the second decade of life. Leveraging our technical expertise in mass spectrometry, a technique capable of identifying and quantifying biomolecules from an array of sample types, we have focused on identifying altered cellular pathways that can serve as therapeutic targets and provide further insight into the disease presentation. Additionally, we have contributed to the identification and validation of biomarkers that are being used to monitor NPC patients and to evaluate drug efficacy in clinical trials. In this presentation, I will provide a highlight of our efforts to support rare diseases and NPC.

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Associate Professor of Sociology and Latin American & Latino Studies
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio: Julie A. Dowling is Associate Professor of Sociology and Latin American & Latino Studies at the University of Illinois Chicago. Dr. Dowling is a Latina sociologist who researches Latinos and racialization. Dowling’s research on Latinos and the Census garnered national attention and in 2014 and she was appointed to the federal advisory committee to the US Census Bureau—the National Advisory Committee on Racial, Ethnic and Other Populations. She served on the committee for 6 years, chairing the committee during the 2020 Census. Her work contributed to Census efforts to redesign how race is measured. Moreover, Dowling headed a committee working group aimed at maximizing the inclusion of hard-to-count and marginalized populations, such as racial/ethnic minorities, low-income, linguistic minority, and immigrant populations. In 2022, Dowling was recognized for extraordinary efforts to bring sociological scholarship into the public eye with a national award from the American Sociological Association. She was awarded ASA’s Public Understanding of Sociology Award in recognition of her continued engagement and leadership in public arenas with institutions whose decisions and policies have a major impact on the lives of immigrants, refugees, and the larger community.

Presentation Title: Latinos and Racial Identity in the US Census

Abstract: Race is a social construct, but one with incredibly real consequences in our society. My research and community engagement has focused on how definitions of race impact the quality and counts of Latinos in the US Census. For decades, Latinos have not been counted as a racial group on the census, but rather, as a separate ethnic origin. The result of this separation has led to incredibly inaccurate data on race for Latinos, and contributed to the undercount of these communities, including a 5% undercount of Latinos in the 2020 Census. Undercounts of minority communities such as this result in a devastating loss of federal and state funding as well as political representation for a full decade, making the Census crucial to the fight for racial equity. Serving on the federal advisory committee to the US Census and chairing that committee through the 2020 Census, I worked to assist in strategies for outreach to improve counts of vulnerable communities, and assisted in providing guidance and feedback on the redesign of the race question to include Latinos. The new federal guidelines for race measurement, as implemented by the Biden administration, were set to include Latinos and Middle Eastern persons. But, since Trump has taken office, these changes have been placed on hold. Such equity in data collection would dramatically improve our ability to address racial inequality.

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Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Veterans Legal Clinic
UIC Law

Bio: Yelena Duterte joined UIC School of Law in 2019 as an Assistant Professor of Law and the Director of the Veterans Legal Clinic. Prior to joining UIC, Professor Duterte taught and directed the Veterans Legal Clinic at Syracuse University College of Law.

In clinic practice, Professor Duterte represents veterans with lower than honorable discharges to assist them in obtaining healthcare, disability compensation, and upgrading their discharge. Professor Duterte makes every effort to teach students how to practice client-centered lawyering and refine their overall lawyering skills.

In the classroom, Professor Duterte strives to be patient, clear, engaging, and inclusive.

Professor Duterte is a past-president and active member of the National Law School Veterans Clinic Consortium (NLSVCC). She received her law degree from University of Illinois Chicago School of Law and her B.A. in Economics and Political Science from University of Illinois Chicago.

Presentation Title: Veterans Legal Clinic

Abstract: Professor Duterte will discuss the services provided to veterans by the Veterans Legal Clinic and how it gives law students the foundational tools to become zealous advocates.

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Clinical Professor
Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering
Colleges of Engineering and Medicine

Bio: Hananeh Esmailbeigi is a Clinical Professor in the Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering. She directs the Wearable Technology & Sensory Enhancement Lab, developing novel sensors and discreet wearable devices for human augmentation, biosignal monitoring, assistive technology, and precision diagnostic and rehabilitation. She earned her PhD in Bioengineering from UIC and completed postdoctoral research at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia Farm Research Campus, engineering innovative neural interfaces. She is also the founder of HideIT Wearables Innovation Inc. Her work bridges research, education, and global engagement. She directs BME’s industry and alumni engagement initiatives, leads study-abroad entrepreneurship programs in Europe, and collaborates with international partners and clinicians at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab to translate prototypes into clinics. Her teaching portfolio includes development of courses in neural engineering and wearable technology that emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration, hands-on prototyping, human-centered design, and workforce readiness. Her programs have been recognized through media features and presented to White House representatives. Esmailbeigi has been honored through prestigious awards for advancing engineering education, expanding global initiatives, and pioneering translational research.

Presentation Title: The Hidden Interface: Intraoral Wearables for Precision Speech Rehabilitation

Abstract: The tongue is a uniquely agile muscular structure essential for vital tasks such as speech, breathing, chewing, and swallowing. These essential functions are commonly disrupted following neurological injury, including stroke or traumatic brain injury. Yet, rehabilitation approaches commonly rely on subjective evaluation and auditory feedback, with no objective tools to characterize impairment or guide treatment. As a result, traditional rehabilitation lacks markers for tracking functional change, and long-term outcomes remain unpredictable.

To address this gap, we have developed the Hidden Interface—a class of standalone wireless intraoral wearable devices that isolate tongue movement and provide real-time visual feedback of the movement. Using these devices and our methodology, we quantify tongue agility, defined as the ability to execute rapid and precise movements, in clinical settings. We generated tongue movement probability distributions and compared them to neurotypical models to identify individualized deviations from unimpaired patterns. These motor signatures formed the basis for precision intervention, enabling task design that progressively restores speed, accuracy, coordination, and range of motion.

Visual feedback interventions were designed to redirect movement away from over-expressed regions toward under-expressed, impaired regions. Preliminary data showed expanded movement range, improved accuracy, and enhanced velocity following seven intervention sessions. This provides promising evidence that precision visual-feedback rehabilitation can reshape movement patterns and improve tongue agility in individuals with oral motor disorders.

Furthermore, these systems have the potential to support remote monitoring and tele-rehabilitation, increasing continuity of care beyond the clinic and expanding access for individuals with mobility or geographic limitations. Overall, these intraoral interfaces have the potential to redefine how clinicians diagnose disorders, monitor progress, measure therapeutic effectiveness, and deliver precision rehabilitation for motor disorders involving tongue movement.

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Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Retzky College of Pharmacy

Bio: Michael Federle is a professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the director of the Center for Biomolecular Sciences (CBS), and the co-director of the UIC Post-baccalaureate Research Program (PREP). A microbiologist, Dr. Federle’s interests relate to mechanisms of bacterial pathogenesis, in particular bacterial communication networks that may be suitable targets of therapeutics. Dr. Federle received a B.S. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Ph.D. at Emory University, trained as a postdoctoral fellow at Princeton University, and has been at UIC since 2008. His passion is in training and mentoring students to become the next generation of scientists.

Presentation Title: Exploiting Bacterial Communication Networks to Manipulate Bacterial Pathogens

Abstract: The Federle lab studies Gram-positive bacterial pathogens and focuses on mechanisms of cell-to-cell communication pathways and their impact on host-pathogen interactions and bacterial fitness. We determined that bacterial activities, which include immunosuppression, acquisition of antibiotic resistance, and production of antimicrobial and virulence factors, are each governed by intercellular signaling systems in streptococcal species. Our long-term objective is to identify means to inhibit signaling as a therapeutic strategy to treat or prevent bacterial infections. The Spark Talk will present an example of a communication network in Streptococcus pyogenes that dysregulates innate immune signaling. Jamming this communication network is a powerful strategy to restore immune function and block infection.

