Trainee Profiles

Post-Doctoral Trainees

Alison Athey, PhD

Alison received a PhD in Psychology at Case Western Reserve University. She completed a residency in clinical psychology at the Brown University Warren Alpert Medical School Clinical Psychology Training Consortium. Her research has focused on the role of cognition and learned behaviors in suicide risk, especially among individuals in marginalized and high-risk groups. Alison uses registry studies, psychological autopsy, and epi-/genetic approaches to evaluate changes in suicide risk within individuals and families. As a JHU PET postdoctoral fellow working with Drs. Holly Wilcox and Paul Nestadt, she hopes to extend this bench-to-bedside approach by learning public health tools and by evaluating potential areas of overlap between suicide and other life-threatening behaviors (e.g., opiate overdose).
 

rose schrott, phd

Rose earned her PhD in Environment at Duke University through the Integrated Toxicology and Environmental Health program. Her dissertation focused on how cannabis use impacts the sperm epigenome at genes important for early life development. Previously, she earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular biology with a concentration in Reproductive Biology from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. As a PET postdoctoral fellow working with Drs. Christine Ladd-Acosta and Heather Volk, Rose’s research is motivated by gaining a better understanding of how the environment and the epigenome contribute to the etiology of neurodevelopmental disorders.
 

Pre-Doctoral Trainees

Alexa (Lex) Curhan Budavari, MPH

Lex is a doctoral student in the Department of Mental Health advised by Dr. Heather Volk. Her research interests include child and adolescent mental health, the intersection of genetic and environmental risk, Autism Spectrum Disorder, mood and anxiety disorders, neuroimaging, and school-based interventions. She previously received her MPH from Johns Hopkins and her BA in Psychology from Vanderbilt University.

theresa Faller

Theresa Faller is a doctoral student in the Department of Mental Health advised by Dr. Joe Gallo.  Her primary research interests are the intersection of physical and mental health, mental health related stigmas, and health disparities.  Prior to starting at Johns Hopkins, she received her MPH from Boston University and her BA in both Biochemistry and Asian Studies from Bowdoin College. 

Luke Grosvenor

Luke is a doctoral student in the Department of Mental Health advised by Dr. Dani Fallin. His primary research interest is on the intersection between genetic and environmental etiologies of Autism Spectrum Disorders, developmental delay, and intellectual disability. Prior to starting at Johns Hopkins, he received his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Behavioral Neuroscience from Cornell University. 

Katrina M. Rodriguez, MHS

Katrina is a doctoral student in the Department of Mental Health advised by Drs. William Eaton and Gail Daumit. Her research interest lies in the etiology, prevention, and treatment of serious mental illness, primarily schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. She is also interested in the connection between the immune system and the gut microbiome and the effect abnormalities in these systems may have on mental illness. Katrina received her MHS in Mental Health from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and her BS in Psychology from the University of Arizona with minors in Sociology and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.