Dr. Stefano M. Bertozzi is dean emeritus and professor of health policy and management at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. Previously, he directed the HIV and tuberculosis programs at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Dr. Bertozzi worked at the Mexican National Institute of Public Health as director of its Center for Evaluation Research and Surveys. He was the last director of the WHO Global Programme on AIDS and has also held positions with UNAIDS, the World Bank and the government of the DRC.He is currently the interim director of the UC systemwide programs with Mexico (UC-MEXUS, the UC-Mexico Initiative and Casa de California). He recently co-edited the Disease Control Priorities (DCP3) volume on HIV/AIDS, Malaria & Tuberculosis. He has served on governance and advisory boards for the East Bay Community Foundation, HopeLab, UNICEF, WHO, UNAIDS, the Global Fund, PEPFAR, the NIH, Duke University, the University of Washington and the AMA. He has advised NGOs, and ministries of health and social welfare in Asia, Africa and Latin America. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. He holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and a PhD in health policy and management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He earned his medical degree at UC San Diego, and trained in internal medicine at UC San Francisco.
Managing Director: Hildy Fong Baker, PhD, MHS
As Executive Director for the UC Berkeley Center for Global Public Health and the UCB-UCSF Center for Global Health Delivery, Diplomacy, and Economics, Hildy Fong Baker is responsible for leading global health education and research initiatives, including programs such as the Gilead Fellowship for the Advancement of Global Health, the SPH Global Health Specialty, Bay Area Global Health Innovation Challenge, and RR:C19. She participates in strategic planning for campus and Bay Area global health initiatives, including the Bay Area Global Health Alliance. She is a Lecturer in the UC Berkeley MDP program and online MPH program. She is the PI for UC Berkeley’s involvement in the USAID HEARD project. Baker studied health policy and management at UNC-Chapel Hill, Johns Hopkins University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She was a visiting scholar at Cambridge University, and has worked in various roles at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, WHO Child and Adolescent Health Unit in Geneva, NKF Singapore, the U.S. Senate, and Ogilvy Public Relations.
Chief Science Editor: Michael Cronce
Michael Cronce is a PhD candidate in the UCSF-UC Berkeley Joint Program in Bioengineering co-advised by Drs. Jeffery Cox and Jay Keasling. His research focuses on developing novel antiviral therapeutics, including those targeting SARS-CoV-2. He received his undergraduate degree in Biology (B.S.) from the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill with a double minor in Marine Sciences and Chemistry. Following graduation, Michael researched distal lung stem cell biology under Dr. Brigid Hogan, developed translationally-relevant tissue engineering approaches under Dr. Jay Vacanti, and designed new microfluidic organ-on-chip platforms under Dr. Donald Ingber. He was the first Assistant Editor for the Biological, Chemical, Physical Sciences and Engineering Domain.
Operations Manager: Boma Levy-Braide, MD, MPH
Dr. Boma Levy-Braide is a public health physician with over a decade of experience working on Infectious diseases. She oversees operational aspects of Rapid Reviews\Infectious Diseases, with a focus on RR\ID’s international academic partners. Previously, she worked with the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) under a Unitaid grant as a senior analyst for the HIV Access program. She contributed to several policy documents, national strategic plans, and scale-up interventions for HIV/AIDS. Dr. Boma also served in management positions for the HIV and Tuberculosis programs funded by USAID and the Global Fund, working at FHI360 and KNCV. She has fostered collaborations with government, academic institutions, donor agencies, and implementation partners to create access and reform healthcare policies on HIV, TB, COVID-19, and Cryptococcal meningitis. She holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom and earned her medical degree from the University of Lagos in Nigeria.
Operations Manager: Makayla True, MPH
Makayla recently graduated from UC Berkeley with a BA in Public Health and MPH in Epidemiology and Biostatistics. She has worked with Stef for several years as an Administrative and Research Assistant and was also an Undergraduate and Graduate Researcher with the Health Research for Action Center at UC Berkeley. Her research interests include community health, patient advocacy, and social epidemiology.
Assistant Managing Editor: Angel Paul
Angel Paul is a current MPH student at UC Berkeley with a program concentration in Epidemiology/Biostatistics. She received her undergraduate degree from UC Irvine in 2020, with a double major in Public Health Sciences and Public Health Policy. Angel is particularly interested in learning how to employ data-driven research models to create effective study designs that promote health equity.
