Current HG DEI Committee Members

John Novembre (Chair)

Joe Thornton (he/him; joet1 [at] uchicago [dot] edu) is a professor in the Department of Human Genetics and the Department of Ecology and Evolution.  His laboratory reconstructs the genetic and biochemical mechanisms by which proteins have evolved new functions.  Before joining the University of Chicago, he was on the faculty at the University of Oregon for a decade.  Before he was a scientist, he was an environmental activist. 

Cecily Choy, HG PhD Student (she/her; choyc [at] uchicago [dot] edu) is a PhD candidate in Dr. Luis Barreiro’s lab and is interested in how genetics contributes to variation in the adaptive immune response. Prior to UChicago, Cecily was an undergraduate at Carleton College and did a postbac at the NIH.

Jennifer Blanc, HG PhD Student (she/her; jgblanc [at] uchicago [dot] edu) is a PhD candidate in the Human Genetics graduate program. She works in Dr. Jeremy Berg’s lab studying the evolution of complex traits. Before joining the University of Chicago, Jennifer was an undergraduate at the University of California, Davis.  

Jaeda Patton, GGSB PhD Student (she/her; jejpatton [at] uchicago [dot] edu) is a PhD candidate in Joe Thornton’s lab. Her work examines the genetic and biophysical determinants of protein genotype-phenotype maps and how this influences the evolutionary potential of proteins. Outside of the lab she enjoys creative pursuits such as singing, knitting, and photography.

Luke Anderson Trocme, Postdoc

Nathan LaPierre, Postdoc

Current GGSB DEI Committee Members

Hae Kyung Im (Chair)

Andy Dahl (andywdahl [at] uchicago [dot] edu) is an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine. Andy works on statistical methodology to understand the genetic basis of complex human traits, and previously trained at UChicago, Oxford, UCSF, and UCLA.

Busayo Bolonduro, GGSB PhD Student (he/him; olubusayob [at] uchicago [dot] edu) is a 3rd year PhD candidate in the lab of Dr. Andrew Koh. Here, he uses genomics data to study gene regulation in the thymus used to promote immune tolerance. Busayo is interested in how discoveries from basic scientific research can be leveraged to advance medicine and our understanding of disease. He is also passionate about advancing equity and inclusion in science.

Astra Hwang, GGSB PhD Student 

Vivaswat Shastry, GGSB PhD Student (he/him; vivaswat [at] uchicago [dot] edu) works on building models to estimate evolutionary parameters in Jeremy Berg’s lab. Additionally, he is deeply interested in matters pertaining to equity in higher education and is committed to fostering a diverse graduate community within the program. Outside of school, he enjoys writing jokes and performing stand-up comedy. 

Past HG DEI Committee Members

Maanasa Raghavan (she/her; mraghavan [at] uchicago [dot] edu) (-2023)

Tauras Vilgalys (vilgalys [at] uchicago [dot] edu) (-2023)

Katie Aracena (karacena [at] uchicago [dot] edu (2022-2023)

Shreya Ramachandran (shreya23 [at] uchicago [dot] edu): 2020-2022