- Oversee communications for two interdisciplinary institutes (the Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute and the Institute for Nano-Engineered Systems), utilizing independent judgment and creativity to plan new approaches and develop / maintain resources such as websites, social media accounts, newsletters, photography/videography assets, and print materials.- Create content that conveys the impact, research, educational activities, and innovative missions of each institute and share with the UW community, wider academic communities, and other external stakeholders through various communication channels.- Track performance of content using metrics such as website pageviews or social media engagement.

I worked with nonprofit and academic organizations to develop communication strategies, engage stakeholders, and support complex projects. Former clients include: Washington State Academy of Sciences (WSAS), University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS), Engineers and Scientists Acting Locally (ESAL), The William D. Ruckelshaus Center, Pacific Northwest Research Institute (PNRI)Notable accomplishments:- Contributed to workshop proposal that was funded by NSF to bring together stakeholders as part of a UMMS faculty member led project to create a new national center dedicated to advancing the career and professional development of scientists.- Refined WSAS communication strategies culminating in the launch of a newsletter to inform members and drive member engagement.- Redesigned ESAL website to better reflect organizational goals and connect site visitors with relevant content.- Organized fundraising event attended by 500+ industry, academic, and community leaders in the Seattle area and raised over $150k to support the Ruckelshaus Center’s collaborative public policy work. Developed print materials for the event.- Wrote report for PNRI leadership summarizing potential downstream impacts of an emerging technology to inform hiring decision of PNRI faculty candidate.

- Personnel management: Remotely managed 18 scientists and engineers across 5 campuses (University of Washington, University of California Irvine, Purdue University, Duke University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill).- Collaboration: Utilized online collaboration tools including video, project management programs (asana), shared documents, surveys, and social media to track and motivate fellows’ progress toward project milestones.- Reporting: Reported project progress and program outcomes through bi-weekly internal newsletters, quarterly external newsletters (2,000 subscribers) and an annual report which is distributed among our participants, advisors, sponsors and others.- Communications: Designed ELISS website (elissfellows.org) to promote ELISS brand and created informative outreach documents describing ELISS activities and outcomes (including annual report) that can be easily digested by multiple audiences and shared via multiple different platforms.- Business Development: Identified and engaged potential funding sources including government agencies, foundations and commercial funders. Helped secure $20k from private corporation.- Planning: Assisted with the planning and logistics of workshops, symposiums, and educational outreach activities, including a 5-day leadership development workshop retreat attended by 25 people.- Program Design: Worked with ELISS’s executive director and program advisors to design deliverables and activities that would meet learning goals for fellows while providing value to community stakeholders

Studied why sleep that is of poor quality, short amount, or abnormally timed is associated with metabolic diseases like obesity and diabetes. By understanding better the basic physiology underlying sleep and other daily processes we can identify opportunities for intervention and prevention of disease. Using fruit flies as a genetic model, I identified a molecule released by the brain that is important for coordinating rhythmic gene expression in a peripheral metabolic tissue. Accomplishments:- Recipient of competitive T32 pre-doctoral training grant from the University of Pennsylvania Department of Genetics- Highlighted publication: Erion R​, AN King, G Wu, JB Hogenesch, and A Sehgal. “Neural clocks and Neuropeptide F/Y regulate circadian gene expression in a peripheral metabolic tissue.” ​eLife​.​ ​2016​; 5:e13552​.

Supported the Forum on Drug Discovery, Development, and Translation