Get to Know your PhD Program Managers
by Lourdes Estrada (MSTP LT)
As you move from medical school (after M2) to graduate school (G1), getting to know your support options in your individual PhD programs will help ensure that your transition is a smooth one. Of course, the MSTP Leadership are always available to assist, as well. In this piece, we introduce you to our fantastic Program Managers that are here to help you through your PhD training. They will be a great resource and you you successfully complete your dissertation work, after which you will return to medical school and officially soon become a DoubleDoc!
Roz Johnson
Share a fun fact about yourself: Love Chocolate and Italian Food.
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Human Genetics and Neuroscience
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Responsible for the day-to-day management and operations of the human genetics and neuroscience graduate programs.
- First point of contact for students with questions regarding course and curriculum issues.
- Play a major role in the planning and execution of all program-related activities.
Contact information (email, phone): roz.johnson@vanderbilt.edu; 615-936-2610
Office Location (Building and Room): D2220 MCN
Melissa Krasnove
Share a fun fact about yourself: I have two children who are 10 and 6. They are way more interesting than I am and all of my current hobbies involve what they enjoy.
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Epidemiology
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Course Registration
- Completion of Graduate School required forms
- Assistance with student account and stipend payments
- Scheduling of rooms
- General advice about life at Vanderbilt as a graduate student
- I’m new to the position, so I’m still discovering these roles.
Contact information (email, phone): melissa.krasnove@vanderbilt.edu; 615-875-2915
Office Location (Building and Room): 2525 West End Building, Room 621
Karen Gieg
Share a fun fact about yourself: I enjoy traveling as often as possible (and tasting local food and beverages). My last big trip was just a couple of months ago to the Netherlands and Belgium.
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Molecular Physiology & Biophysics (MP&B) and Pharmacology
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Course Registrations and Materials
- Qualifying Exams and Preparation Scheduling
- Committee Appointments and Meetings
- Dissertation Defenses
- Retreat, Journal Club, and Works In Progress Presentations Scheduling
- Letters Verifying Student Status
- Any Other Program Requirements
Contact information (email, phone): karen.gieg@vanderbilt.edu; 615-322-1182
Office Location (Building and Room): 402 PRB
Patty Mueller
Share a fun fact about yourself: I am a fiber artist and quilter.
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Chemical and Physical Biology and Biochemistry
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Processing term registrations
- Booking rooms for QE, CM, and Defense
- Sending and tracking required paperwork for program and Graduate School
- Creating flyers for defense and sharing with department
- Working with the Graduate School on student’s behalf
- Helping to book travel to conferences and workshops
Contact information (email, phone): patricia.l.mueller@vanderbilt.edu
Office Location (Building and Room): 673 E Light Hall
Kristi, Hargrove
Share a fun fact about yourself: I love listening to crime podcasts.
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Cell and Developmental Biology, Molecular Pathology and Immunology
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Course registration
- Qualifying exams (QE), Mock QE
- Committee meetings
- PhD defense
- Monday Seminar Lunches
- Graduate School travel form submission
- Reserve rooms for meetings
- Graduate Student Association
Contact information (email, phone): Kristi.l.Hargrove@Vanderbilt.edu; 615-322-2294
Office Location (Building and Room): MCN B-2317
Lorie Franklin
Share a fun fact about yourself: I’ve been at Vanderbilt 25 years, beginning long ago as a Research Assistant doing image analysis and confocal microscopy (six years) and currently as a Program Manager (19 years). I’m married with two sons; my older son is a former Vanderbilt baseball player and part of the 2019 National Championship team (he’s now a pitcher in the Kansas City Royals organization), and my younger son runs track and cross country at Ole Miss. My husband, a high school principal, and I are filling our “empty nest” with our rescue dogs Max, a chihuahua, and Frank, a dachshund.
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Cancer Biology and Microbe-Host Interactions (MHI)
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Manage all academic administrative activities,
- Serve as the students’ first point of contact within the program
- Work closely with the DGS to provide support for all academic endeavors, including registration, qualifying exams (scheduling, results forms), committee meeting tracking and evaluations, and defense and graduation preparation.
Contact information (email, phone): lorie.franklin@vanderbilt.edu; 615-322-8324
Office Location (Building and Room): MCN D2220
Peter Nordberg
Share a fun fact about yourself: I’m original from Sweden but I have lived in the US for 19 years! I love soccer and meatballs of course!
Which Ph.D. Programs you manage? Biomedical Engineering
Which tasks do you help students with during their Ph.D. training?
- Oracle questions
- Student pay and timecards
- Student Accounts questions
- Assist with course registration questions and issues
- Add advisors to YES
- Forms for Qualifying exams and PhD defenses
Contact information (email, phone): lars.peter.w.nordberg@vanderbilt.edu; 615-343-0586
Office Location (Building and Room): Stevenson Center, 8th floor, suite 5824, Room 5824C