Commission on the Status of Health Sciences

Sen. Michael Britt is a member of the Class of 2029 in the College of Dental Medicine. He was born and raised on Long Island, NY, and graduated from Boston College, where he studied Biology and Global Public Health. Before dental school, he worked as a Research Assistant at a pediatric hospital, investigating patient outcomes following various oral surgery procedures. He is passionate about dentistry and addressing systemic inequities in oral health. In his free time, he enjoys exploring NYC and spending time outside. He is committed to ensuring excellence, inclusivity, and transparency across Columbia University.

Sen. Melissa Stockwell, MD MPH is the Chief of the Division of Child and Adolescent Health and the Felice K. Shea Professor of Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons and a Professor of Population and Family Health in the Department of Population and Family Health at the Mailman School of Public Health. She is also the founding director of the Department of Pediatrics’ Center for Children’s Digital Health Research. Additionally, she is a practicing pediatrician.

Sen. Katherine R. Brown is a third-year student at the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science studying biomedical engineering with a focus on neural engineering. Katherine is drawn to work that sits at the intersection of engineering, health, and innovation. She works as an apprentice in the Advanced Instrumentation Lab at the Zuckerman Institute, contributing to the development of novel neuroscience research instrumentation, and holds an AAUW scholarship. At Columbia, Katherine supports the Innovation, Design, and Entrepreneurship team at Columbia Engineering through student-focused entrepreneurship events and the NSF I-Corps Regional Program. She also serves as an organizing committee leader in the Columbia Organization of Rising Entrepreneurs. Through the University Senate, Katherine aims to advocate for SEAS undergraduates on issues of curriculum, student research access, and campus welfare. She is committed to expanding opportunities for students to connect with mentors, advisors, and professionals outside the university, recognizing that meaningful external networks are essential to student development.

Sen. Ian M. Kronish is a general internist and Associate Professor of Medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. He is Associate Director of the Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health, a multidisciplinary research center dedicated to understanding behavioral factors underlying cardiovascular disease. He also co-founded the Columbia Hypertension Center. His research focuses on psychological distress after cardiovascular events, with a particular emphasis on the effect of cardiac anxiety on health behaviors and prognosis. He co-directs the NIA-funded Roybal Center for Fearless Behavior Change, which develops and tests behavioral interventions that improve psychological well-being, health behaviors, and clinical outcomes after serious health events. He also conducts implementation science research to increase adoption of hypertension guidelines into primary care. Sen. Kronish teaches medical students and internal medicine residents and leads an NIH-funded course that teaches behavioral intervention development. He is Associate Editor of the Journal of General Internal Medicine, Editor-at-Large of General Hospital Psychiatry, and Section Editor of Current Cardiology Reports. He is a past President of the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research, the leading honor society for behavioral medicine researchers. He is also a Fellow of the American Heart Association and past recipient of the Wayne Katon Research Award from the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry.

Sen. Henry Ginsberg is the Irving Professor of Medicine at the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, where he has conducted basic and translational research on lipid metabolism and cardiovascular disease for 37 years. Dr. Ginsberg was Director of the Irving Center for Clinical Research from 1994 to 2006 and the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research from 2006 to 2017. From 1992 to 2008 and from 2014 until the present, he has been PI on an NHLBI T32 postdoctoral training program in Arteriosclerosis Research. Dr. Ginsberg has published over 400 peer-reviewed and invited papers in journals, and has received funding from the NIH for more than 40 years. He also sees patients with severe lipid disorders and teach. On the University Senate, he serves on the Commission on the Status of Women and on the Structure and Operations Committee, and hopes that his many years on the faculty allow him to offer insights and perspectives relevant to the issues facing the University.

Sen. Giovanni O. Oliveros, a postdoctoral research scientist in the Department of Pathology and Cell Biology for the past three years, has worked tirelessly to advance not only his research career but also his lab's scientific objectives. His experience, coupled with prior teaching and mentoring experience outside Columbia, has prepared him to represent postdoctoral researchers at a time when research needs are at an all-time high and funding is in limbo.

Through both his laboratory and mentoring/teaching experience, Sen. Oliveros has seen how funding shifts can impact the research and mentoring experience - even a small cut has drastic impacts on a trainee's stability, growth, and future success. With drastic funding cuts and the future of postdocs uncertain, he believes it is imperative that postdocs' voices are heard, particularly on issues such as job security, professional development, and salary equity, for all the hard work they contribute to the Columbia community.

