31 Oct ITHS All-Hands Meeting & DEIA Conference
850 Republican Street
Seattle
WA 98109
The 2024 ITHS all-hands meeting and conference promises to be a productive conversation about the future, including a dynamic blend of leadership talks and thought-provoking discussions on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA). We have curated an inspiring lineup of speakers who are leaders in their fields, each bringing a unique perspective and expertise to the table. This all-day event serves as a testament to our institute’s unwavering dedication to fostering an environment where every voice is heard, and where diversity, equity, and accessibility are not just values, but lived principles.
Seating is limited, and we highly encourage everyone who can attend in person to do so. A hybrid option will also be available and a Zoom link will be distributed later.
Agenda
Download the full agenda here.
The event will be divided into two sessions.
- Session 1 (9am–1pm), the All-Hands Meeting, will be for ITHS staff and faculty only, and will include leadership speeches from both Nora Disis and John Amory.
- Session 2 (1pm–5pm), the DEIA Conference, will be open to a broader audience across our partner networks, and will be focused specifically on DEIA as it pertains to clinical research best practices.
Lunch will be available at 12:15 for all attendees.
Register now
About the Speakers
Joyce (Joy) Balls-Berry, PhD, is an associate professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine and core leader for the newly established Health Disparities and Equity Core in the Knight ADRC (Center Director John Morris, MD). Prior to joining Washington University School of Medicine, Balls-Berry was an assistant professor of epidemiology and senior associate consultant at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. She completed her formal education at Xavier University of Louisiana with graduate training at Washington University School of Medicine and The University of Toledo. Balls-Berry completed a post-doctoral research fellowship in health equity, epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Florida.
Her work as a scientist centers on increasing awareness of the importance of community-patient engagement in research to increase health equity in minority and under-resourced communities. Recently, she completed a PCORI project to expand the efforts of the Minority Women in Research Network, which she established in 2011. The network’s mission is to promote community-patient engagement in research conducted by minority women scientists interested in research collaborations, academic scholarship, innovation and dissemination.
Felicity T. Enders, PhD, is a professor of biostatistics at Mayo Clinic. As a highly successful collaborative biostatistician, she has more than 150 publications with an H index of over 40. Dr. Enders has partnered with researchers in clinical areas across the translational science spectrum; most recently this has included women’s health and psychology.
Dr. Enders’ personal research focuses on educating researchers. For about 15 years, this took the form of statistics education. Leveraging her award-winning expertise, Dr. Enders developed a national statistics education research team within the Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Research Design special interest group of the Association for Clinical and Translational Science. Her research interests have evolved to include hidden curriculum for research, a topic that impacts all trainees and junior faculty. Hidden curriculum provides a novel lens through which to understand and overcome barriers for researchers with diverse backgrounds.
Mary L. “Nora” Disis, MD, serves as the ITHS Principal Investigator, as well as being the Associate Dean for Translational Health Sciences at the University of Washington School of Medicine, Professor of Medicine and Adjunct Professor of Pathology and Obstetrics and Gynecology at UW, and a Member of the Fred Hutch. She is also Director of the UW Medicine Cancer Vaccine Institute.
Dr. Disis is an expert in breast and ovarian cancer immunology. Her research interest is in developing vaccine and cellular therapy for breast and ovarian cancer. She holds several patents in the field of targeted cancer therapy.
Dr. Disis received her Medical Degree from the University of Nebraska Medical School and completed a residency and chief residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Illinois in Chicago. Her fellowship in oncology was completed at the UW and Fred Hutch.
John Amory, MD, MPH, MSc, is the Deputy Director and Assistant Principal Investigator of ITHS. He is also the Faculty Co-Director of the ITHS KL2 Program. Dr. Amory is a Northwest native who received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University and his MD degree from the University of California, San Francisco, where he also completed his residency in Internal Medicine. Additionally, he has earned both a Master’s degree in Public Health and a Master’s degree in Pharmaceutics from the University of Washington. He is currently a Professor of Medicine and Section Head of General Internal Medicine at the University of Washington Medical Center where he works as an attending physician on the inpatient medicine wards and in the General Internal Medicine and Men’s Health Clinics. Dr. Amory has published more than 175 peer-reviewed papers and chapters in the area of male reproductive health. His work focuses on the development of novel male contraceptives and improved treatments for men with infertility and hypogonadism. He lives in Seattle with his wife, Josie, and sons William and Thomas.