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Deputy Director, UI Cancer Center
Professor
College of Medicine

Bio: Dr. Gadi is a seasoned clinician investigator with global impact in the care of cancer patients. He has made seminal insights into the immunology and genetics of cancer and translated this work into diagnostics and therapeutics. Since his arrival at UIC in 2020, he has helped to transform cancer care and research positioning the university as a leader in equitable precision oncology. He serves as the deputy director of the UI Cancer Center, Director of Medical Oncology and is a Tenured Professor of Medicine.

Presentation Title: BRE-04: Window of Opportunity Trial of Preoperative Low Dose Azacitidine in High-Risk Early-Stage Breast Cancer

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Assistant Professor, Department of Family Medicine, University of Illinois Chicago, Senior Director of Research, Behavioral Health and Addiction – Mile Square Health Center

Bio: Dr. Nicole Gastala is the Senior Director of Research, Behavioral Health and Addiction at Mile Square Health Center. Dr. Gastala is board certified in Family Medicine and Addiction Medicine. She graduated from Loyola Stritch School of Medicine and completed her Family Medicine residency at the University of Iowa. In her clinical role, she has developed and expanded Medication Assisted Recovery by mentoring new prescribers, precepting residents, and training clinicians within Chicago and Illinois communities. She has also focused on the development of a walk-in integrated behavioral health, addiction, and primary care program within MSHC.

Presentation Title: Meeting Community and Clinical Needs: Addressing the Behavioral Health Gap and Opioid Crisis in Chicago

Abstract: Mile Square Health Center’s Integrated Behavioral Health program delivers integrated, team-based mental health, addiction, and primary care services focused on underserved communities. The mission emphasizes co-location, cultural competence, and measurement-driven care. Core principles include patient-centered team care (with warm hand-offs), evidence-based treatments, measurement-to-target, population-based registries, accountable outcomes, and collaboration with internal and external partners.

The collaborative care model co-manages patients between primary care and specialty behavioral health, with same-day brief interventions provided by onsite or telehealth Behavioral Health Consultants (LCSW/CADC). Weekly interdisciplinary case consultations coordinate stepped care and transitions to higher levels of care.

Program metrics show sustained growth: total visits rose from 9,073 (2021) to 23,898 (2024), with increases in intakes, treatment plans, and unduplicated clients. Demographics (2023–2024) indicate a predominantly Black/African American (54.9%), non-Hispanic (72.4%), adult (80.9%), and female-majority (64.6%) patient population. Seventy percent of patients with OUD were not previously engaged with primary care; almost all were scheduled with a PCP and >50% were seen within 4 weeks. Chronic conditions were common: hypertension (43%); 27% had ≥3 chronic conditions; anxiety reported in 91%. The center earned a 2023 and 2025 National Quality Leader Award in Behavioral Health.

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Associate Professor
College of Education

Bio: Emily Gregori, PhD, BCBA-D, is an Associate Professor of Special Education and director of the MS in Applied Behavior Analysis at UIC. She joined the faculty in 2019 after working as a special education teacher and Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Her research focuses on methods for promoting positive behavioral outcomes for adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Presentation Title: Transforming Autism Research Through Person-Centered Partnerships and Telehealth

Abstract: This presentation will discuss Project PATH, a program designed to improve behavioral outcomes for adults with autism spectrum disorder. Attendees will learn about outcomes for adults with autism and how Project PATH is working to improve outcomes broadly for this population.

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Associate Professor
Jane Addams College of Social Work

Bio: Charles Hounmenou, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at the Jane Addams College of Social Work. His main research area is human trafficking. In 2009, Hounmenou conducted the first-ever study on the input of coalitions in implementing human trafficking policies. In 2013, he was the principal investigator of a pioneering international comparative study of child sex trafficking and its links with child migration in three countries in West Africa. As a co-PI, he has just completed three studies on the prevalence of child trafficking in Cote-d’Ivoire with funding from the US Department of State. He is also currently a co-investigator on a four-year research project on researchers’ experiences of ethics in research with key vulnerable populations, especially children, in 40 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Hounmenou also conducted the first-ever international study on private investigation agencies’ experiences investigating human trafficking in collaboration with law enforcement. He recently completed multicomponent formative research on child trafficking in Côte d’Ivoire. Hounmenou’s research and publications have an impact on trafficking policies in the US and Africa. In 2020, Hounmenou received the UIC’s Rising Star Award in Social Sciences Research. In 2018, he received the Influential Scholar Award from the International Human Trafficking and Social Justice Conference in Toledo for his work on human trafficking.

Presentation Title: Prevalence of Child Trafficking in Côte d’Ivoire

Abstract: Three distinctive prevalence studies were conducted in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, as part of formative research to support the Child Protection Compact in Côte d’Ivoire, funded by the US Department of State.

OBJECTIVES. (1) to estimate the prevalence of child trafficking, respectively, of child domestic work (CDW), commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC), and forced child begging (FCB); (2) to estimate the prevalence of Ivorian child labor law violations, and US-based child trafficking indicators; and (3) to identify major areas of service needs for victims.

METHODS. A quantitative research design was used in the three studies. (1) Link-tracing sampling, a variant of respondent-driven sampling (RDS), which relied on structured and incentivized peer-recruitment procedures, was used to reach a final sample of CSEC victims (N=588) and estimate the population’s size. (2) A household-based probability proportional to size (PPS) sampling strategy was used to recruit CDW victims aged 10-15 (N=438), and to estimate the prevalence of forced labor among CDWs. (3) A combination of time-location sampling and mark-recapture sampling (MR) sampling and estimation strategy was used to recruit FCB victims (N= 878). Three survey questionnaires were used to collect data.

FINDINGS. (1) Findings on CSEC: We estimated that there were 2,853 CSEC victims in Abidjan, with a possible range of 1,404 to 9,643. Other key findings include: 60% were 17 years old; >35% were 15-16 years old, 20% had children; >33% engaged in unprotected sex in the past 12 months; >50% never got tested for HIV/AIDS; ~1% ever connected with a service provider; and all the participants were child trafficking victims based on US-based indicators. (2) Findings on CDW: We estimated that there were 335,286 child domestic workers in Abidjan, with a possible range of 278,933 to 391,639. Other key findings include: >4 in 10 were Muslim; 2 in 3 were between 13 and 15 years old; 90% regularly worked >5 days/ week; by Ivorian child labor laws, practically every child domestic worker could be considered a victim of child domestic servitude; >40% could qualify as victims of child trafficking based on U.S. trafficking indicators; and 50% could qualify as victims of child trafficking per U.S.-based indicators; and only 5% reported ever received any services from government or community agencies.

IMPLICATIONS. The prevalence of the three forms of child trafficking is relatively too high. The Cote d’Ivoire government, thanks to the CPC partnership from the US government, and based on these studies, needs to develop an adequate policy response to child trafficking in Cote d’Ivoire. While all the participants identified various service needs, very few knew (1 to 5%) about any support services. This finding calls for better service responses.

