Content Developer and Peer Reviewer

• Jun 2021 - Present

Senior Director, Biosafety (institutional)

• Oct 2020 - Present

As Senior Director, Biosafety Program, I develop and facilitate the implementation of all aspects of the institutional Biosafety Program and provide biosafety oversight across the biomedical research enterprise. I am responsible for developing long-range plans for the institutional biosafety program including development of an annual budget and commitment of financial and non-financial resources. I am a current voting member and former co-chair of the Laboratory Safety Committee, which oversees biological and chemical safety within all clinical and biomedical research laboratories on campus. I am involved in Emergency Management and serve on the Incident Management Teams for the Hospital and Basic Sciences. I provided significant contributions to implementing the Huron Research Suite IACUC (eIACUC) and Safety Committee (safety) software solutions for registration of research involving biological materials. My duties and responsibilities include serving as a liaison between the ISMMS, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and the Mount Sinai Health System, on all aspects of biosafety. For the hospital enterprise, I work collaboratively with Infection Prevention. I work closely with institutional regulatory/compliance committees, including the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC), the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), and the Program for the Protection of Human Subjects (PPHS). I provide technical and regulatory compliance advice to ancillary support areas, i.e., Facilities & Engineering, Security, and Building Services. I supervise a Biological Safety Officer (BSO) and a Training Coordinator. I consult with the BSO and Principal Investigators in the development of Standard Operating Procedures for conducting biomedical research with biological agents. Show less

Director, BSL-3 Biocontainment Facilities

• Apr 2016 - Present

Since April of 2016, I have served as the Facility Director of the Emerging Pathogens Facility, an enhanced BSL-3 biocontainment facility, at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, NY. I also serve as Facility Director of a conventional BSL-3 biocontainment facility, which currently supports studies with the BSL-3 viral pathogen, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). I am responsible for developing long-range plans for the biocontainment facilities including development of an annual operational budget and commitment of financial and non-financial resources. As Facility Director, I am responsible for all operational aspects of the biocontainment facilities, including facility design, commissioning, performance verification, and maintenance. I directly communicate and coordinate with Facilities & Engineering to ensure that the maintenance and verification of the biological cabinets and the facility heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are completed annually. I maintain registration of the facilities with state and federal regulatory agencies, and participate in city, state, and federal regulatory inspections. I am responsible for ensuring that research conducted in the enhanced and conventional BSL-3 biocontainment facilities is compliant with institutional policies, guidelines, and federal regulations. In these regards, I oversee the training program and ensure compliance with the Occupational Health Program. I also monitor compliance of research with protocols approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) and Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC). I supervise a full-time Facility Manager who is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the facilities. Show less

Associate Professor

• Jul 2013 - Present

My research interests focus on investigating host-pathogen interactions involving respiratory viruses, including influenza viruses, coronaviruses, picornaviruses, and paramyxoviruses. I am interested in studying the pathogenesis and transmission of respiratory viruses, and in examining vaccines that provide protection against these respiratory pathogens. I have developed expertise with in vivo models of viral respiratory disease, which I utilize to study viral respiratory pathogens, including molecular biology, pathogenesis, and regulation of innate and adaptive immune responses. I have expertise with conducting and directing biomedical research within biocontainment to study the replication and virulence phenotypes of respiratory viruses of significant public health concern. From 2010 to 2020, I was appointed as a voting member of the IACUC. Show less

Vice Chairman, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)

• May 2017 - Nov 2020

Research Assistant Professor

• Jul 2010 - Jun 2013

My research interests focus on investigating host-pathogen interactions involving respiratory viruses. I am interested in studying the pathogenesis and transmission of respiratory viruses, including influenza viruses and several members of the family of paramyxoviruses. I am also interested in examining vaccines that provide protection against these respiratory pathogens.

Executive Board Member

• Jan 2020 - Dec 2021