Medical Student Scholars

Aysenur (Ayse) Musaogullari graduated summa cum laude from John Carroll University with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and a minor in Peace, Justice, and Human Rights. Prior to joining Pritzker, Ayse performed clinical and translational research in glaucoma at the Havener Eye Institute in Columbus, Ohio. During this time, she also partnered with a non-profit organization and worked on several projects to improve health access and literacy for refugees and asylum seekers.

At Pritzker, Ayse is the incoming Co-Director of the Maria Shelter Free Clinic, which serves women and children experiencing homelessness on the South Side. Ayse is also on the board leading the Middle Eastern and North African Medical Student Association and the Ophthalmology Interest Group. Currently, she is exploring her research and clinical interests in ophthalmology and global health.

An aspiring physician-scientist, Hecong completed his undergraduate studies at Sun Yat-sen University in China and a Ph.D. in Bioengineering at UCSF and UC Berkeley. His dissertation research focused on developing and translating novel MRI techniques targeting cancer metabolism to identify aggressive cancers and evaluate therapeutic responses. 

While in the Bay Area, Hecong volunteered as a community healthcare worker at the Berkeley Free Clinic for six years, including two years as a section coordinator. Working with and learning from vulnerable patients at the clinic strengthened his passion for health equity, patient advocacy, and building trust with patients. At the Pritzker School of Medicine, Hecong continues to conduct basic science research and engage in community service. He serves as a class representative to Pritzker’s Identity and Inclusion (i2i) committee, as well as on the board of the Bridgeport Free Clinic and Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association (APAMSA).

Zharia Crisp graduated from the University of Maryland in 2021 with a B.S. in Biological Sciences and a B.S. in Psychology. She first became interested in research while studying unethical behavior and cheating in her undergraduate Motivated Cognition lab. Following graduation, she worked in medical optometry while conducting research on antiracism in medical education with the National Anti-Racism in Medicine Curriculum Coalition (NAMCC). With the NAMCC, Zharia studied a piloted Georgetown SOM course on anti-Black racism in clinical settings that was presented at the APA 2022 Mental Health Conference.

At Pritzker, Zharia was elected by her class as a Wellness representative. She serves as an Internal Affairs liaison for the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) and as one of the i2i (Identity and Inclusion) representatives for the Wellness Committee. Zharia is also an Education and Outreach Coordinator for the Washington Park Free Clinic as well as a leader of the Psychiatry Interest Group. Zharia is excited to explore psychiatry and pediatrics, with a particular interest in the mental health of underserved and minority populations.

Jasmine Rios graduated from Yale University in 2021 with a B.A. in History of Science and Medicine. She continued her studies at the Yale School of Public Health, where she received an M.P.H. in Social and Behavioral Sciences in 2022 with a concentration in US Health Justice. Her graduate research focused on health disparities in breastfeeding and nutrition through community-based participatory research. Jasmine’s work in public health outreach sought to address community distrust in healthcare and the social determinants of chronic disease management.

At Pritzker, Jasmine serves as a class representative for the Identity and Inclusion (i2i) Steering Committee and the Community Service Chair for the Latino Medical Student Association. She is the Education and Community Outreach Coordinator for the newly established Southside Free Clinic. In this role, she also serves as a liaison and member of the South Side Community Health Advocate Leadership Program. Jasmine is excited to further explore the relationship between community and health, with a current research interest in comprehensive care.

Mikhayla Armstrong graduated from Williams College in 2019 with a B.A. degree in Biology with Honors and a concentration in Africana Studies. Her passion for research began in college when she was an Allison Davis Research Fellow. Upon graduating, she continued conducting research as a clinical research assistant in ophthalmology at Boston Children’s Hospital. During this time she also volunteered as a Big Sister and served as a co-leader of the Health Disparities and Inclusion group.