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Associate Professor of Physics and Director, Laboratory for Quantum Theory at the Extremes
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio: Professor Tom Imbo was born and raised on the near west side of Chicago, where he attended UIC as an undergraduate and obtained his bachelor’s degree in physics in 1986. In 1988, he received his Ph.D. in theoretical high energy physics from the University of Texas at Austin. After spending the 1988-89 academic year at Texas as a postdoctoral fellow, Tom was elected a Junior Fellow in the Harvard University Society of Fellows where he remained in residence until Summer 1992 (and is still a member to this day). In Fall 1992, Tom joined the UIC faculty in the Department of Physics, and is currently the Director of the “Laboratory for Quantum Theory at the Extremes.”. The Laboratory is a think-tank for theoretical physicists, mathematicians, and philosophers to come together and discuss problems of common interest related to extreme physics (the very small, large, fast, cold, hot, dense, etc.). His research focuses on the deep connections between quantum physics, relativity theory, pure mathematics, formal logic, and pure philosophy. Over the years, Tom has procured both Federal and private funding for his work, and has supervised numerous Ph.D. students and postdoctoral fellows. Tom is also a dedicated classroom teacher and has taught over 25 different courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels during his time at UIC, many of which he developed himself. He is constantly pursuing novel interdisciplinary collaborations, and also travels extensively throughout North America giving talks on the conceptual resonances between modern physics and esoteric Chassidic thought.

Presentation Title: The Laboratory for Quantum Theory at the Extremes (LQuTE)

Abstract: The Laboratory for Quantum Theory at the Extremes (LQuTE) in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois Chicago is a think-tank for theoretical physicists, mathematicians and philosophers to come together and address problems of common interest related to extreme physics (the very small, large, fast, cold, hot, dense, etc). Specific areas covered include high energy physics, nuclear physics, foundations of quantum mechanics/quantum field theory, quantum logic, astrophysics/cosmology, quantum gravity, philosophy of physics, mathematical physics, and post-quantum studies. This talk is a brief introduction to LQuTE’s unique inter-disciplinary approach to the most fundamental problems regarding the nature and logic of existence.

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Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Associate Head for Research
Retzky College of Pharmacy

Bio: Jeremy J. Johnson, PharmD, PhD, is a full Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Associate Head for Research at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) College of Pharmacy. His research program focuses on plant-derived natural products with a translational focus, integrating both preclinical and clinical approaches. His laboratory conducts work ranging from isolating bioactive compounds and performing mechanistic studies in cell-free and cell-based systems to evaluating pharmacokinetics and efficacy in animal models and humans.

Dr. Johnson’s group has examined rosemary for colitis and breast cancer, bergamot for cholesterol-lowering potential, green tea for fertility promotion, and glycyrrhizin from licorice for prostate cancer, among other natural product investigations.

A licensed pharmacist, Dr. Johnson earned both his Doctor of Pharmacy in clinical pharmacy and his PhD in biomedical sciences from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He also completed an NIH Clinical and Translational Science Award Fellowship focused on natural products. Since 2007, his work has been continuously supported by the NIH, USDA, American Cancer Society, and other non-profit organizations. He has presented internationally across Europe, Asia, and South America. In 2024, he was nominated as a UIC Global Scholar, and as of 2025 he has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers and abstracts.

Presentation Title: The mangosteen fruit as inspiration for novel agents for prostate cancer

Abstract: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the fifth leading cause of malignancy-related death worldwide and the second most diagnosed cancer in men. Although FDA-approved anti-androgens are responsive in the early stages, drug resistance remains a significant challenge in PCa treatment. Data from our lab demonstrated that α-mangostin, one of more than 70 xanthones isolated from Garcinia mangostana promotes the degradation of wild-type and mutated androgen receptors through activation of binding immunoglobulin protein (BiP). BiP is a multifunctional protein, ranging from protein folding and stress responses to cell surface receptors for initiating apoptosis. Our previous studies have shown that mangosteen fruit extract and specific xanthones from the mangosteen induces apoptosis in PCa cells. We have characterized the mechanism by which xanthones disrupt prostate cancer through distinct mechanisms in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, we have utilized this as inspiration to develop assays capable of screening thousands of compounds to identify novel BiP binders and that promote androgen receptor degradation. Our strategy is to identify BiP Associated Androgen Receptor Degraders (BAARDs).

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Assistant Professor of Civil, Materials, and Environmental Engineering and Director of the Built Environment and Infrastructure (BEI) Laboratory
College of Engineering

Bio: Dr. Aslihan Karatas is an Assistant Professor of Civil, Materials, and Environmental Engineering and Director of the Built Environment and Infrastructure (BEI) Laboratory at the University of Illinois Chicago. Her research bridges building science, climate resilience, and community-based design, focusing on how construction materials and building envelopes perform under extreme weather and aging conditions. She leads interdisciplinary projects totaling over $1.7 million in external funding from agencies such as the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, STO Corp., The Tissue Bank Asbestos Research Charitable Trust (TBAR).

Dr. Karatas’s work integrates controlled laboratory experiments with multi-scale simulations and AI-assisted sensing methods to develop predictive models for the long-term performance of building materials under dynamic climate conditions. Her team collaborates with local communities, industry partners, and public agencies to translate research into real-world solutions that improve housing quality, energy efficiency, and public health.

Her ongoing projects advance data-driven tools for climate-adaptive envelopes and urban-scale HAM modeling. Dr. Karatas is committed to bridging building physics with real-world applications that inform policy, future building codes, and buildt environment.

Presentation Title: Developing Mold Map for Improving Living Conditions in the Southwest Side of Chicago

Abstract: Hidden mold growth within building walls is a persistent and often overlooked problem that affects indoor air quality, occupant health, and structural integrity and energy consumption of buildings. Mold typically occurs in concealed cavities where elevated humidity, inadequate ventilation, or compromised materials create microclimates ideal for fungal activity. By the time visible mold appears, remediation costs and health impacts are already significant. This challenge has been intensified by changing climate conditions, which increases humidity fluctuations, rainfall intensity, and temperature extremes—all accelerating moisture accumulation and envelope degradation in older housing stock.

This project introduces a data-driven predictive tool to help community organizations and city agencies identify and map homes at risk of hidden mold growth without costly physical inspections. The initiative is being piloted on the Southwest side of Chicago, an area characterized by aging residential structures and recurring moisture-related maintenance issues. Through field data collection from 100 representative homes, the project will capture parameters such as wall assembly type, ventilation rate, moisture content, and interior surface conditions. These empirical observations will be coupled with computational heat-air-and-moisture-transfer (HAM) simulations to quantify the relationship among housing characteristics, environmental variables and mold growth potential. The model will analyze this combined dataset to identify key predictors of hidden mold formation and generate localized mold-risk maps.

The resulting model will serve as the foundation for a user-friendly tool that allows city inspectors and community organizations to visualize and prioritize at-risk homes and allocate their resources accordingly. By reducing the need for invasive sampling and expert analysis, the tool provides an accessible, cost-efficient alternative for early detection and targeted intervention.

A central component of this initiative is active community participation before and after inspection and remediation. The project engages neighborhood organizations, local government, and homeowners in data collection, monitoring, and feedback activities to ensure that technical outcomes align with real maintenance practices. Educational workshops and on-site demonstrations will promote awareness of mold risk factors and practical prevention methods such as ventilation improvements, routine envelope maintenance, and low-cost moisture control. Post-remediation outreach will apply evidence-based “healthy homes” strategies to sustain long-term behavioral and structural improvements.

Beyond its immediate application in Southwest Chicago, this research contributes a transferable framework for other urban regions seeking community-based implementation. Ultimately, the initiative advances a proactive, prevention-oriented approach for healthy homes. The project enhances the capacity to maintain safer, more durable, and energy-efficient housing while fostering data-driven collaboration between researchers, policymakers, and residents.

