Amanda Cottone, Ed.D
Amanda Cottone joined the CEMB as a STEM Education Specialist to expand the impact of the Research Experience for Teachers (RET) program. Her work at the CEMB has also focused on building partnerships and collaborating with local educators to promote STEM integration in their learning environments and engaging K-12 audiences in hands-on, inquiry-based lab activities in mechanobiology. Broadly, her research interests span K-16 STEM integration, inquiry-based learning, and equity in education. She has researched the affordances of active learning with the goal of promoting equity and inclusion and retaining more introductory-level undergraduate students in STEM. Her more recent work has focused on K-12 students’ development of data literacy and scientific reasoning skills through the use of classroom technologies and engagement in inquiry, real-world data collection, and problem-based learning.
Ariel Parker, Ph.D
Ariel Parker joined the CEMB in 2024 as the Assistant Director of Education and Diversity. She received her PhD from the Program in Cell, Molecular, Developmental Biology, and Biophysics (CMDB) at Johns Hopkins University, where her interdisciplinary research used the Caenorhabditis elegans dauer exit decision to study how environmental dynamics affect decision-making at the single-neuron level. After her PhD, she spent two years as a public high school teacher in the School District of Philadelphia. In addition, she has experience in program management, teacher development, and event planning. In the CEMB, she continues her work and deep interest in science outreach and increasing recruitment & retention of underrepresented scientists.
Dasha Peppard, M.S. Ed
Director of Education, National Research Traineeship for Soft Materials, Autonomous Experimentation, and Science Policy
Program Coordinator, Center for MechanoBiology
Dasha received her B.A. in Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience from the University of Michigan and M.S.Ed in Higher Education at the University of Pennsylvania. Dasha’s experience includes advising, project management, employer relations, and program evaluation. Dasha led the Center for Student Professional Development in Temple’s College of Science and Technology and worked as a Career Development Specialist in Penn’s Graduate School of Education. In the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, Dasha coached teams of student consultants immersed in organizations such as General Motors and Michigan Medicine. As a College Advisor with the University of Michigan’s Center for Educational Outreach, Dasha advised high school seniors throughout the college admissions process.
Huyen (Gwen) Nguyen
Huyen (Gwen) brings with her a wealth of experience in center management and program coordination. As Administrative Coordinator for the Washington University in St. Louis’ Cardiac Bioelectricity & Arrhythmia Center (CBAC), Gwen supports a research network of nearly 40 center PIs and affiliates, with 25 alumni faculty. Her work supports cross-disciplinary education and research for trainees across the engineering, medical and clinical sciences. She has a long track record of facilitating research exchange through a myriad of research symposia and seminars. Gwen also brings communications strength to the team through her background in website management, brochure design, and newsletter production. In addition, Gwen has served on WashU’s Danforth Staff Council and the school of engineering’s Staff Council, two platforms that enhance communication between staff and upper university leadership. Her professional preparation for working with CEMB doesn’t stop there: she also has a B.S. in Botany.
Annie Jeong, PhD
Annie Jeong began as the Managing Director of the CEMB in summer 2022. She joined the CEMB in 2019 as the Assistant Director of Education and Diversity. Annie received her PhD from Duke University’s Program in Genetics and Genomics. At Duke, she gained expertise in plant evolutionary genetics, studying the genetic and molecular mechanisms of adaptation to harsh, copper-contaminated environments in the ecological model system, Mimulus guttatus (yellow monkeyflower). Prior to joining the CEMB, Annie worked with biomedical PhD students and postdocs as the Assistant Director of Career Education in the Professional Development and Career Office at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
James McGonigle
Jim McGonigle is Managing Director of the Center for Engineering MechanoBiology.
Patricia Widder
Patricia Widder leads Washington University’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program, an important component of CEMB’s diversity, education, and recruitment efforts. In addition to her role for CEMB, Ms. Widder is the primary instructor in the undergraduate teaching labs in the Washington University Biomedical Engineering Department, and is Curriculum Director for the Master of Engineering in Biomedical Innovation degree program.
Ms. Widder teaches and develops lab courses in biomechanics, quantitative physiology, and thermodynamics, and provides prototyping support for the capstone biomedical engineering design classes. She also provides 3D printing support to the departmental research labs.
In the M.Eng-Biomedical Innovation program, Ms. Widder teaches the Engineering Skills and Biomedical Product Development course sequences. These courses cover prototyping, design, and development skills, and also cover intellectual property safeguards and similar topics.
Ms. Widder has worked to enhance the first-year engineering student experience, developing laboratory skill and career guidance content for introductory engineering courses. She serves as an Inclusive Teaching and Learning Fellow, an initiative working towards helping students from diverse backgrounds integrate effectively into university life.
Ms. Widder has received the Emerson Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2016, and has received the Department Chair’s Award for Outstanding Teaching several times. Prior to joining Washington University in St. Louis in 2011, she worked as an Instrumentation and Controls Engineer for Monsanto in Cincinnati, OH.
Faculty from a diverse array of institutions and scientific backgrounds, all contributing to research in mechanobiology.
Staff support research, education, and diversity missions at the University of Pennsylvania and Washington University in St. Louis.
Postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduates who have found success in many fields, including academia and industry.
