Postdoctoral Fellowship: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Rice University
Pre-doctoral Psychology Intern (Resident): University of Mississippi Medical Center/G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery Veteran Affairs Medical Center
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology: Louisiana State University
M.S. Applied Clinical Psychology: University of South Carolina Aiken
B.S. Psychology: Louisiana State University
Karen Obremski Brandon, Ph.D., is a Research Scientist III at the Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. She currently contributes to projects on self-help for smoking cessation, health disparities in smoking cessation treatments, and interventions to decrease stress in caregivers of cancer patients.
Dr. Horta is a Research Scientist in the Department of Health Outcomes and Behavior. She completed her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience and a NIDA T32 postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Florida. She is currently involved in research that implements mHealth interventions for smoking cessation and mindfulness-based stress reduction to mitigate cancer-risk behaviors.
Dr. Poudel is an Applied Research Scientist in the Department of Health Outcomes and Behavior. She completed her PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience from Florida International University. Her primary research interest focuses on tailoring mindfulness and mHealth interventions for the treatment and prevention of cancer. She is currently involved in projects examining the efficacy of mindfulness in managing stress among cancer caregivers and the utility of mHealth to aid smoking cessation.
Skye is a Research Manager at Moffitt Cancer Center’s Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. She graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor’s of Health Science and a Master’s in Public Health for Epidemiology. Her research interests include cancer epidemiology and disparities, as well as data science and health technology.
Helen is a Research Manager at Moffitt Cancer Center’s Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. She graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Natural Science Biology and a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology. Her research interests include digital health interventions, community-engaged research, health equity, and mobile application development.
Sierra is a Research Coordinator IV at Moffitt Cancer Center’s Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. She graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Social Work and the University of South Florida with a Master’s in Public Health. Her research interest includes behavioral and communication interventions for equitable health outcomes.
Jeannette is a research coordinator II at the Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. She holds a B.A. in Psychology with a pre-medical focus from the University of South Florida and has experience in clinical healthcare with a background in patient care. Her research interests include behavioral health, smoking cessation, and psychological and social factors that influence health outcomes.
Aarya Satardekar is a research intern at Dr. Vinci’s lab at Moffitt Cancer Center’s Tobacco Research and Intervention program. She is currently a third year undergraduate student at the University of South Florida, majoring in Public Health. Aarya plans to pursue a PhD in public health in the future.
Luke Davis is a Research Intern in Dr. Vinci's lab at Moffitt Cancer Center's Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. He graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Public Health. He is currently a second-year graduate student at the University of South Florida pursuing a M.P.H in Epidemiology, with the goal of being involved in cancer-related studies.
Rustin Safa is a Research Intern in Dr. Vinci's lab at Moffitt Cancer Center's Tobacco Research and Intervention Program. He is a senior undergraduate student at USF majoring in Biology with Medical concentration and minoring in Public Health. His goal is to go to medical school and become a physician.