Meet the Team Driving State-Wide Change
Learn more about our dynamic group of researchers and cross-sector collaborators transforming Pennsylvania’s sexual and reproductive health landscape.
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Our PA Catalyst team, led by CONVERGE at the University of Pittsburgh, is a multidisciplinary community of researchers united by a shared vision of sexual and reproductive health equity. We bring together diverse expertise in health services, policy and law, public health, pharmacy practice, and the social sciences to drive comprehensive and sustainable change in Pennsylvania and beyond.
Sonya Borrero, MD, MPH
Principal Investigator
Marian Jarlenski, PhD, MPH
Principal Investigator
Dana Loll, PhD, MHS
Program Director
Selena Anjur-Dietrich, PhD
Research Scientist
Lucas A. Berenbrok, PharmD, MS, FAPhA
Co-Investigator
Mehret Birru Talabi, M.D., Ph.D.
Co-Investigator
Lotte Brewer, MPH
Communications Coordinator
Sarah Burns, MSW, LSW
Research Coordinator
Kar-Hai Chu, PhD
Co-Investigator
Kirsten Crowhurst, MPH
Stakeholder Engagement Coordinator
Doris Dick, MSW
Business Manager
Haley Director, MPH
Doctoral Student Researcher
Greer Donley, JD
Co-Investigator
Kelsey Hake, PharmD
Pharmacy Liason
Carrie Haney, MSPH
Data Analyst
Kristen Kamp, MPH
Doctoral Student Researcher
Kate Kelsey, MPH
Research Coordinator
Tamar Krishnamurti, PhD
Co-Investigator
Christine Larkin
Research Coordinator
Nicole Luche, MD MS
Fellow
Emma Mairson, MPH
Data Analyst
Rebecca Meiksin, PhD, MPH
Co-Investigator
Lucrecia Mena-Meléndez,
MA, PhD
Co-Investigator
Elizabeth Mosley, PhD MPH
Co-Investigator
Cristina Murray-Krezan, PhD
Biostatistician
Deirdre Quinn, PhD, MSc, MLitt
Co-Investigator
Samantha Rodriguez, MS
Data Analyst
Sonia Rupcic, PhD, MPH, MIA
Post-Doctoral Researcher
Jaime Sidani PhD, MPH, CHES
Co-Investigator
Kenneth J Smith, MD, MS, FACP Consultant
Riley Steiner, PhD, MPH
Co-Investigator
Holly Thomas, MD, MS
Co-Investigator
Student Collaborators :
Hadeel Abdalmageed
Allison Barham
Devin Douglass
Divya Katti
Katie Ferriby
Stacey Johnson
Erin Lamirande
Siddhi Shockey
Building Our Network
Working collaboratively with key stakeholders is core to CONVERGE’s approach. In 2015, we launched the Reproductive Bridges Coalition to advance contraceptive access in Western Pennsylvania. In 2022, following the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court decision, we convened a statewide group of champions across Pennsylvania’s sexual and reproductive health ecosystem to coordinate our immediate responses and align our long-term strategies.
Drawing on those coalitions, we have established the PA Catalyst network to inform our work and maximize the impact of our findings. The network now includes over 40 organizations and 80 individuals, including policymakers, advocates, service providers and others. These partnerships play an integral role in ensuring our collective work remains timely, equity-centered, and grounded in real-world contexts.
