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College of Human Medicine

August College News Headlines

August 29, 2025


College News

  • The College of Human Medicine and community partners cut the ribbon on its expanded public health research facility in downtown Flint. Coverage was provided by MLive, WEYI, WJRT, WNEM, Flint Courier, Philanthropy News Digest.

  • “Ending this program doesn’t just cut off funding; it cuts off potential.” Aron Sousa, MD, dean, College of Human Medicine and Doyle Ford, M3, a Detroit campus student, wrote an op-ed in The ‘Gander explaining how Grad PLUS loans work for aspiring doctors and how their loss threatens the future of health care. 

  • The Flushing View reported the Genesee Health Plan honored College of Human Medicine with its Community Partnership Award for groundbreaking efforts in community-driven public health through the Flint campus and Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health.

Student Success

  • The 2025 White Coat and Matriculation Ceremony at DeVos Performance Hall in Grand Rapids welcomed 190 future Spartan MDs to medical school. WOOD and WGVU provided coverage. Watch the livestream.

  • Michael Kubik, a graduate student in the Department of Translational Neuroscience, has been awarded the John A. Penner Endowed Research Assistantship for this academic year. 

  • Lily Anderson-Chavarria, PhD, was recognized as the 2025 Outstanding Medical Student of the Year by the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians as reported by her hometown paper The Carroll County Comet.

Research and Scholarship

  • Natoshia Cunningham, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine, weighed in on this Washington Post op-ed examining scientists who are seeing their research change under new federal policies.

  • Talking to children after tragedy. Crystal Cederna, PsyD, associate professor in the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health, offered advice to parents after the Minneapolis school shooting in this WILX piece.

  • Ariel Cascio, PhD, assistant professor in the Center for Bioethics and Social Justice, was featured on the Renegade Pop Culture podcast where she shared her research on autism and how autistic people are represented in the media.

  • “The most important thing to remember is that you want to pursue it to support your mental health and wellness, it needs to be fun,” said Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, assistant professor and director of the Division of Neuromuscular Medicine, in this Women’s Health article about the brain benefits of learning to play an instrument. Related: AOL.

  • Should a Sharpie be in your makeup bag? "People are using these markers because they don’t smudge and they last a long time,” said Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, in this Well+Good article looking at the new trend.

  • Michigan House Bill 4778 aims to ban mRNA vaccines. Rebecca Schein, MD, assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, reiterates that all vaccines have been extensively tested and are incredibly safe in this WILX piece.

  • Cara Poland, MD, addiction specialist and associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, shared her expertise on the ASAM Practice Pearls podcast. The episode explored the stigma and treatment involved in perinatal substance use care.

  • “One of the major concerns is that kratom—and 7-OH—are a central nervous system depressant,” said Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, in this Women’s Health article examining the unregulated, non-FDA-approved products available in gas stations and smoke shops.

  • Anna Moore, PhD, associate dean for research and development, adds her expertise to reporting by WLNS on the termination of 22 federally-backed mRNA vaccine studies worth nearly $500 million.

  • GLP-1s fighting obesity and now stroke? Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, assistant professor and director of the Division of Neuromuscular Medicine, adds his expertise to this Women’s Health article examining new studies linking Ozempic to the prevention and treatment of stroke. Related: Yahoo.

  • “There’s not a lot of research done on the long-term effects of wildfire smoke, but over time it does decrease their lung function,” said Robert Wahl, DVM, MS, assistant professor in the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health in this WILX piece.

  • Multiple sclerosis can look different for different people explains Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, assistant professor and director of the Division of Neuromuscular Medicine, in this Women’s Health article examining new research on missed signs of MS. Related: Yahoo.

  • Could using a fan during a heat wave be working against you? Lauren Snyder, MD, assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine, talked about how humidity plays a role in this HuffPost article. Related: Yahoo, NewsBreak.

  • Dick Sadler, PhD, MPH, C.S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, shares his expertise in this WWMT piece about why home insurance premiums are rising and how to navigate them.

  • “This supplement has been linked with modest weight loss for some time,” said Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, of turmeric which is the focus of a newly released study reported by Prevention.

  • In continuing coverage of artificial food dyes, Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, added her expertise to the conversation on Michigan Public’s Stateside. 

  • Some memory loss is common and dementia symptoms usually don’t come on all at once, explained Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, assistant professor and director of the Division of Neuromuscular Medicine, in this Women’s Health article about new research regarding dementia diagnosis. Related: Yahoo.

Healthy Communities

  • Supporters of Rx Kids, including  Mona Hanna, MD, associate dean for public health and C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, lawmakers, moms, and others endorsed taking the program statewide at a Senate committee hearing on August 12 as reported by the Detroit Free Press. Related: Lansing State Journal, Yahoo, WWMT.

  • “I see philanthropy as the doula of this program; they are helping birth it. They are helping us prove that this is possible,” said Mona Hanna, MD, associate dean for public health and C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health in this Associated Press article profiling Rx Kids.

  • The Flint Registry received continued funding. $4.8 million will allow the program to maintain long-term records for people exposed to contaminants during the Flint Water Crisis. WEYI, WNEM, WJRT, and WOOD covered the announcement. 

  • “Rx Kids is a prescription for health, hope, and opportunity—and the families of the Eastern Upper Peninsula are proving it,” said Mona Hanna, MD, associate dean for public health and C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health. WPBN/WTOM reported on the success of the cash prescription program six months after going into effect in the Eastern Upper Peninsula.

  • “Every baby deserves a healthy start, and every parent deserves the dignity and support to provide it,” said Mona Hanna, MD, associate dean for public health and C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, as Rx Kids expanded to Clare County. WEYI, WNEM provided coverage. Related: MSN. 

  • Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University highlighted Rx Kids by interviewing Kalamazoo mother Quianna Jenkins about how the program has benefited her family. Related: YouTube.

     

Alumni

  • Mary Marshall, MD (’97), has been named 2025 Michigan Family Physician of the Year by Michigan Academy of Family Physicians as reported in The Burton View.