His passion for building a more responsible, transparent, supportive research environment is what drives him to serve. As the postdoctoral senate representative, Sen. Oliveros will work to make sure the postdoc community at Columbia is well represented and their needs are met. He is ready to represent the postdoctoral community.

Sen. George Bonanno is a Professor of Clinical Psychology at Columbia University's Teachers College and internationally recognized for his pioneering research on human resilience in the face of loss and potential trauma. He is listed among the top one percent most cited scientists in the world, had been honored as fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science AAAS), and received lifetime achievement awards from the Association for Psychological Science (APS), the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS), and the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA). In addition to the books, The End of Trauma and The Other Side of Sadness, George has published hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific articles. He is also an avid painter (when he has time) and loves music.

Sen. Despina Kontos, Ph.D., is the Herbert and Florence Irving Professor of Radiological Sciences (in Radiology and the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center), Vice-Chair of AI, Data Science, and Engineering Research, and founding Director, Center for Innovation in Imaging Biomarkers and Integrated Diagnostics (CIMBID) at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC). She is also the inaugural Chief Research Information (CRIO) officer for CUIMC. Dr. Kontos received her C.Eng. Diploma in Computer Engineering and Informatics from the University of Patras in Greece and her MSc and Ph.D. degrees in Computer Science from Temple University in Philadelphia. She completed her postdoctoral training in radiologic physics and biostatistics at the University of Pennsylvania, and additional postgraduate training in Cancer Molecular Biology and Therapeutics from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Kontos’ research interests lay in the interface of engineering, data science, and medical imaging applications. Most of her research to date has focused on leveraging the role of machine learning and AI in investigating the role of imaging as a predictive biomarker for guiding precision cancer screening, prognosis, and treatment. Throughout her career. Dr. Kontos has held various leadership roles, both institutionally and more broadly serving the academic community, including initiatives with Government Relations, Faculty Wellness, and Equity.

Sen. David Kessler is a Professor of Pediatrics and Vice Chair of Innovation & Strategic Initiatives in Columbia’s Department of Emergency Medicine. In this role, he works across teams to develop novel programs and lead strategic initiatives to solve complex healthcare challenges. After graduating from Princeton University and Mount Sinai School of Medicine’s global health track in Pediatrics, he completed Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship, and Emergency Ultrasound training at Bellevue Hospital, along with a Master of Science in Clinical Investigation from NYU. Dr. Kessler is co-founder of INSPIRE (International Network for Simulation-based Pediatric Innovation, Research, and Education), fostering a global community of investigators dedicated to collaboration, mentorship, and advancing simulation scholarship. His career focuses on improving patient outcomes through innovative technology, with extensive experience in clinical research, grant-funded projects, and international leadership in Simulation and Emergency Ultrasound. He has a long track record of collaboration across the Columbia School of Engineering and Data Science Institute with current research exploring artificial intelligence for automated ultrasound interpretation, virtual and augmented reality for clinical skills training, and simulation-based professionalism education using natural language processing for performance assessment.

Dr. Christine O’Hea is an Associate Professor in the Department of Orthodontics at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine. She has been with the College of Dental medicine for 7 years. She earned her DMD at the University of Pennsylvania in 1996 and her certificate in Orthodontics/Masters in Dental Science from the University of Connecticut in 1999. Dr. O'Hea is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics and has served on the Admissions Committee, Committee on Instruction and Progress Review Committees during her time at CDM. She was recently elected to serve on the Executive Committee of the Faculty at CDM.

Sen. Adena Bargad, PhD, CNM is Associate Professor of Nursing at Columbia University School of Nursing. She is a Certified Nurse Midwife with more than two decades of clinical and teaching experience. She has served as Program Coordinator for the Women’s Health Subspecialty in the School of Nursing for over a decade and specializes in women’s sexual and reproductive health care across the life cycle. She maintains an active clinical practice with Planned Parenthood affiliates across New York. Dr. Bargad has designed and led graduate-level nursing curricula that integrate simulation-based education and distributed learning technologies. She is dedicated to preparing the next generation of nurse practitioners and midwives to advance health equity in their practice. Dr. Bargad has been nationally recognized as a PATH Framework trainer for Title X and Essential Access Health which promotes reproductive autonomy and values-centered counseling strategies. She was honored to receive the School of Nursing Teacher of the Year Award in 2023.