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Meet Our Team

NUIN Direcr

Gregory Schwartz, PhD
NUIN Director

Greg Schwartz, Derrick T. Vail Professor of Ophthalmology, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, Neuroscience, and Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, serves as the NUIN Director. He previously served as the NUIN Associate Director (Chicago campus), Chair of the Admissions Committee, Director/Co-Director of 3 NUIN courses, and as a member of the NUIN Advisory Board. Greg has graduated four NUIN students and currently mentors four others. Greg’s research program focuses on circuits in the retina and the early visual system in mice.

Contact Me:
  • 312-503-7503
  • Chicago: Tarry 5-733
Assciae Direcr, Evansn Camps

Daniel Dombeck, PhD
Associate Director, Evanston Campus

Dan Dombeck, Professor in Neurobiology, Neurology, and Neuroscience, serves as the Associate Director in Evanston. He previously served as the co-Chair of the Systems and Cognitive Neuroscience Concentration Area and Qualifying Exam Committee. Dan has graduated two NUIN students and currently mentors two others. Dan's lab studies mammalian spatial navigation and spatial memory.

Contact Me:
  • 847-467-0475
  • Evanston: Pancoe 2-409
Assciae Direcr, Chicag Camps

Talia Lerner, PhD
Associate Director, Chicago Campus

Talia Lerner, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, serves as the Associate Director, Chicago Campus. She previously served as an early years student advisor, director of the Cellular Neurophysiology module of the NUIN Fundamentals of Neuroscience core class, and member of the admissions and curriculum committees. She has graduated two NUIN students, and currently mentors three others. Talia’s lab studies the neural circuit basis of motivation, reward learning and decision-making. 

Contact Me:
  • 312-503-5596
  • Ward Building, 5-120
Assciae Direcr

Jena Pitman-Leung, PhD
Associate Director

Jena Pitman-Leung is a NUIN Alum (2007 graduate) who worked as a Drosophila neurobiologist, sleep and career development consultant, and academic administrator at Brandeis University before coming to NU. Please refer to Jena for:

  • Program activities and budget
  • Advising: Rotations and laboratory questions/concerns
  • Student groups
  • TGS and NUIN policies, NUIN Handbook 
  • NUIN Curriculum 
  • TA assignments 
  • If you’re not sure who to ask

Zoom Office hours are Monday, 3:00-4:00pm

Contact Me:
  • Evanston: 847-467-4246
    Chicago: 312-503-4308
  • Evanston: Hogan 2-171
    Chicago: Ward 1-330
Assisan Direcr, NUIN Spnsred Prgrams

Stephanie Pociask, PhD
Assistant Director, NUIN Sponsored Programs

Stephanie Pociask is a NUIN Alum (2017 graduate) who has studied prion folding in neurodegeneration, and has worked in student career development and support, including as Assistant Director of the NIH supported CLIMB program at NU. Please refer to Stephanie for:

  • NUIN Administered T32 information, applications, appointments, etc.
  • NU PREP Scholar Inquiries
  • NRSA application assistance
  • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives and Efforts

Zoom office hours are Thursday 1:00-2:00pm

Contact Me:
  • (312) 503-1873
  • Chicago: Morton 1-645
    EV: Hogan 2-095
Senir Prgram Crdinar

Melissa Moore, BS
Senior Program Coordinator

Melissa received her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management from Universidad Autónoma del Caribe in Colombia. She joined NUIN in November of 2021 and has since been developing her project management skills, earning a certificate in Essentials of Project Management from Northwestern.

Please refer to Melissa for:

  • Classes and registration
  • Rotation requirements
  • Milestone and related paperwork including committee meetings, seminar requirement, graduation planning etc
  • GSTS data entry 
  • Student funding inquiries

Zoom office hours: TBD

Contact Me:
  • 312-503-2742
  • Chicago: Morton 1-645
    EV: Hogan 2-095

Ethan Matthews, BS
Financial Coordinator

The Financial Coordinator manages:

  • Budget and expense tracking (NUIN, NUIN administered T32, PREP)
  • Reimbursements, invoices, and contracts
  • Awards, including thesis proposal awards, travel awards, NTF 
  • Charges on student accounts

Zoom office hours: TBD

Contact Me:
  • 847-491-5033
  • EV: Hogan 2-171
    Chicago: Morton 1-645

TBD
Program Assistant

Please refer to the Program Assistant for:

  • Room/Zoom booking, including classrooms
  • Website questions
  • Listservs
  • NUIN@
  • General inquiries
Contact Me:
  • 312-503-4300
  • Chicago: Morton 1-645
    EV: Hogan 2-171

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