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Assistant Professor
College of Nursing

Bio: Denise Kent, PhD, RN, APN is a nurse scientist and Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) College of Nursing, with affiliate appointments in the College of Medicine and the Breathe Chicago Center. Her program of research centers on building trust and transparency in clinical research by developing standards and tools for returning individual research results (IRRs) to study participants.

Dr. Kent serves as a collaborator in multiple NIH-funded national research consortia, including the RECOVER (Long COVID) Initiative, the Lung Health Cohort, and COPD-OMA, where she designs and evaluates participant-centered approaches to sharing results. Her work is grounded in implementation science and guided by the 2018 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report on returning IRRs.

Through co-design with patients, clinicians, and community partners, Dr. Kent develops practical toolkits, such as plain-language result letters, annotated imaging, phone scripts, and decision aids, that improve how research findings are communicated. This work not only enhances the experience of research participation but also supports equity, recruitment, and retention, while increasing the operational efficiency of translating science into better health outcomes.

Her long-term vision is to establish scalable models that make transparency and shared decision-making the standard across clinical research.

Presentation Title: Trust, Transparency, and Translation: Enhancing the Participant Experience in Clinical Research

Abstract: Clinical research has the potential to transform health outcomes, but participants’ experiences within research studies are too often overlooked. A persistent gap exists between the data collected and how results are communicated back to the very individuals who make research possible. Participants frequently receive no information about their own results or, when they do, reports are written at a level that is difficult to understand and may not include actionable guidance. This lack of transparency erodes trust, reduces engagement, and can contribute to disparities in who benefits from scientific discovery.

My program of research is focused on addressing this challenge by building trust and transparency into the clinical research process through the ethical, practical, and equitable return of individual research results (IRRs). Grounded in implementation science and guided by the 2018 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommendations, I collaborate across multiple NIH-funded national research consortia, including the RECOVER (Long COVID) Initiative, the Lung Health Cohort, and COPD-OMA. These large, multi-site studies provide an unparalleled opportunity to develop, test, and refine methods for returning results that are scalable and sustainable.

The foundation of my work is recognizing participants as active partners in research, rather than passive subjects. Through stakeholder engagement, including patients, clinicians, study coordinators, and community advisors, I use human-centered design approaches to co-create communication tools that meet diverse needs. These tools include plain-language letters in English and Spanish, annotated imaging with visual explanations, tailored interpretation guides, structured navigator phone scripts, and digital resources. Together, they form toolkits that make results both understandable and actionable, while respecting participants’ preferences and cultural context.

A key feature of this work is evaluating outcomes that matter to participants and research teams alike. My studies assess comprehension, trust, satisfaction, and emotional response among participants, while also examining operational impacts such as recruitment, retention, and adherence to follow-up. Findings consistently suggest that transparent return of results not only improves the participant experience but also strengthens the research enterprise by fostering engagement and reducing inefficiencies.

This research also addresses critical issues of equity. Without intentional strategies focused on closing the gap between data and result communication, we risk widening the disparities if only certain groups can access and act on complex findings. By developing communication methods that are accessible and culturally responsive, my work ensures that scientific advances benefit all participants, not just those with higher health literacy or easier access to care.

Ultimately, my program of research seeks to move the field toward a new standard: one in which returning results is not an optional add-on, but a core component of ethical and effective clinical research. By embedding transparency, shared decision-making, and respect for participants into study design, we can translate science into better health outcomes more efficiently and equitably.

My long-term vision is to create a set of evidence-based, scalable practices and toolkits that can be adopted across diverse research contexts, ensuring that trust and transparency become foundational to clinical research in the United States and beyond.

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Director of Undergraduate Studies and Clinical Associate Professor
College of Engineering

Bio: Jonathan Komperda, PhD, is a Clinical Associate Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, where he also serves as Director of Undergraduate Studies for Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, and Engineering Management. A UIC Mechanical Engineering alumnus, he has been recognized for his teaching and advising with multiple awards, including the Silver Circle Award for Teaching Excellence (twice), the Harold A. Simon Award for Teaching Excellence, the College of Engineering Teaching Award (twice), and the College of Engineering Advising Award.

Komperda co-manages UIC’s MIE Capstone Senior Design program, connecting students with industry partners on real-world projects, and co-chairs the Illinois Innovation Network’s Corporate Engagement Subcommittee on Corporate Immersion. His work focuses on expanding student opportunities through project-based learning, entrepreneurship, and industry collaboration. His research interests include high-performance computing, computational fluid dynamics, and the simulation of high-speed turbulent chemically reacting flows.

Presentation Title: The intersection of industry and the classroom: Where education becomes practice

Abstract: Engineering programs increasingly emphasize internships as a bridge between academic preparation and career readiness. Empirical evidence from ASEE-affiliated studies and institutional reports demonstrates that students who complete internships enjoy measurably better job placement outcomes than peers who do not. It also shows that the frequency, duration, and breadth of the industry experiences further affect outcomes. However, similar preparation, with industry input, should occur within the classroom to further support the transition to industry.

While internships are invaluable, their effectiveness is magnified when students gain foundational exposure in the classroom to the real-world applications of mechanical and industrial engineering. Classroom experiences with industry partners in a controlled environment better prepare students for both internships and future employment. These engagements allow students to apply classroom concepts to real-world problems that are not easily posed in a traditional academic setting, and to work with authentic data sets that cannot be synthesized in coursework alone. The MIE senior design program provides a strong example: corporate partners sponsor projects aligned with modern industry needs, allowing students to experience direct mentorship from practicing engineers. A significant number of students are hired by these corporate partners, either through internships during their undergraduate years or in full-time positions post-graduation, demonstrating the strength of these collaborations as career pipelines. At the same time, the faculty receive critical feedback on emerging skills and competencies that employers value, enabling a rapid pivot in curriculum and training to meet modern industry demands, which benefits students.

The presentation includes recommendations for integrating industry partners into curriculum development, classroom module design, entrepreneurial activities, and direct participation and mentorship in student projects. It also examines the challenges of sustaining this two-way academic–industry coupling and highlights best practices to ensure long-term success. Together, these approaches prepare students with the “language of practice” needed to contribute effectively in internships, entrepreneurial ventures, and the workplace, while giving academic programs a mechanism to adapt responsively to industry needs.

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Assistant Professor, Division of Health Policy and Administration
School of Public Health

Bio: Jennifer Kwok, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Health Policy and Administration at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health. Her research goal is to produce policy-relevant evidence to improve individuals’ access to care, healthcare use, and ultimately, health outcomes. Dr. Kwok studies the roles of care providers, including both formal providers in the healthcare system and informal caregivers, to understand access to care and health production. She focuses on U.S. populations who have high healthcare needs, such as older individuals and pregnant individuals, and who may experience adverse health outcomes if they do not receive adequate, appropriate, and timely high-quality care. Dr. Kwok primarily uses methods from economics with large datasets, including healthcare claims data, hospital discharge data, and national survey data. She aims to help researchers and policymakers understand how policies, events, and healthcare providers influence patient healthcare use and health-related outcomes. Prior to joining UIC, Dr. Kwok received a PhD degree in Economics from the University of California, Berkeley, and completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Aging and Health Research at the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Presentation Title: Maternity Care Access and Effects of Obstetric Unit Closures in Illinois

Abstract: Wide disparities exist in maternity care access and in maternal and infant health outcomes, and closures of obstetric units may exacerbate these disparities. Existing estimates of maternity care access and effects of obstetric unit closures frequently use county-level data, which masks heterogeneity within counties, including among different racial and ethnic populations.

