Virginia Tech Postdoctoral Association Leadership
Giuseppe Cotardo
President
Department of Mathematics,
College of Science
gcotardo@vt.edu
Giuseppe is a postdoctoral associate in the Applied Algebra Research Group. He received his bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of Turin (Italy) and master's in mathematics from the University of Trento (Italy). He obtained his Ph.D. in mathematics from University College Dublin (Ireland).
Giuseppe's research interest is in algebraic coding theory, which is the mathematics behind reliable communication, with applications in communication networks, distributed storage, secret sharing, and post-quantum cryptography. He uses techniques from algebra, geometry, and combinatorics to investigate structure and properties of error correcting codes.
Paul Sands
Secretary
Fralin Biomedical Research Institute
psands@vt.edu
Paul is an assistant research professor in the Computational Psychiatry Unit at Fralin Biomedical Research Institute in Roanoke. He completed a bachelor's of science degree in Biochemistry at Sewanee: The University of the South in Tennessee before pursuing a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Wake Forest University in North Carolina. Paul's current research involves developing new human brain imaging technologies and deploying these tools to study human learning, decision-making, and social interactions through the lens of systems neuroscience.
Outside research, Paul's interests include paddle boarding and playing tennis, American literature, art house/indie films, and spending time with friends and pets.
Bo Wang
International Support Chair
Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology,
Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine
bowang@vt.edu
Bo obtained his bachelor's and master's degrees in China and his Ph.D. in Germany. His research interests are understanding the molecular mechanisms of virus-host interactions and molecular epidemiology of emerging and re-emerging zoonotic viruses. Currently, his research focuses on the zoonotic transmission, evolution, and pathogenesis of hepatitis E virus using homologous animal models.
Kelly Wright
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chair
Department of English,
College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences
kellywright@vt.edu
Kelly Elizabeth Wright (She/Her/Dr) is an experimental sociolinguist, lexicographer, and scholar-activist working for linguistic justice outside the academy, and interdisciplinarity inside the academy. An Afrolachian raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, she identifies as a working-class Black Biracial cis Queer woman.
Wright conducts policy-driven research which combats direct linguistic barriers to access and more covert constraints on individuals' realization of their self-expression. For example, her research demonstrates that Black professionals are monitored by the public and colleagues for Standardized language use and that non-Standard speakers experience linguistic profiling in the housing market that prevents them from living where they choose simply because of their phone voice.
Lindsay Miles
Social Events Chair
Department of Entomology,
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
lindsaysm@vt.edu
Lindsay earned her bachelor's degree at Arizona State University and her Ph.D. at Virginia Commonwealth University. She completed her first postdoc at the University of Toronto Mississauga. Her research focuses on how urbanization (i.e., building cities) can influence evolution in arthropods.
At Virginia Tech her research is aimed at understanding how differences in neighborhood socio-economics can influence bed bug evolution, particularly their resistance to pesticides. At each university Lindsay has been involved in their student and postdoc associations working to make improvements in the environment for future students and postdocs.
Petar Mlinarić
Communications Chair
Department of Mathematics,
College of Science
mlinaric@vt.edu
Petar is a postdoctoral researcher in applied mathematics with a focus on numerical linear algebra, scientific computing, control theory, and specifically on reduced-order modelling and mathematical software.
Originally from Croatia, he attended the University of Zagreb for his bachelor's degree in mathematics and master's degree in applied mathematics. He obtained his Ph.D. in applied mathematics while working at the Max Planck Institute in Magdeburg, Germany.
Petar served as VTPA secretary in 2022-2023.
Vacant
Career Development Chair
Sina Niazi
Co-President (2022-2023)
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
College of Engineering
Niazi's research focuses on developing efficient computational frameworks to tackle challenging problems in the mechanics of advanced materials and structures under extreme events. He joined the Postdoctoral Association to identify and implement resources and initiatives for the Virginia Tech postdoctoral community.
Megan Vogt
Co-President (2022-2023)
Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology,
Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine
Vogt has been a postdoctoral researcher in Virginia Tech’s Duggal Lab since 2019. Her research focuses include arbovirus transmission and pathogenesis. She joined the Virginia Tech Postdoctoral Association to help build a community for new and current postdocs at the university.
Nico Naus
International Support Chair (2022-2023)
Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
College of Engineering
Naus' research focuses include binary analysis and formal methods. He joined the Virginia Tech Postdoctoral Association to support international postdocs, both on an individual and an institutional level. He completed his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from Utrecht University, Netherlands. As part of an Erasums exchange, he wrote his master thesis at Freiburg University, Germany. Afterwards, he worked at Open University, Netherlands, on formal verification of low level languages.
He is now an Assistant Professor at Open University of the Netherlands.
Karthikeyan Chandrasegaran
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chair (2022-2023)
Department of Biochemistry,
College of Agricultural and LIfe Sciences
Chandrasegaran's research focuses include ecology and neurophysiology of mosquito-host interactions.
He is now an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Riverside.
Mars Mason
Social Events Chair (2022-2023)
Department of Chemistry,
College of Science
Mason conducts research within the Molecular Sciences Software Institute to expand the functionality of the QCArchive project towards integration of quantum mechnical modeling and AI/ML features, particularly with respect to biomolecular modeling.
Alexandra Cumbie
Communications Chair (2022)
Cumbie was a postdoctoral researcher in Virginia Tech’s Eastwood Disease Ecology Lab. Research focuses include vector-borne disease ecology in hard-bodied ticks and arbovirology.
She is now a Biology Instructor at ECPI Newport News.
Johnny C. Woods, Jr.
Career Development Chair (2022)
Woods was a postdoctoral researcher on the social science research team of the Florida Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate. His research focus includes issues around the recruitment, retention, and promotion of Women of Color STEM faculty; addressing educational inequities in higher education, and international higher education.