Alexia Alsum (Secretary) is a fourth-year graduate student in Dr. Turner's lab, where her research utilizes in vivo calcium imaging to examine neurocircuitry alterations present with opioid use disorder. Before attending the University of Kentucky, she graduated in 2021 with a B.S. In Chemical Engineering from Dordt University. She loves to spend time with her dog, Malibu!

Kylie Wells (Historian) is a first-year graduate student in the Medicinal Chemistry track. Her research is on the development of novel opioid analgesic probes in Dr. Prisinzano’s lab. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Pharmacological Chemistry from UCSD in 2021. When she’s not in lab, she enjoys reading, baking, and hanging out with friend.

Jocelyn Martin (Events and Networking Chair) is a second-year graduate student on the Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics track. She is in Dr. Jill Turner's lab, where she uses in vivo models to study the genomic underpinnings of Opioid Use Disorder (OUD). Before starting graduate school, she graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2024 with dual B.S. Degrees in Neuroscience and Psychology, and a minor in Pharmacology. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, teaching yoga, and playing with her cats, Donna and Donny.

Graham Thomason (New Student Ambassador) is a first-year student on the Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Track. In Dr. McLaurin's lab, he has begun investigating changes in synaptome architecture in the context of HIV and opioid use disorder (OUD). He graduated from Transylvania University with a B.A. in Biology: Molecules and Cells Track. In his free time, he loves to read, play pickleball, and spend time with family and friends.

Kaysi Lee (Graduate Student Congress Representative) is a fourth-year graduate student in Dr. Venditto’s lab working on lipid-based delivery systems. She graduated from the Missouri University of Science and Technology with a bachelors degree in chemistry. Kaysi loves spending her free time learning aerial silks or playing with her dog, Carbon!

Dr. Björn Bauer, Ph.D. is a Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the College of Pharmacy. He received a BS in Pharmacy in 1997 and a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences/Pharmacology in 2002 from the University of Heidelberg, Germany. From 2002-2007, Dr. Bauer was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the NIH/NIEHS in Research Triangle Park, NC, and in 2007 was appointed Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. In 2014, Dr. Bauer joined the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy, where his research is focused on the regulation of blood-brain barrier function in epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, and brain cancer.

Dr. Patrick J. McNamara, Ph.D. received his Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1979. He joined the faculty at the University of Kentucky in 1980 and has advanced through the academic ranks to Professor. Dr. McNamara has served as Senior Associate Dean for the College of Pharmacy, as Director (Division of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Analysis; Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics; and Pharmaceutical Sciences), Chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Associate Dean for Research and Director of Graduate Studies as well as Interim Dean of the College of Pharmacy. Dr. McNamara's scholarly interests are in the areas of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, with a particular emphasis on drug transport into milk and the ontogeny of clearance pathways.   He is a Fellow of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Sciences (AAPS) and American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).  In 2006, he was elected to Member-at-Large of the AAPS Executive Committee where he served on numerous committees including the Strategic Visioning Committee.   Dr. McNamara was also very active from 1989 to 1995 at the AAPS Section level serving numerous roles, including Section Chair.