We first develop local measures of maternity care access at the ZIP Code level to examine geographic differences in access to care. We apply these measures to Illinois and find that our local maternity care access measures more precisely capture differences in access – such as among racial and ethnic populations in Cook County, which includes the City of Chicago – than county-level maternity care access measures.

We then investigate the effects of Illinois obstetric unit closures, including both closures of hospitals with obstetric units and closures of obstetric units within hospitals that remain open. In Illinois, non-Hispanic Black individuals are more likely to experience nearby obstetric unit closures than non-Hispanic White individuals and Hispanic individuals. We estimate the causal effects of Illinois obstetric unit closures using event study methods. Nearby obstetric unit closures reduce maternity care access and increase travel times to chosen delivery hospitals on average for all racial and ethnic groups. After nearby obstetric unit closures, individuals are more likely to deliver at obstetric units offering higher levels of perinatal care on average. Finally, we do not find statistically significant effects of nearby obstetric unit closures on maternal and infant health outcomes at delivery, including preterm births, low-risk Cesarean deliveries, and severe maternal morbidity, on average.

While obstetric unit closures increase disparities in maternity care access, our results suggest that reducing or preventing obstetric unit closures alone would likely not substantially improve delivery health outcomes and underscore the need for other types of policies to address disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes in Illinois.

This project is a collaboration between UIC and the Illinois Department of Public Health and was funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health. The opinions, viewpoints, and content in this SparkTalks presentation do not represent the position of the Illinois Department of Public Health or any of its related programs.

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LAS Distinguished Professor and Director of IRRPP
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio: Amanda E. Lewis is the Director of the Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy and College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Distinguished Professor of Black Studies and Sociology. Her award-winning research focuses on how race shapes educational opportunities and on how our ideas about race get negotiated in everyday life. She is the author of “Despite the Best Intentions: Why Racial Inequality Persists in Good Schools” (Oxford University Press, 2nd edition) and “Race in the Schoolyard: Negotiating the Color-line in Classrooms and Communities” (Rutgers University Press 2003). Her research has appeared in a number of academic venues, including Sociological Theory, American Educational Research Journal, Ethnic & Racial Studies, Educational Researcher, Anthropology and Education Quarterly, The Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, Urban Education, and The Du Bois Review. She has received grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Spencer Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, the Field Foundation, and the American Sociological Association. She is the recipient of several prestigious awards including the Cox-Johnson-Frazier Award from the American Sociological Association, the Founders Award for Scholarship & Service from the ASA’s Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities, and a Distinguished Career Award from the ASA Section on Children and Youth. As Director of IRRPP, she has led over ten years of engaged scholarship, including co-authoring over a dozen reports with community partners as part of the State of Racial Justice in Chicago project.

Presentation Title: What is the State of Racial Justice in Chicago?

Abstract: UIC is a premier urban research university. As UIC’s Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy, one of our primary objectives is to put research to work to advance understanding of Chicago, or as we put it in our mission, to “increase society’s understanding of the root causes of racial and ethnic inequality and to provide the public, organizers, practitioners, and policymakers with research-based policy solutions.” In 2017, we were faced with two deep frustrations. First, was our frustration with popular narratives about Chicago that were inaccurate at best and harmful to the communities they purported to describe at worst. Second, we were frustrated about the lack of attention given to UIC’s top-notch scholars – scholars whose work was critical to helping us understand the larger community in which we are embedded. We knew that the realities of Chicagoans’ daily lives were far more complex than the picture of supposedly violent communities described in national news stories. And yet, we also knew that even as Chicagoans of all racial and ethnic groups want to live in safe and healthy communities where they don’t just subsist or survive but also thrive, not all have equal access. To address these challenges, we initiated a new project, the State of Racial Justice in Chicago, to document the conditions and experiences of racial and ethnic groups in the City of Chicago and its surrounding metro area. To date, in collaboration with UIC scholars and a number of community partners, we have produced eleven reports. The reports have been taken up by a wide range of local institutions to inform their work, develop public policy, educate local young people and adults, support grant writing for community projects, reshape philanthropic activity, and inform news coverage about the area.

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Professor and Head, Department of Occupational Therapy
College of Applied Health Sciences

Bio: Susan Magasi is Professor and Head of the Department of Occupational Therapy.

She is passionate about health and participation equity for people with disabilities. She works closely with the disability community, using an equity-focused, community-based participatory approach to help understand and address barriers to health and participation, with a focus on peer support and technology-enabled self-management interventions.

She is deeply committed to mentoring the next generation of disability and occupational therapy researchers, with a commitment to students who have historically been excluded from the clinical and research workforces.

Presentation Title: Dismantling Ableism in Health and Cancer Care Through Community Engaged Partnership

Abstract: More than three decades after civil rights legislation affirmed the right of people with disabilities to full and equal participation in all aspects of society, the 70 million people with disabilities living in the United States continue to face entrenched barriers in healthcare, community living, and overall well-being. These disparities are shaped not only by disability status but also by social determinants of health, including ableism, and are amplified among people with minoritized identities. In an increasingly interconnected world, advancing equity requires new scientific approaches that center disabled communities as partners in knowledge creation.

This Spark Talk will highlight a community-engaged educational and research program designed to dismantle socially constructed and systemic barriers to care and social participation. Drawing on collaborations with both grassroots disability advocates and disability-serving organizations, the program demonstrates how inclusive research can drive meaningful change. The UIC community will be invited to contribute to growing this scholarly agenda through participation in the newly funded ENGAGED Medical Rehabilitation Research Resource Center, which will be introduced at the conclusion of the talk.

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Professor, Periodontics
College of Dentistry

Bio: My research work focuses on the characterization of host-pathogen interaction with an emphasis on chronic inflammatory and infectious diseases. I investigate RNA regulatory mechanisms that control differentiation and function in myeloid cells, including macrophages, myeloid-derived suppressor cells, dendritic cells and osteoclasts using ex vivo, in vivo and in vitro models of inflammatory diseases. The information gained will be used to examine therapeutic benefits of endogenous (host encoded) and exogenous (virus encoded) regulators by correlating their expression in disease. We are concurrently investigating how herpesviruses and SARS-CoV-2 influence host immune responses and alter activation status of myeloid cells, which are critical mediators of inflammation. To date, we have made significant strides in our investigations that have revealed novel insights into the role of host and viral miRNAs in regulating phagocytosis, innate immune responses, antigen processing and presentation, as well as host-pathogen interaction. Discovering host and pathogen-derived genetic factors that can shape periodontal disease pathogenesis will yield promising candidates for the diagnosis and treatment of PD and may have potential impact on therapies in dentistry and medicine

Presentation Title: Unraveling the Power of Saliva in Oral and Systemic Health

Abstract: The oral cavity harbors one of the body’s most diverse microbiomes and serves as an active interface where microbial communities, host tissues, and immune responses continuously interact. As a result, biologic shifts in the oral environment may be reflected in salivary profiles, offering insight into periodontal status and broader physiologic conditions. However, the broader clinical adoption of salivary diagnostics remains limited due to various challenges. This presentation highlights saliva as a powerful, noninvasive biospecimen for assessing oral health and its links to systemic disease. Saliva-based testing is well suited for screening and longitudinal monitoring due to its ease of collection, low burden, and feasibility for repeated sampling. By capturing both microbial and host-derived signals, salivary biomarkers have the potential to provide a timely snapshot of disease activity and risk. Through collaborative studies, my lab has demonstrated robust use of saliva in identifying complex immune profiles, microbiome and transcriptome-wide changes in chronic oral (periodontal disease), and systemic (long Covid, Parkinson’s disease, and other neurological disorders) diseases and their relationship. Grounded in a prevention-focused view of dentistry, our lab is invested in tapping the potential of salivary diagnostics as a pathway toward more integrated care, where oral biomarker data can support earlier detection, improved risk stratification, and personalized preventive strategies across oral and systemic health.

