Research Day

Moderator: Robbye Kinkade, MPH, CHES, DrPh(c)

Professor Kinkade has more than twenty-five years of professional experience in the field of public health. As a public health educator, Ms. Kinkade has trained health and human service professionals on state and national levels through funding from the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), the Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Trainings and educational programs conducted by Professor Kinkade include a variety of health-related issues which include; HIV/AIDS, STDs, domestic violence, cultural competency etc., for health care professionals. Professor Kinkade has also developed and implemented health-related trainings, presentations and workshops for specific populations, including teens, persons living with HIV, faith-based institutions, and community-based organizations.

Debra A. Brown, JD

Ms. Brown has worked in the HIV/AIDS field for the past 25 years in various positions, including education and training for health professionals; supervising HIV/AIDS case management and independent living housing programs; and working for the NYS Department of Health’s AIDS Epidemiology Unit. She has also co-authored a research study examining the relationship of AIDS knowledge vs. risk factors for incarcerated women, which was published in the Journal of Sociology and Social Research. Ms. Brown has a bachelor’s in social work and a Doctorate in Jurisprudence.

Allison Eliscu, MD, FAAP

Dr. Allison Eliscu, FAAP is an Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Division Chief of Adolescent Medicine and Medical Director of the Adolescent LGBTQ Program at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital and the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University. Dr. Eliscu is originally from northern New Jersey and received her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Union College in Schenectady, New York. She then went on to receive her medical degree at The George Washington University School of Medicine and returned to the New York City area for postgraduate training. Dr. Eliscu completed her residency in pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of New York-Columbia Presbyterian and a fellowship in Adolescent Medicine at the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center. Dr. Eliscu is board certified in general pediatrics and adolescent medicine and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a member of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Dr. Eliscu’s areas of interest include adolescent reproductive health, HIV risk reduction (including use of HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis), resident and medical student education and patient advocacy. She is the Principal Investigator (PI) for Stony Brook Medicine’s Designated AIDS Adolescent and Young Adult Specialized Care Center.

Adesuwa Iyore Obasohan Watson BA, MPH 

Adesuwa Watson has been with the Suffolk County Department of Health Services - Office of Minority Health (OMH), as Health Program Analyst, since August of 2008. In this capacity, Mrs. Watson sits on multiple committees and is a coordinator and educator for several community based initiatives, which address health disparities, health promotion and community collaboration. Mrs. Watson, who is one of four children, was born in Richmond, Virginia and relocated as a young child to Long Island, attending schools in the Town of Babylon. She holds a BA in Psychology minoring in Biology and Africana Studies and holds Master’s Degree of Public Health in Social Behavior and Community Health, from the State University of New York at Albany. As a strong public health advocate, she is passionate about community work, contributing countless hours to projects that focus on the root cause of health disparities and inequities. Her work centers on raising up voices of community, around access to care issues, health literacy, youth engagement, prevention of community violence, mental health, HIV/AIDS & STIs & other chronic conditions. Outside of work, she volunteers with several organizations such as the National Council of Negro Women- Suffolk Section, the Anti-Bias Task Force & NAACP of Brookhaven, the Women’s Diversity Network’s, Health Equity Task Force on Maternal Mortality and a host of others. She is the proud wife to Dr. Jarvis Watson, who are both members of the First Baptist Church of Bay Shore NY, where she serves as Community Outreach Coordinator & Adult Dance Ministry member. Mrs. Watson feels strongly, that every day we must work to challenge unequal systems, recognizing the power of community engagement and centering equity in all that we do.

