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Center for Clinical and Translational Science

Announcing the 2021 TL1 Predoctoral Trainees!

The CCTS is pleased to announce the newest cohort for the Predoctoral Clinical/Translational Research (TL1) Program. The TL1 trainees represent predoctoral students finishing their second year in a health-related professions program. This immersive program provides 12 months of protected time for trainees to develop projects focused on reducing health disparities and/or diseases that disproportionately affect the Deep South. In addition, fellows will complete the core curriculum, get experience writing a manuscript, and present their research at a national conference.

The new cohort includes trainees from Auburn University, Tulane University, University of South Alabama, and University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Monica Abdul-Chani
Monica Abdul-Chani 
University of Alabama at Birmingham
College of Arts and Sciences | Psychology
Fun Fact: She competed at the Junior Olympics for swimming.
Akshay Aluri
Akshay Aluri
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Medicine | Medicine
Fun Fact: He can speak three languages and would like to learn three more by time he turns 30.
John Bode
John Bode
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Medicine | Anesthesiology
Fun Fact: He has survived a sky diving accident and brews his own beer.
Seth Bollenbecker
Seth Bollenbecker
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Graduate School | Medicine
Fun Fact: My life-size picture is on a mural at a popular restaurant near my undergrad university.
Courtney Brock
Courtney Brock
Tulane University
School of Medicine | Hematology and Oncology
Fun Fact: Her hobby is pottery, and she has a cat named Goose.
Claudia Edell
Claudia Edell
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences | Medicine
Fun Fact: Her favorite sport is golf.
Kayla Frey
Kayla Frey
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Medicine | Otolaryngology
Fun Fact: She loves to travel and has been to five continents and over 30 countries. She has lived in Costa Rica as a sea turtle conservation worker and in Poland as a Fulbright recipient.
Keonte Graves
Keonte Graves
University of Alabama at Birmingham
College of Arts and Sciences | Biology
Fun Fact: He bungee jumped off of a bridge in Costa Rica once.
Hope Gray
Hope Gray
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Health Professions | Health Services Administration
Fun Fact: She loves singing solo or with a choir as a soprano and also plays the violin.
Katherine Hebert
Katherine Hebert
Tulane University
School of Science and Engineering | Bioinnovation
Fun Fact: She has an identical twin sister.
Desalyn Johnson
Desalyn Johnson
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Medicine | Medicine
Fun Fact: She loves reading books and speaking Spanish.
Kristen Smith
Kristen Smith
Auburn University
College of Human Sciences | Nutrition, Dietetics, and Hospitality Management
Fun Fact: Her ideal morning is watching the sunrise with a bagel sandwich and a cup of coffee.
Sydney Weir
Sydney Weir
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Medicine | Dermatology
Fun Fact: She loves to travel, and her most recent adventure involved swimming between two glaciers and chasing northern lights in Iceland.
Griffin Wright
Griffin Wright
University of South Alabama
College of Medicine | Physiology and Cell Biology
Fun Fact: In his free time he enjoys wood working and playing soccer.
Maryl Wright
Maryl Wright
Tulane University
School of Medicine | Hematology and Oncology, Medicine
Fun Fact: When she was a kid she collected the 50 state commemorative quarters.