Young Investigators Research Forum

This career-building research retreat brings together early career investigators and renowned sleep investigators. The research forum provides guidance, tactics and strategies to better position early career investigators for a successful career in research.

View the 2020 Program

2020 YIRF Young Investigators

Andrey Andreev, PhD
California Institute of Technology

Marvi Bikak, MD
Rush University

Oren Cohen, MD
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Tony Cunningham, PhD1
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School

Bhavim Desai, MD
Sleep Health MD

Maya Elias, PhD, RN
University of Miami

Stacey Elkhatib Smidt, MD
Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania

Allison Gaffey, PhD
Yale School of Medicine

Syed Moin Hassan, MD
University of Vermont

Kristin Hoddy, PhD1
Pennington Biomedical Research Center

Toshihiro Imamura, MD
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

Melissa Jones, MD
Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Baylor College of Medicine

Jill Kaar, PhD
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Ellen Lee, MD
University of California San Diego

Naina Limbekar, MD, MPH
Brigham and Women’s Hospital & Massachusetts General Hospital

Brian Locke, MD
University of Utah

Maristella Lucchini, PhD
Columbia University Medical Center

Diego Mazzotti, PhD
University of Kansas Medical Center

Sara Mithani, RN, BSN, PhD
University of Illinois at Chicago and National Institutes of Nursing Research

Mairead Moloney, PhD1
University of Kentucky

Kevin Motz, MD
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Neetu Nair, PhD
University of Missouri Hospital

Cinthya Pena Orbea, MD
Cleveland Clinic Foundation

Anita Peoples, PhD, MPH
Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah

Weston Powell, MD, PhD
Seattle Children’s Hospital/University of Washington

Kristina Puzino, PhD
Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

April Rogers, MD, MPH, MBA
St. John’s University

Alicia Roth, PhD
Cleveland Clinic

Katrina Speed, PhD1
Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention

Caitlan Tighe, PhD1
Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System

Thomas Tolbert, MD
Mount Sinai Hospital

Lauren Whitehust, PhD
University of California, San Francisco

1Supported by the Sleep Research Society Foundation

Azizi Seixas, PhD (Chair) NYU Langone Health
Suzie Bertisch, MD, MPH (Vice Chair) Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School
Indu Ayappa, PhD Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
M. Safwan Badr, MD, MBA Wayne State University School of Medicine
Ruth Benca, MD, PhD University of California, Irvine
Daniel J. Buysse, MD University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Michael Grandner, PhD, MTR University of Arizona
Martica Hall, PhD University of Pittsburgh
Sairam Parthasarathy, MD University of Arizona
Ronald Szymusiak, PhD VA Greater Los Angeles and David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA
Andrew W. Varga, MD, PhD Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Sigrid Veasey, MD University of Pennsylvania