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Research Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the Division of Epidemiology & Biostatistics
School of Public Health

Bio: Dr. Caryn Peterson is Research Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the Division of Epidemiology & Biostatistics at the School of Public Health, University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), Co-Director of UIC’s Cancer Health Equity and Career Development Program, and Faculty Affiliate in UIC’s Center for Global Health. Her research focuses on the intersection of social determinants of health and cancer disparities. Her work has demonstrated how individual- and community-level socioeconomic factors influence ovarian cancer survival, highlighted differences in socio-cultural and behavioral characteristics affecting access to care, and revealed an increased risk of HPV-positive head and neck squamous cell carcinomas associated with higher area-level socioeconomic status. Her current work explores both clinical and community-based strategies to improve HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening rates in low-resource settings. Globally, this includes the adaptation and implementation of a patient navigation program for cervical cancer screening, designed to reduce barriers at the intrapersonal (e.g., limited knowledge, communication challenges), interpersonal (e.g., stigma, misinformation), and community levels (e.g., women’s limited autonomy in healthcare decision-making).

Presentation Title: Overcoming Barriers to Cervical Cancer Prevention: Engaging Leaders to Enhance Uptake of Prevention Services in Senegal

Abstract: Cervical cancer is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer among women globally and remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Senegal, which ranks 17th worldwide in cervical cancer incidence, limited access to and uptake of screening programs significantly contribute to the high disease burden. Patient navigation is an evidence-based strategy to eliminate barriers to access to care among marginalized and hard-to-reach populations. In partnership with the Senegal Ministry of Health and Social Action, Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar, and the University of Illinois Chicago (MPIs Dykens and Faye), this project adapts and implements a patient navigation program to support cervical cancer screening across urban and rural contexts in Senegal. The program aims to reduce barriers at the intrapersonal (limited knowledge, communication challenges), interpersonal (stigma, misinformation), and community levels (women’s limited autonomy in healthcare decision-making). The specific aims of the study are to: 1) Evaluate the adaptation process of the evidence-based Patient Navigation Model utilizing the Dynamic Adaptation Process across rural and urban contexts in Kedougou and Dakar, Senegal; 2) Conduct an effectiveness-implementation hybrid type 1 stepped-wedge randomized pragmatic trial of the adapted patient navigation program across Kedougou and Dakar, Senegal, and 3) Evaluate the implementation outcomes (feasibility, acceptability, fidelity, penetrance, sustainability, and cost) of the adapted program across multiple contexts in the Kedougou and Dakar regions. The adapted Patient Navigation Program is embedded within Senegal’s existing community health system and is led by Heads of Reproductive Health at the regional and district levels, who serve as Patient Navigator Leaders with oversight by the Regional and District Health Directors. These leaders coordinate patient navigation activities conducted at the health post level. The Bajenu Gox community health workers, serving as patient navigators, play a critical role in engaging clients through education, empowerment, and accompaniment to clinical settings for screening and follow-up. This study will contribute to the evidence base for adapting and implementing patient navigation programs for cervical cancer screening in Senegal and other low- and middle-income countries.

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Associate Professor, Managerial Studies
College of Business Administration

Bio: Harshad Puranik is an Associate Professor in the department of Managerial Studies. Before joining UIC in 2019, Harshad completed his Ph.D. in Business Administration (Management) from University of Cincinnati. His research focuses on three broad areas: (a) work interruptions and how employees experience time in the workplace, (b) workplace emotions and their consequences, and (c) workplace social interactions, identity, and employees’ work relationships. Harshad’s research has appeared in top academic journals in management, such as Academy of Management Review, Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Journal of Management and Journal of Organizational Behavior. His research has also been featured in prominent media and online outlets, such as The Economist, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, World Economic Forum, Sydney Morning Herald, Cincinnati Public Radio, London School of Economics Review, Global News Radio Toronto, etc. Harshad currently serves on the editorial board of four top-tier management journals, including Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Management, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes (OBHDP). In terms of teaching responsibilities, Harshad teaches the Organizational Theory course at the undergraduate level and the Advanced Research Methods seminar at the doctoral level.

Presentation Title: In Sync or Out of Tune? Effects of Workplace Background Music (Mis)Fit on Employees

Abstract: Service organizations, such as restaurants, cafes, retail stores, groceries, shopping malls, etc. often carefully curate and use background music to enhance customers’ in-store experience and boost business. This is not surprising given the substantial research on consumer behavior showing how background music can influence customers’ store evaluation, shopping behavior, and purchase decisions. However, what about the employees of these organizations? They are also exposed to this same background music. Also, because this music is mainly geared toward the customers, it is often pre-selected by the organization and employees may not have much control over what music is played nor can they change it. As a result, these employees often end up working in the presence of this background music, which is meant for customers and which they do not control, for prolonged periods.

In our research study, my coauthors and I sought to explore how this background music impacts the psychological states and behaviors of employees who are also exposed to it. We conducted a 3-week study with 68 employees from mostly service organizations where background music was played. These employees were sent 3 surveys every day for 3 weeks to capture their experience of, and reactions to, this background music. Findings from this study revealed that while on days when the background music matched what employees wanted to listen to on a given day, working in its presence was not very challenging. However, on days when this background music did not match or fit with what these employees wanted or needed to listen to on that day, it created a distracting and an uncomfortable work environment that reduced their positive mood and increased their exhaustion. This, in turn, translated into less positive, and more negative, behaviors by these employees toward their organization. Importantly, these negative effects of the misfitting background music on employees were more severe for those employees who had low levels of a trait known as stimulus screening ability. This trait refers to one’s capacity to mentally prioritize and screen out irrelevant and unnecessary environmental stimuli, such as music. People high in this trait are thus able to mentally filter out the mismatched background music more easily and effectively than those low in this trait, making the latter more vulnerable to getting overwhelmed by its negative effects.

Taken together, our research findings showed that the background music that service organizations carefully select to enhance their customers’ experience can, in some cases, backfire if it ends up negatively impacting their own employees’ internal states and workplace behaviors — which can be costly for both the employees and the organization. Through our study we thus seek to highlight the importance for managers and service organizations to be mindful of the effects of the background music on not just their customers but also their employees. To help them with this, in our research paper, we also advance some simple recommendations for what managers and organizations can do to reduce the negative effects of background music and enhance it beneficial aspects.

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Senior Associate Director/ Adjunct Lecturer
College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs

Bio: Norma Ramos was hired as Associate Director of Communications for the Institute for Policy and Civic Engagement (IPCE) when it was founded in the fall of 2008 and appointed as Senior Associate Director in August 2024. As Senior Associate Director, she is responsible for leading strategic direction, initiatives and management related to the Institute’s core areas of research, education and public discourse.

She is an instructor for the Dialogue 120 Seminar, a course for UIC first-year students, designed to familiarize students with introductory topics in diversity, dialogic communication, and social justice and an on-line Instructor for the School of Continuing Studies for the Certificate Nonprofit Management Program. She is also adjunct lecturer for BA 320 Civic Engagement in the College of Business.

Presentation Title: Empowering Engagement and Democratic Learning

Abstract: Teaching community engagement within civic engagement empowers students to develop the knowledge, skills, and motivation to actively address social issues and improve the well-being of communities through collaborative partnerships.

