My name is Srihan Balaji, and I am a sophomore at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Virginia. My research interests include neuroscience, genetics, and epidemiology. I enjoy playing basketball and coding in my free time. I joined the CRoME Lab Youth Advisory Board in order to partake in the progression of biomedical research regarding pharmacology. My favorite area of focus in the CRoME Lab is sleep health. In the future, I aspire to become a neurosurgeon physician-scientist.

Hi! My name is Mridula Geddam, and I am a junior at New Berlin Eisenhower Middle/High School. I am interested in data science and epidemiology. I have a passion for filmmaking, singing, and dancing. I am excited to be part of the YAB because I want to learn more about public health and healthcare. Additionally, I am looking forward to work with my peers to help make a difference in the lives of others.

My name is Ella Lim and I am entering my freshmen year at Blue Valley High School in Overland Park, KS. My broad research interests include physical and mental health and how social media would influence health and cultural/social diversity. I enjoy playing the violin and piano, dancing, baking, and spending time with my dog. I joined the CRoME Lab Youth Advisory Board to enhance my understanding of the research process and learn more about social media and health related topics. I am excited about my first year with CRoME and am eager to learn and grow from this immense experience.

My name is Kavni Maniar, and I am a sophomore at Hebron High School in Texas. I enjoy playing tennis and singing Hindustani classical music. My favorite subject in school is biology. I am interested in learning more about how the use of technology impacts medicine and research. I’m thrilled to be a part of the YAB this year, and am looking forward to see where it takes me.

Hi everyone! My name is Emma Pourshah and I go by she/her pronouns. Currently, I am a sophomore attending Flower Mound High School in Dallas, Texas. In my free time, I enjoy playing lacrosse, traveling (obviously not now :( ), or hanging out with friends. I am super excited to be a part of the Youth Advisory Board this year. From a young age, I have had a profound interest in math and science, particularly, biology. My 7th grade biology teacher is one of the biggest advocates for my love for science, and I plan to go into the medical field after graduating high school.

My name is Lexi Stern, and I attend Sage Hill High School in California. I’m passionate about helping people live healthy & nutritious lives. I grew up as a competitive gymnast and switched to dance when I grew too tall to compete in gymnastics. In ninth grade, I was diagnosed with GI issues which meant experimenting with different diets. This motivated me to create my own bakery, Double Batch Kitchen, which makes healthy treats that are free of refined sugar, gluten, and dairy. At Double Batch Kitchen, we’re proving that eating healthy can mean eating delicious! I’m excited to be part of the YAB to promote health and wellness.

My name is Soleil St. Laurent, and I am currently a sophomore at Flower Mound High School in Texas. I am currently a cheerleader, and I love cheering at late night football games! I am also very interested to see how education and creative technology can further impact youth and family health literacy. I became interested in the YAB for CRoME lab because I wanted to take part in medical research to spread the word on medication safety and promote health in families! From my experience in the YAB I look forward to gaining new research skills and working as a team to leave a footprint some day in someone’s life and the medical field. And I believe doctors should be researchers, so I plan to carry the research skills I gain into med school and eventually pediatric neurology!

My name is Edward Wang. I am entering 9th grade in the northern area of New Jersey. A large portion of my middle school experiences were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and my interests have sprung to learn more about a person’s well-being mentally and physically. When I grow up, I hope to go into the fields of healthcare or medicine. Those jobs have definitely appealed to me such as being a physician or pediatrician. I am very close to my grandmother who came from China. She suffers from some chronic health issues which were partially due to poor healthcare earlier in her life. I feel people could live better if the public health system is well established and is accessible to the public. I am very excited to become part of YAB and hope to learn more knowledge and experiences from the CRoME lab. I think it is extremely important to spread the words of medication safety and enhance the public’s health awareness. I look forward to working with the CRoME team.

Hi my name is Austin Koff, and I am a rising senior at Hopkins School in New Haven, Connecticut. During my junior year, I participated in a lab-based class that provided an opportunity to learn bench research techniques, analyze scientific papers, and to work in a lab at Yale University during the summer between my junior and senior years. Because of these opportunities, I have developed a passion to pursue a scientific career. Outside of school, I play soccer and tennis. I am excited to be part of the CRoME Youth Advisory Board to learn more about clinical research and how medicines are evaluated for safety. I look forward to working with the YAB and all its members.

Hi, my name is Alyssa Rosanes and I am a junior at Verona Area High School in Wisconsin! My favorite things to do are play volleyball, travel, visit the lakes and hang out with friends. In school, I love chemistry, biology and math. In the future, I hope to be a nurse or pharmacist. I'm excited to join YAB because I want to be more involved in collaborative medical research.

My name is Jasmine Hasan (she/her pronouns) and I am currently a sophomore attending Mission Hills High School. Through a college psychology course and my current AP Bio class, I've been granted the opportunity to declare my passion in biology and psychology. Through podcasts, tutoring students, writing articles, conducting surveys, etc., I have gained a great deal of information and I hope to learn more each day I have the opportunity to. I additionally enjoy the art of painting, watching television, and working with organizations in the realm of social justice. I am beyond excited to engage with the CRoME Lab as a new member of the Youth Advisory Board!

Hi! My name is Maddie Andres, and I am currently a junior at the Verona Area High School in Wisconsin. My favorite things to do are play lacrosse, travel, and spend time with my friends and family. Math, science, and psychology are my favorite subjects in school, and, in the future, I hope to do something career wise related to those. I am excited to join the YAB to learn more about researching, while collaborating with others that have some of the same interests.

My name is Melissa Hill, and I am a sophomore at Edward S. Marcus High School in Texas. I’m mainly interested in neuroscience, however I have also taken a liking to biology. I enjoy going to Karate because I have many friends and am a first-degree black belt. I joined CRoME Lab YAB because I wanted to gain more medical and data gaining experiences. In the future, I would like to become a neurosurgeon.

My name is Maya Keeling, my pronouns are she/her, and I am now a junior at Rogers High School. In my free time I love to paint, and am currently staring a film club at my school. I also love to travel, and spend time with my little sister. My sophomore year I was lucky enough to be a part of scholars and storytellers at UCLA, which got me introduced on how technology effects youth. My research interests mainly include mental health. After high school I am hoping to go to UCLA studying psychiatry. I am looking forward to joining the YAB to learn more about collaborative research in the medical field.

My name is Arya Panda. I am a rising junior at Jesuit College Preparatory of Dallas. My research interests include pharmacology and neuroscience. I am excited to be part of the CRoME Lab and have the chance to have actual research experience. My hobbies include cooking, making music and playing basketball. My passion for math and science brought me to CRoME lab, and I look forward to researching pharmacology and neuroscience.