Mentored Career Development Program Awards

Arash Babaei, MD
Medical College of Wisconsin

Arash Babaei, MD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Babaei received his medical degree from Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran. He completed his fellowship in Esophageal Motility at the University of California and his fellowship in Gastroenterology at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Babaei’s overall career goal is to be an investigator in the field of neurogastroeneterology and motility through developing a cutting edge research program that is independently funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and other extramural funding agencies.

Jonathan Bock, MD
Medical College of Wisconsin

Jonathan Bock, MD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Bock earned his undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology from Yale University and received his medical degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin. His career includes being a Clinical Instructor and Fellow in Laryngology and Care of the Professional Voice at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN after his residency in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Dr. Bock has significant expertise in molecular oncology, and has several publications and three patents using similar assays to study head and neck cancers.

John Densmore, MD
Medical College of Wisconsin

John Densmore, MD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery – Division of Pediatric Surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Densmore earned his undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Carleton College and received his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of Medicine. He completed his fellowship in Pediatric Surgery at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin following his residency in General Surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Densmore has a longstanding interest in medical basic science that began while developing an endoscopic laser system for surveillance of Barrett’s esophagus prior to medical school.

Allison Hyngstrom, PhD
Marquette University

Allison Hyngstrom, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Marquette University.

Dr. Hyngstrom earned her undergraduate degrees from Augustana College in Rock Island, IL and Washing University in St. Louis, MO. She received her PhD in Neuroscience from Northwestern University and her Post Doctoral Training in Biomedical Engineering at Marquette University.

Dr. Hyngstrom has specialized knowledge in the effects of neuromodulators and motor systems. Her primary research interest is neuromuscular fatigue post stroke.

Mahsa Ranji, PhD
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Mahsa Ranji, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Dr. Ranji earned her undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, Iran. She earned her master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Khaje Nasir Toosi University of Technology in Tehran, Iran. She received her PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and her Post Doctoral Training in Bioengineering at Sanford-Burnham Institute for Medical Research in San Diego, CA.

Dr. Ranji’s main research interest is in developing optical instruments of fluorescence spectroscopy and imaging to study metabolic status of tissue in normal and stressed conditions.

Venkatesh Sampath, MD, MRCPCh
Medical College of Wisconsin

Venkatesh Sampath, MD, MRCPCh is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Sampath received his medical degree from Kilpauk Medical College in Chennai, India and his postgraduate degree in Pediatrics from Royal College of Physicians and Child Health in London, UK. He completed his fellowship in Neonatology at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Ohio and residency in Pediatrics at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio.

Dr. Sampath’s long term career goal is to establish an integrated, multidisciplinary research program to investigate the role of gene-environment interactions in the pathogenesis of diseases in newborn infants.