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Clinical Associate Professor in Marketing
College of Business Administration

Bio: Sajna Razi, PhD, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Marketing and the Director of MBA Programs at the University of Illinois Chicago’s College of Business Administration.

Her expertise lies at the intersection of marketing and technology, with a focus on digital and social media marketing, marketing technologies including AI and innovations in marketing education.

With over a decade of professional global experience in digital business consulting, program management, and customer relations, she brings leadership skills and a unique, practical perspective to her academic work. Her research has been featured in peer-reviewed journals and conferences, and was selected for the CATE Janet Riddle Action Research Scholar program.

Presentation Title: Marketing Technologies in Business Education

Abstract: Marketing technologies are digital technologies used in the field of marketing to achieve business goals. In the industry, the number of marketing technologies used has increased from 150 to over 15,000 in the last ten years, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) fueling the new developments. These technologies are now essential for modern marketers to create and manage omnichannel consumer experiences.

To ensure students are prepared for a career in marketing, education must evolve beyond traditional methods. It’s critical to align the next generation of marketers with the marketing technology skills needed for a data-driven industry, integrating them directly into the curriculum for future career success.

This research examines the impact of integrating marketing technologies and hands-on application into the marketing curriculum enabled by Marketing Technology Hub initiative. The study investigates how this approach affects key student outcomes, including learning, engagement, and career readiness (skills, self-efficacy, and future career prospects). It also explores whether these effects vary across diverse student backgrounds and if professional certifications or badges further enhance student outcomes. The findings are intended to inform how universities can effectively use current industry technologies to improve student learning and deliver tangible career benefits.

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Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
College of Medicine

Bio: Dr. Rong is a full Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), College of Medicine, and one of his research areas is focused on studying the mechanisms of entry and replication of several emerging and re-emerging viral pathogens including influenza viruses, filoviruses (Ebola and Marburg), SARS-CoV-2, and henipaviruses. Another focus of his research is to identify small molecule inhibitors against these viruses as potential therapies using high throughput screening (HTS) approaches, and they have developed many potent inhibitors. His research has led to more than 160 publications in the peer reviewed journals including PNAS, Science Adv, EMBO Mol Med, JACS, Nature Chem Bio, Plos Pathogens, JVI, J Med Chem, J Bio Chem, and Antiviral Res. They have developed many potent small molecule inhibitors. He is an inventor or co-inventor on numeurous patents and provisional patents on the small molecule inhibitors. His expertise is in working with BSL-2 and BSL-3 viruses, bioassay developments, high-throughput screening (HTS) development and small molecule HTS, and lead optimization and drug development. He has active and productive collaborations with researchers in academic institutions and biotech companies. He has served as editorial board members for several journals. His research has been supported by NIH and private foundations.

Presentation Title: Study of emerging viruses and development of antivirals

Abstract: Emerging and reemerging viruses are a major public health concern globally partially due to a lack of effective therapeutics. Studying the basic mechanisms of viral entry and replication is not only important for our understanding on viral transmission and pathogenesis, but also crucial for us to develop effective therapeutics. Our research is to delineate the basic mechanistic aspects of viral replication and using the knowledge to develop new antivirals.

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Assistant Professor
Jane Addams College of Social Work

Bio: Daysi Díaz-Strong is an assistant professor at the Jane Addams College of Social Work. Her immigrant background has shaped her professional and research interests in education and immigration. She worked for several years in the community college system, developing and implementing programs to improve the success of underrepresented students. Her research focuses on the educational and developmental trajectories of undocumented immigrants from Latin America. She has conducted several studies on the college transitions and coming-of-age experiences of undocumented youth. Her most recent study is a community-based participatory research project that examines the life course implications of legal exclusion on the lives of undocumented Latinas in the suburbs of Chicago. She received her PhD and MSW from the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice at the University of Chicago. She also holds an M.A. in Educational Leadership from Northeastern Illinois University.

Presentation Title: The Burden of Resilience: Immigrant Latinas Navigating Legal Exclusion

Abstract: For nearly 40 years, proposals to legalize undocumented immigrants have failed in the U.S. Congress. As a result, undocumented Latina women are moving through the life course under the constraints of exclusionary immigration policies. They form families, raise children, attempt to find financial stability, navigate health issues, and grapple with what happens when they can no longer work. They also build social connections and establish deep roots in the suburban communities where they work and live. Alongside legal exclusion, gender norms and expectations shape their vulnerabilities in family life, work roles, social relationships, and well-being. This presentation will share a community-based participatory research project that examines how undocumented Latinas experience legal exclusion across the life course and the resilience they display as they strive to reach their dreams and fight for the well-being of themselves and their families.

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Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Psychology 
College of Education

Bio: Dr. Stephanie Torres is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology in the College of Education and holds an affiliate faculty position in Community and Applied Developmental Psychology (CADP) in the Department of Psychology and in the Center for Dissemination and Implementation Science (CDIS) in the Department of Medicine at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). She completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Loyola University Chicago in 2019, her postdoctoral fellowship at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago in 2020, and the Bridge to Faculty Fellowship in 2022.

Dr. Torres’s research focuses on utilizing community-based participatory research (CBPR) and dissemination and implementation (D&I) science to develop, disseminate, and implement community-based programs that promote well-being and mental health among immigrant communities. Her research emphasizes the resilience and cultural strengths among the Latine community, particularly families impacted by immigration-related stress. She is interested in avenues for promoting psychologists’ involvement in policy and advocacy efforts, especially around immigration. Dr. Torres is a licensed clinical psychologist, and her clinical work focuses on addressing trauma among Latine immigrant families.

Presentation Title: Working with communities, not on communities: Leveraging community expertise to help Latine immigrant families cope with immigrant-related stress

Abstract: Latine immigrant families face significant stressors related to the current sociopolitical climate, with harsh immigration laws, racial ethnic profiling, and exploitative conditions disrupting healthy development and well-being. The resulting stress (immigrant-related stress) reverberates across the individual and interpersonal level, causing impaired parent-youth relationships, the diminished capacity to cope with stress, and ultimately, an increase in mental health symptoms. As such, our research team seeks to advance effective, equity-driven research with communities to address the unequal rates of stress and resulting mental health impacts among the Latine immigrant community.

Current interventions are not well-suited to address the complex nature of stress caused by the immigrant experience. Moreover, community partners have rarely been included in the development of these interventions, despite community-engaged approaches contributing to our understanding of what interventions are most helpful in addressing these stressors. This talk will discuss an innovative, lay-worker led intervention (Familias Inmigrantes Empoderándose contra eStrés Tomando Acción; FIESTA), which aims to mitigate immigrant-related stress and improve well-being and mental health among Latine immigrant mothers and their youth. Our team developed FIESTA utilizing a “bottom-up,” community-informed approach, with three targets implicated in stress reduction – interpersonal stress management skills (e.g., mindfulness), family resilience (e.g., family coping strategies), and structural navigation (e.g., Know Your Rights) – forming the basis of the intervention. Using FIESTA as an exemplar, this talk will share ways to leverage community expertise in research within the context of a rapidly changing immigration landscape.

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Professor of Nutrition
College of Applied Health Sciences

Bio: Dr. Tussing-Humphreys is a registered dietitian, UIC alum, and Professor of Nutrition in the College of Applied Health Sciences. Her lab studies the role of diet in health and disease across the life course.

Presentation Title: Fasting in Pregnancy. What !?!

