CV

Education

• University of Rhode Island, 2022 (expected)
  • B.S. in Biological Sciences and Molecular Neuroscience
  • Honors Program

Research Interests

• Immunology - Vaccine Developement
• Infectious Diseases

Research Experience

• Undergraduate Researcher:
  • September 2020 - Present
  • University of Rhode Island
  • The Chen Lab
  • Mentor: Dr. Xinyuan Chen
  • Develop the virus-like particle universal influenza vaccine and compact pre-clinical safety efficacy on animal models. Prepare and characterize particle influenza vaccine through molecular cloning and TM.
  • Honors Project: Increase immunogenicity of FH VLP to further develop a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine for better immunogenicity and safety.
  • Relevant Skills: ELISA, BCA, Lysis, Spectrophotometry, Agarose Gel Electrophoresis, Sonification, Protein Purification, Centrifugation, Pipetting
• Undergraduate Researcher:
  • June 2020 - Present
  • University of Rhode Island
  • The Schwartz Lab
  • Mentor: Dr. Rachel Schwartz
  • Computational evolutionary biology research using SISRS through UNIX to identify phylogenetically informative sites from next generation whole-genome sequencing of multiple species.
  • Independent Project: Development of a strongly supported Ixodes Genus Phylogeny.
  • Relevant Skills: UNIX, Computational Research, ENA
• Undergraduate Research Assistant:
  • December 2019 - March 2020
  • University of Rhode Island
  • The Couret Lab
  • Mentor: Dr. Janelle Couret
  • An undergraduate researcher in The Couret Lab focusing on mosquito and tick-bourne disease. Mostly working with the vector Ixodes Scapularis with regards to questing patterns in the winter and early spring seasonss
  • Relevant Skills: Mosquito Identification, Tick Identification, Scholar Readings
  • Presentations: A Phylogeny of Ixodes Genus (Hard-Bodied Ticks) - See below under Posters/Publications

Additional Projects

• Identification of Unknown Bacteria
  • Identified an unknown bacterium through various microbiological techniques including different staining techniques to finalize the bacteria through the Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriology.

Posters/Presentations

• Oh, the Places You’ll Tutor: Encouraging Engagement in an Online Environment.
  • Jewel Voyer, Lila Berle (2021, March).
  • Oral Presentation presented at the New England Peer Tutoring Association Conference
• A Phylogeny of Ixodes Genus (Hard-Bodied Ticks).
  • Jewel Voyer, Dr. Rachel Schwartz (2021, January).
  • Poster session presented at the INBRE-MARC SURF Conference
• A Phylogeny of Ixodes Genus (Hard-Bodied Ticks).
  • Jewel Voyer, Dr. Rachel Schwartz (2021, January).
  • Poster session presented at The ASPA Northeast Regional Conference: UPenn Chapter
• A Phylogeny of Ixodes Genus (Hard-Bodied Ticks).
  • Jewel Voyer, Dr. Rachel Schwartz (2020, November).
  • Poster session presented at The Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students

Grants/Awards

• University of Rhode Island Honors Project Grant
  • 03/2021 – 12/2021
• (URI)2 Undergraduate Research Grant
  • 01/2021 – 05/2021