Communications Intern: Britney Nguyen
Britney Nguyen is an undergraduate student at the University of California, Berkeley currently pursuing a degree in Public Health. She began working with RR\ID as an undergraduate research apprentice in her sophomore year and has since continued as a communications intern. After she finishes her undergraduate education, she hopes to pursue an MPH in epidemiology to pursue a career in research to enhance individualized patient care.
Lead of Undergraduate Training and Curriculum Development: Alyanna Isabel Fenol
Alyanna Fenol, a senior at UC Berkeley, is pursuing a B.A. in Molecular and Cell Biology. In Fall 2024, she will commence her studies as part of UCSF’s Master of Science in Global Health 2025 cohort. Alyanna initially joined RR\ID as a URAP student in Fall 2022, and she has since played a crucial role in developing the organization’s undergraduate training and curriculum. Additionally, she actively contributes to research endeavors at the Raphael Lab and serves as an Emergency Department medical scribe. Alyanna's passion for refugee advocacy and health drives her ambition to provide inclusive care to underserved populations in the future.
RR\ID relies on student-powered engine of graduate and undergraduate students, post-docs and fellows. A core team of Assistant Editors and specialists spearhead review teams across 3 subject domains. On a daily basis, teams search, screen and assess preprints across the domains: Biological and Chemical Sciences | Physical Sciences and Engineering; Public Health | Social Sciences and Humanities; and, Medical Sciences. AI tools also support this work. Assistant Editors are also closely involved with outreach to the Editorial Board and peer review networks in subsequent stages of the RR\ID process. See a list of students and early career researchers supporting each of our domains here.
UCB Biological & Chemical Sciences | Physical Sciences & Engineering Team
Yaw is currently a doctoral candidate at the UCSF-UC Berkeley Joint Program in Bioengineering where he is co-mentored by Dr. David Nguyen at the Innovative Genomics Insititute and Dr. Angela Rivers at the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. His research work focuses on understanding the role of mitochondrial retention in the pathophysiology of sickle cell disease. Prior to this, he performed research on the predictive modeling of sickle cell disease via assessment of erythrocyte membrane changes. He holds a medical degree from the University of Cape Coast in Ghana; and a master of science in biomedical engineering.
Assistant Editor, BCSPSE: Andres Dextre Chavez
Andres is currently a doctoral student in the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Program in Bioengineering, advised by Dan Fletcher at UC Berkeley. His research focuses on using CRISPR-Cas13 to develop new diagnostic tools for infectious diseases, and he hopes his work helps in improving accessibility of accurate diagnostics to resource-limited regions. Before starting his PhD, he got his undergraduate degree in Biological Engineering from Purdue University where he worked on developing paper-based molecular diagnostics for SARS-CoV-2 and bovine respiratory disease.
Domain Coordinator, BCSPSE: Emily Kim
Emily is currently an undergraduate student in UC Berkeley double majoring in Molecular and Cellular Biology with an emphasis in neurobiology and Business Administration through the LSBE program. In the future, Emily hopes to continue pursuing the field of global medicine through healthcare policy work. She is particularly excited to help others grow their interest and passion for research through the BCSPE domain.
UCB Public Health | Social Sciences and Humanities Team
Assistant Editor, Public Health | Social Sciences and Humanities: Ifunanya Dibiaezue
Ifunanya Dibiaezue is a 4th-year DrPH candidate with a focus on Maternal, Adolescent and Child Health. Her research is focused on leveraging technology to increase adolescent contraceptive uptake in sub-Saharan Africa. She has over 8 years of experience in maternal and child health, communicable and non-communicable disease prevention, nutritional awareness and training programs, and public health policy development. She holds a BSc degree in Biomedicine from the University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK, and a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of York, York, UK. While working as an Assistant Program Officer in Africare under the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves Project, Ifunanya helped increase the earning capacity of over 1000 women cooks, reduce indoor air pollution and reduce the incidence of respiratory diseases by 65% in Lagos State, Nigeria. In addition, she has helped improve the health of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Southern Nigeria. She has coordinated over 25 HIV testing and counseling programs, and training campaigns with over 70 clinical staff to improve the overall quality of care for PLWHA. She is also very passionate about promoting healthy lifestyles among women. She is the founder of ActivEaters, an organization that focuses on improving the quality of health of women through diet, exercise, and behavior change.