Abstract: Pregnant women with severe obesity are more likely to experience adverse perinatal health outcomes, including gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, and preterm labor, as well as babies born with discordant growth patterns. Rigorous interventions targeting gestational weight gain and dietary quality have not translated to markedly improved perinatal health among this population, suggesting a need for innovation. UIC is leading a first-of-its-kind study in the US to test the safety, acceptability, and explore the effect of time-restricted eating on weight, cardiometabolic risk markers, and perinatal health outcomes among pregnant females who enter pregnancy with severe obesity.

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Clinical Associate Professor
College of Nursing

Bio: Dr. Becca Vortman is a Clinical Associate Professor, Associate Department Head, and Director of the Health Systems Leadership DNP Program at the University of Illinois Chicago, College of Nursing, for the Population Health Nursing Science Department. She also serves as a Perioperative Education Consultant and Associate Editor for the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Digital Publication, The Stitch.

Dr. Vortman has over fourteen years of experience in perioperative nursing, education, and leadership. She is recognized as an international, national, and regional leader and expert in perioperative nursing and is currently serving a second term as a national board member for AORN.

Her policy focus is on workplace safety initiatives and surgical smoke evacuation practices. She has disseminated her scholarly work through publications and presentations at the local, regional, national, and international levels. She co-led an Illinois-based grassroots coalition to pass a surgical smoke evacuation law in Illinois successfully.

She received a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Illinois Chicago. She is certified as an operating room nurse (CNOR) through the Competency and Credentialing Institute and holds a nurse executive advanced certification through the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Presentation Title: National Engagement, Local Impact: Teaching DNP Students the Power of Advocacy and Systems Leadership

Abstract: My community engagement in the perioperative nursing profession as a national board member enhances my ability to teach DNP students about systems-level change and the importance of having a seat at the table. As a board member of a national specialty nursing association, I bring firsthand experience of shaping policy, advancing nursing priorities, and ensuring nursing voices are represented at decision-making tables. These experiences translate directly into my teaching with Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) students, where I emphasize the critical importance of systems-level change, advocacy, and professional presence in leadership roles. This presentation will highlight how bridging national engagement with academic instruction equips the next generation of nurse leaders to influence healthcare systems and secure a seat at the table where transformative change occurs.

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Assistant Professor
Retzky College of Pharmacy

Bio: Taylor Watterson, PharmD, PhD is an Assistant Professor at the UIC Retzky College of Pharmacy, in the Department of Pharmacy Systems, Outcomes and Policy. A pharmacist by training, Dr. Watterson’s graduate work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison applied industrial and systems engineering principles to health services research and patient safety. At UIC, Dr. Watterson directs the Systems-based Collaborative Research for PatienT Safety (SCRPTS) Laboratory. The goal of the SCRPTS Lab is to markedly improve patient safety through a systems-based, human factors approach and partnering with multidisciplinary researchers, scientists, practitioners, and community stakeholders to develop and study interventions that improve care.

Presentation Title: Co-Designing the Future of Pharmacy in Chicago

Abstract: What will a Chicago pharmacy look like in 50 years? And how can we begin designing that future today—especially amidst countless pharmacy closures and pervasive pharmacy deserts on the South and West Sides?

The UIC Retzky College of Pharmacy partnered with the Institute for Healthcare Delivery Design to envision the future of “community pharmacy.” A diverse group of subject matter experts—pharmacists, business owners, public health professionals, industry specialists and, most importantly, patients—convened for a series of five interactive workshops.

Early workshops focused on “solving the right problem” by mapping the current state of pharmacy and existing pain-points and bright -spots. Later sessions shifted toward “solving the problem right” by unleashing imagination to co-design solutions. Ideas ranged from medication delivery robots and community developed pharmacist training programs to pharmacy health resorts and library-based pharmacy hubs.

These workshops sparked a collective imagination for what pharmacy could and should become: more equitable, more accessible, and more intentionally designed to meet the needs of the community.

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Reference Librarian and Instructor
UIC Law

Bio: After graduating from law school, I held research positions with the judiciary, practiced at a small Chicago IP firm, and served as GC for a mid-sized California courier company. About ten years ago, I entered the realm of big data, providing QC for AI-integrated workflows for large-scale document review, contract analysis, and legal billing analysis providers. Five years ago, I entered library school with a focus, in part, on information literacy in legal applications, particularly in the areas of copyright and data literacy. Shortly after I graduated from the MLIS program, OpenAI unleashed ChatGPT, and the Mata ruling was issued. Mata sounded the alarm about the risks of AI-generated slop—unverified, fabricated, or misleading content—infecting legal research and court filings. I joined the Louis L. Biro Law Library at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law in 2023. As a law librarian in legal academia, my focus has shifted towards instructing faculty and students on best practices for implementing AI in legal instruction and practice. This spring, I will be collaborating with my colleague, Professor William Ford at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law, to teach AI-Integrated Legal Analysis. The course examines how Gen AI tools can be responsibly and effectively utilized to enhance legal research, writing, and reasoning, while upholding professional standards and maintaining ethical safeguards. It will incorporate a lab-like setting to focus on AI in legal analysis, where students test, evaluate, and critique AI tools used for legal tasks. With this background and expertise, I am dedicated to equipping the next generation of legal professionals with the skills necessary to navigate and ethically integrate AI technologies into their practice.

Presentation Title: AI-Integrated Legal Analysis

Abstract: Introducing a first-of-its-kind course at UIC Law: AI-Integrated Legal Analysis. In an era where AI is reshaping the legal landscape, AI-Integrated Legal Analysis equips students and professionals with the critical skills to responsibly and effectively incorporate AI tools into legal research, writing, and decision-making. This course examines the intersection of legal reasoning and machine intelligence, highlighting both the opportunities and ethical challenges presented by generative AI. In a true legal laboratory setting, through hands-on exercises, case studies—including the cautionary tale of Mata v. Avianca (and more)—and guided use of platforms like Claude, Harvey, Lexis (and others), participants learn to evaluate AI outputs, detect hallucinations, and maintain professional standards. The course fosters a mindset of technological fluency and legal integrity, preparing learners to lead in a rapidly evolving profession.

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Professor of Community and Applied Developmental Psychology
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Bio: Kate Zinsser, Ph.D. is a Professor of Community & Applied Developmental Psychology in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. At UIC, Dr. Zinsser directs the Social-Emotional Teaching and Learning (www.setllab.com) Lab. She conducts multi-method research on early childhood settings, systems, and policies and their impact on young children’s emotional development and the adults who care for them. She is the co-developer of the EMOTERS tool (www.emoters.org), an open-access observational assessment of emotion-focused teaching, and the author of “No Longer Welcome: The Epidemic of Early Childhood Expulsion.” Her work has been funded by the Institute for Education Sciences, the U.S. Department of Education, the Spencer Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the WT Grant Foundation. Dr. Zinsser earned her B.A. from Smith College and her Ph.D. from George Mason University.

Presentation Title: Beyond Behavior: Rethinking Preschool Expulsion Through Systems-Level Models

Abstract: Preschool expulsion remains a widespread and inequitable practice in early childhood education, disproportionately affecting Black children, boys, and children with disabilities. Despite growing awareness and policy efforts—including Illinois’ 2018 statewide ban on exclusionary discipline—young children continue to be removed from early learning environments at rates three times higher than their K–12 peers. In this Spark Talk, Dr. Zinsser reframes preschool expulsion not as a disciplinary issue, but as a systemic failure requiring an urgent, coordinated response. Drawing on nearly a decade of research with teachers, programs, and families, she shares highlights from her work with policymakers building a more just, inclusive, and responsive early education system.

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