Student Highlights

Meet some of our talented Science in Biomedical Science Policy & Advocacy students!

Vanessa Barnes

Vanessa (she/her) is a part-time Biomedical Science Policy and Advocacy student, and a part-time Pathways Intern at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. At NHLBI, Vanessa has contributed to planning the Reducing Cardiovascular Disease Across the Lifespan Workshop and the upcoming Social Determinants of Health Workshop Series. Additionally, she has conducted a scoping review of the current research for screening for social risk in clinical settings. Vanessa has contributed to the portfolio analysis of SDOH research at NHLBI and the portfolio analysis of Early Stage Investigators at NHLBI and NIH. Vanessa received her bachelor’s degree in Public Health Science and a Scholar’s Citation as a Global Public Health Scholar from the University of Maryland.

Career/Academic Interests: The social determinants of health research, reducing social risk, clinical research, telemedicine, digital health, data science, & open science

Hobbies: exercising, cooking, exploring DC & spending time with family and friends

Marian Flaxman

Marian Flaxman is a former restaurant owner and personal chef with over a decade of experience in the natural food industry. She has a degree in Public Health from American University, and is a member of the Advisory Board for the National Women’s Health Network. Marian currently works as a health and nutrition policy consultant and most recently worked on a report for the White House Convening on Nutrition, Hunger, and Health. She is the mother of three amazing daughters and lives in Chevy Chase, MD.

Career/Academic Interests: Nutrition, Chronic Disease, the Microbiome, Health Policy

Hobbies: Cooking, exercising, exploring the outdoors, and spending time with her three daughters

Crystal Jones

Crystal Jones (she/her) is a recent graduate of Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. She will be starting the MS in Biomedical Science and Policy program in the Fall of 2022.

Career/Academic Interests: She wants to be able to bridge the gap between science, technology, policy, and government and disadvantaged groups by accurately understanding scientific methods while being able to adequately explain it to the non-scientific community.

Hobbies: play basketball and binge watch shows (preferably dramas)

Julia Leas

Originally from Northern Virginia, Julia (she/her) graduated from Georgetown University in December 2022, earning a BA in Psychology with a minor in Public Health. During her undergraduate studies, Julia found an interest in looking at the intersection between science and public health, learning how to effectively translate evidence-based research into understandable and effective public policy. She had the opportunity to intern with Oath Care, a maternal mental health care startup. There, she researched and produced articles about the portfolios of population health framework and the effects of exercise on maternal and child health for Oath. Around campus, she served as captain of Georgetown’s Division I Women’s Soccer team. Julia hopes her continued time at Georgetown in the BSPA will help her gain expertise in scientific policy development to guide her entrance into the public health sector. 

Career/Academic Interests: Public Health, Global Health, Psychology, Mental Health, Science Policy, Emerging Infectious Diseases, Bioterrorism 

Hobbies: playing soccer, weightlifting, running, yoga, & cooking 

Emma Martinez

Originally from Denver, Colorado, Emma (she/her) graduated from Rockhurst University where she obtained a B.S. in molecular biology and a B.A. in philosophy. During her undergraduate years, she was involved in parasitic and viral research and eventually facilitated focus groups about lived experiences with COVID-19. After undergrad, she served with the Jesuit Volunteer Corp, working with refugee patients at a community health center. During this time, Emma developed a passion for improving health literacy and hopes to learn more about addressing social determinants of health through global and local public health policy.

Career/Academic Interests: International Health, Migrant and Refugee Healthcare, Primary Care, Global and Tropical Medicine, Public Health and Policy

Hobbies: skiing, running, hiking, leisure walks, reading, traveling