Education and Professional Experience

• MARC-U* Star (Maximizing Access to Research) Trainee
  • University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI
  • May 2020 – Present
  • Coordinator: Dr. Niall Howlett, Dr. Bryan Dewsbury
  • Develop students who are knowledgeable and well trained in biological and biomedical research and can readily employ research methods and critical thinking to solve important and timely scientific problems. Create a community of student scholars who will enjoy a strong sense of belonging within the biological and biomedical research community and promote a sustainable culture of undergraduate research excellence at the University of Rhode Island.
• URI 101 Mentor Team Interviewer:
  • January 2021 - Present
  • University of Rhode Island
  • Coordinator: Dr. Richard Song
  • Interview and prepare for the new round of URI 101 Mentors.
  • Assist in all aspects of recruitment, interviews, hiring, sign-up day, and training for prospective URI 101 Mentors. Serve as lead for all things interview related while still participating in aspects of recruitment and training. Create an interview process for new and returning mentors, oversee URI 101 mentor email, distribute and create interview packets and sheet of important dates. Conduct interviews for mentors.
• Junior Lead Tutor:
  • September 2020 - Present
  • University of Rhode Island
  • Coordinator: Dr. Richard Song
  • Mentor and lead a group of 20+ Chemistry tutors. Run monthly cohort meetings.
  • Act as a conduit for communication between AEC admin staff and tutors from your cohort. Assist in on-boarding new tutors. Complete observations of new tutors in the Academic Enhancement Center. Assist with the planning and/or facilitation of a subject-specific monthly cohort meeting. Assist with professional development and other AEC related projects.
• URI 101 Mentor:
  • September 2019 - Present
  • University of Rhode Island
  • Coordinator: Dr. Richard Song
  • Introduce first year students to topics for a successful transition into college and be a positive influence and leader in order to provide new students with a sense of belonging to the URI community. This is done by holding a class of 20 to 30 students and creating lesson plans in order to develop essential academic skills, encouraging campus involvement, creating inclusion, and celebrating diversity.
• Tutoring Professional:
  • September 2019 - Present
  • University of Rhode Island
  • Coordinator: Jennifer Burgess, Chedaelai Just
  • Tutoring in the subjects of general chemistry, general physics, organic chemistry, and genetics. Responsible for providing content specific tutorial support for undergraduate students. Collaborated with and engaged students’ involvement in their learning to build their confidence in said topics. Attended professional development events to raise skillfulness.
• Tutoring Mentor:
  • January 2020 - September 2020
  • University of Rhode Island
  • Coordinator: Jennifer Burgess
  • Mentored first time tutoring professionals to ensure their preparedness for future tutoring appointments. These meetings consisted of ensuring their wellbeing with any possible situations they may face while tutoring as well as make sure they are prepared with knowledge of resources for themselves and the students they are tutoring. This also consisted of discussing the many tutoring skills.
• Paul Cuffee Mentor
  • Providence, Rhode Island
  • September 2020 - Present
  • Coordinator: Dr. Bryan Dewsbury
  • Work with a cadre of PCUS juniors and seniors on college readiness. The construction of specific deliverable’s pertaining to the college application process, as well as prepare in-person visits to the URI campus to experience various aspects of college science instruction and research.

Medical Experience

• Emergency Medical Services First Responder
  • University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI January 2020 – Present
  • Coordinator: Commander R. Hart
  • Handle on campus emergencies and respond mutual aid to the surrounding area for 911 calls. Provided crucial medical care and employed clinical knowledge to help stabilize patients suffering from serious medical emergencies upon ambulance transport to local hospitals.
• Blood Donor Screener American Red Cross
  • May 2020 – Present
  • Take the temperature of potential blood and plasma donors before entering buildings to ensure the safety of those within the buildings.
• Mobile Response Greeter Physician’s One Urgent Care
  • May 2020 – August 2020
  • Demonstrates a high level of interpersonal and communication skills necessary to consistently receive, greet and interact with patients, visitors, and staff members in a professional manner. Prepare documents and packets needed for events in advance as directed by MRC Customer service oriented. Maintains the strictest confidentiality. Ability to multi-task in an environment of continuous improvement.

Conferences Attended

• New England Peer Tutoring Association Conference
  • March 2021
• The University of Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Physician Scientists Association (APSA) Northeast Regional Conference
  • January 2021
• The Rhode Island IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence Conference
  • January 2021
• The Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS)
  • November 2020

Professional Development

• Responsible Conduct of Research
  • National Institute of Health required training. Denotes good citizenship in research conduct.
• Sigma Xi National Research Honor Society
  • University of Rhode Island Chapter
• Rhody Rounds
  • Five class completion of virtual medical shadowing of multiple MD professionals.

Leadership and Achievements

• Dean’s List
  • Spring 2019
  • Fall 2019
  • Spring 2020
  • Fall 2020

Certifications

• Mental Health First Aid
  • April 2020
• CPR and BLS
  • American Heart Association
• CITI Program
  • Working with the IACUC
  • Working with Mice in Research Settings
  • Post-Procedure Care of Mice and Rats in Research • Responsible Conduct of Research Training

Skills

• Proficient in: UNIX, R, Excel, Microsoft Office, SHELL • ENA, GenBank • Mosquito identification, Tick Identification, Scholar reads • ELISA, BCA, Lysis, Spectrophotometry, Agarose Gel Electrophoresis, Sonification, Protein Purification, Centrifugation, Pipetting, PCR, Digestion, Ligation, Transformation, Endotoxin Removal, Protein Extraction, SDS-PAGE

Volunteer Service

• Founder
  • Student Advocacy for Disability Awareness
  • Student Advocacy for Disability Awareness (SADA) is an organization built by students with the purpose of fighting the stigma of students with disabilities throughout college campuses and communities. We also want to create an organization that influences great communication throughout the communities as well. Lastly, we want to advocate for accessibility throughout campus courses, online accessibility, as well as the overall campus structure.