Tomara D. Forest

Tomara D Forest is a Courageous Connected Powerful Woman Poet Advocate  & CEO Living with a HIV Diagnosis . Tomara is a Peer Worker with more than 10 years of experience in the field and has been with Metro Plus Health Plan from the start of their Peer Connect Program in 2016.  Today she is the ETE Peer Coach serving People Living with HIV Homeless & Transgender community.  Spreading Love & awareness where ever she goes. Love Is The Cure

Odera Ekeh, MPH

Odera Ekeh is a medical student at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University in New Jersey. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Ottawa, conducting a thesis research project and publication in the area of childhood obesity and food and beverage marketing. Afterward, Odera pursued a Master of Public Health at Northwestern University. She was a research assistant at the Centre for Global Health Education and a project intern at the Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago. Through these roles, she managed the implementation of global health education projects including a pediatric simulation training in Kenya and a palliative care training in Nigeria, and led and collaborated with a team of healthcare practitioners to strengthen the quality of community health services locally. She has a growing interest in improving health outcomes for diverse and disadvantaged populations locally and globally. Currently, Odera combines her interests in global public health and medicine as a medical student passionate about improving the health of underserved communities.

Moderator: Sharon Martino, PT, PhD

Dr. Martino's research is focused on the multi-dimensional aspects of pediatric obesity and related medical conditions. She is the co-Director of the Fit Kids for Life Program which is an interdisciplinary wellness and nutrition program for children who are overweight/obese. Currently she is the principal investigator of a funded study exploring the role of exercise intensity on body composition, cardiovascular endurance and endothelial health (using diagnostic ultrasound) in overweight / obese children. Past funded studies have looked at developing, validating and implementing a wireless activity sensor in the obese and healthy weight pediatric population.  Dr. Martino is also co-investigator on a study looking at the role of health technology and applications in promoting exercise, healthy nutrition and reducing stress in the pre- and post-surgical bariatric patient.

John Britelli, RT, MS, RRT-NPS, RPFT

Professor Brittelli has been a respiratory therapist for over 40 years. He has earned the credentials of a Neonatal Pediatric Specialist and has been awarded the Excellence in Teaching award twice. For 10 years he served as a director of the New York State Licensing Board for Respiratory Therapy and Polysomnographic Technology, 5 of which he was Vice Chairman and Chairmen. Professor Brittelli also holds several medical device patents and has been inducted into the National Academy of Inventors.

Jon P. Longtin, PhD, PE

Professor Longtin joined the Mechanical Engineering Faculty at Stony Brook University in 1996. He came to Stony Brook after receiving his Ph.D. degree in 1995 from U.C. Berkeley, followed by a one-year postdoc at the Tokyo Institute of Technology in Japan. His research interests include energy conservation, innovative energy transfer and storage, and energy monitoring and diagnostics, as well as laser materials processing, particularly with ultrafast lasers and the development of sensors for harsh environments. His research has been funded by NSF, DOE, ARPA-E, DOD, NASA, NYSERDA, and a variety of industrial sources.  He is the author of over 190 technical publications and holds 11 issued and pending patents. He has received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, two Excellence in Teaching Awards, and an R&D 100 award.  He is a licensed Professional Engineer in New York State, and is a member of the National Academy of Inventors.  He serves as a technical advisor to a number of companies and non-profit organizations.  In November 2021, he became the Associate Dean for Research and Entrepreneurship in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Dimitris Assanis, PhD

Dimitris Assanis is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stony Brook University, an Affiliate of the Institute for Advanced Computational Science at SBU, and presently serves as an appointed member to the Transportation Advisory Panel of the New York State Clean Action Council. His research expertise encompasses the development and application of advanced experimental techniques, such as optical diagnostics for combustion and spray imaging, as well as computational fluid dynamics models aimed at improving fuel-air mixing, ignition and combustion of alternative fuels (compressed natural gas, syngas, hydrogen, ammonia, and naphthenic biofuels) in advanced combustion engines. The ultimate goal of his group’s efforts is to improve the efficiency of energy conversion, power generation and propulsion systems. More recently, Dr. Assanis joined efforts with Dr. Jon Longtin and Prof. John Brittelli to successfully design and manufacture an emergency ventilator (CoreVent 2020) in 10 days at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.