At Pritzker, Mikhayla was elected by her class as the AAMC representative. She is on the OUTPatient (for LGBTQ+ people in medicine) board and the Ophthalmology Interest Group board. She also serves as one of the i2i (identity and inclusion) representatives for OUTPatient and SNMA. She is currently exploring her research interests, through projects in ophthalmology and otolaryngology.

Isaiah Brown graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2019 with a B.S. in Neuroscience. In 2018, Isaiah was the recipient of a summer internship award from the University of Southern California Summer Program in Diabetes and Obesity Research. This experience sparked his interest in health disparities research, which led Isaiah to become a post-baccalaureate fellow at the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD). At the NIMHD, Isaiah was primarily involved in research focused on identifying the relationships between health access and health seeking behaviors to explain the disparities among those living with chronic diseases, such as Type 2 Diabetes.

At Pritzker, Isaiah serves as the Co-President of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) and as the Director of Operations for the Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP). He also serves as the Quality Improvement Co-Chair of the Washington Park Free Clinic and as a member of the Choosing Wisely STARS in which he hopes to promote health care value in medical education.

Alvin Gordián-Arroyo graduated from Harvard University in 2017 with a Bachelor of Arts in Human Evolutionary Biology while completing a secondary field in Global Health and Health Policy. He continued his studies at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, where he received a Master of Public Health in Sociomedical Sciences in 2019 with a certificate in Sexuality, Sexual and Reproductive Health. His research focused on highlighting disparities among people living with HIV (PLWH) and evaluating the efficacy of technology-based solutions for improving health outcomes among PLWH and sexual minority adolescents at higher risk for HIV transmission.

At Pritzker, Alvin serves as co-chair of the Emergency Medicine Interest Group and class representative for the Identity and Inclusion (i2i) Steering Committee. He is also a volunteer at the free CommunityHealth Clinic and is a mentor with the Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP).

Tiffany Xie graduated from Indiana University in 2020 with degrees in English and Biology. Following graduation, she taught English in Changhua, Taiwan on a Fulbright fellowship. She is a writer and a member of the Soupbone Collective, a digital humanities collaborative. As a medical student, Tiffany co-leads the book club and the barbell club. Under the mentorship of Dr. Elizabeth Tung, Tiffany is currently developing an epidemiological research project on housing and health, studying the geographic distribution of affordable housing and health resources.

Kristen Chalmers graduated summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa from Dartmouth College in 2017 with a B.A. in Anthropology and a minor in Neuroscience. Following graduation, she spent three years conducting qualitative research on emergency department design at Build Health International and adolescent diabetes care at Seattle Children’s Hospital. She also began volunteering as a rape hotline crisis counselor with the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, where she now works as a staff counselor and shift supervisor.

At Pritzker, Kristen is the co-chair of Physician Advocates for Survivors of Sexual Assault and the Emergency Medicine Interest Group. She is also collaborating with fellow medical students on a project to identify disparities and improve care for survivors of sexual assault in Chicago-area emergency departments with Drs. Keme Cater, Sonia Oyola, and Jeanne Farnan. Under Dr. Julie Chor, she is also working on a qualitative research project aiming to develop trauma-informed abortion care principles for survivors of sexual assault, interpersonal violence, and adverse childhood experiences.

Diana Li graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 2017 with BAs in Biophysics and Writing Seminars. They also received an MFA in Poetry from Rutgers University-Newark in 2019, where they taught English Composition.

At Pritzker, Diana served as co-president for OUTPatient (LGBTQ+ People in Medicine), as well as the Community Outreach Director for both the Bridgeport Free Clinic and the Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association. They currently serve as a class representative for Pritzker’s Identity & Inclusion (i2i) committee. As a second-year medical student, Diana has also coordinated lesson plans and served as a guest facilitator for two modules of the first-year “Health Care Disparities and Advocacy” course: 1) allyship training and 2) LGBTQ+ intersectionality.

Under the mentorship of Dr. Marshall Chin and Dr. Scott Cook, Diana is conducting community health research on improving the healthcare experiences of transgender people of color as part of the Your Voice! Your Health! project.