Assistant Editor, Public Health | Social Sciences and Humanities: Mindy Dai
Mindy graduated from UC Berkeley with a Bachelor’s in Statistics in 2021. After graduation, she did a service year with National Health Corps, serving at the San Francisco Department of Public Health as a COVID-19 Responder/Behavioral Health Coordinator. She is currently pursuing a MPH in Epidemiology at University of Washington and hopes to pursue a PhD in the future. She is interested in study methodology, causal inference, and mathematical epidemiology.
UCB Medical Sciences Team
Associate Editor, Medical Sciences: Bryan Tegomoh, MD, MPH
Dr. Bryan Tegomoh is a Cameroonian-born physician and medical epidemiologist. He obtained his MD from the University of Yaoundé I in Cameroon and worked for several years in Cameroon. He was previously a visiting researcher at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, in the Division of Biology and Biological Sciences, and later completed his MPH in Infectious Diseases at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health. He sits on several organizations and societies on tropical medicine and applied epidemiology, with interests in emerging infectious diseases, epidemic and pandemic preparedness, and building capacity in outbreak response. His work has facilitated genomics-informed outbreak investigations. Dr. Tegomoh is very passionate about pathogen genomics, clinical research and investigative medicine, and public health, and how research findings can be directly translated into policies that impact the lives of vulnerable populations.
Deputy Assistant Editor, Medical Sciences: Alex Ha
Alex Ha is a second year medical student at the UCSF-UC Berkeley Joint Medical Program. He graduated from UCLA in 2021 with a concentration in psychobiology. At UCLA, he worked in a microbiology lab specializing in cryogenic electron microscopy. Prior to med school, he worked odd jobs and traveled the world. His current interests include the changing patterns of infectious diseases as a result of climate change (e.g. zoonoses) as well as the impact of climate change on skin health.
Assistant Editor, Medical Sciences: Isaac Jacobo Núñez Saavedra
Isaac Jacobo Núñez Saavedra is currently an Internal Medicine resident physician in Mexico City. He serves as assistant editor for Rapid Reviews\Infectious Diseases, MedSci. He has experience on clinical trials and epidemiologic studies regarding HIV, COVID-19, mpox, and vaccine adverse effects. He is also a researcher recognized by the Consortium of Research on HIV/AIDS/TB (CISIDAT) and has worked in consulting projects for UNAIDS.
Domain Coordinator, Medical Sciences: Chris Tom
Chris Tom graduated in the spring of 2023 from UC Berkeley where he received his Bachelor's Degree in Public Health. He is pursuing a career in medicine with the aspirations of providing comprehensive, holistic, evidence-based care to medically underserved populations. Following graduation from UC Berkeley, Chris started working as a medical scribe for the emergency department of Adventist Health in Reedley, California. He is also passionate about the intersections between health policy, medical practice, and infectious disease research.
Global Teams
MEXICO | Associate Editor: Dr. Alicia Piñeirúa-Menéndez
Alicia Piñeirúa-Menéndez is a medical specialist in infectious diseases and holds a master's degree in public health with a concentration in infectious diseases. She has held clinical and decision-making roles in the field of HIV and viral hepatitis, serving as the Medical Coordinator of an HIV and STI clinic in Mexico City. Subsequently, she became the Director of Comprehensive Care at CENSIDA, the National Center responsible for HIV, STI, and viral hepatitis public policies in Mexico.
Currently, she is the president of the secretariat and a member of the ethics committee at CISIDAT. She has been a principal investigator and co-investigator in projects related to HIV prevention, access to HIV prevention and care for women and adolescents, changes in public policy associated with the use of antiretroviral therapy in the country, and metabolic changes in people living with HIV.
INDIA | Associate Editor: Deepshikha Batheja
Dr. Deepshikha Batheja is a Fellow at One Health Trust (OHT) India. She received her Ph.D. degree in Economics from the University of California, Riverside. Her primary research interest and work is in applied microeconomics, specifically development, environmental and health economics. Her two parallel strands of work include exploring the determinants of firm productivity in low- and middle-income countries, including climate change; and studying the socio-economic drivers of antimicrobial resistance and infectious diseases. Dr. Batheja uses real-world data and often relies on randomized controlled trial (RCT) methodology to test economic theory and inform policy. She is part of WHO’s expert panel on gender and AMR, programme member of the Just Transitions for AMR working group funded by the British Academy and a consultant with the World Bank.
