MD/PhD Mentorship Program

Dr. Harlan is a William and Doris Krupp Professor of Medicine, Co-Director of the Diabetes Center of Excellence at the UMass Chan Medical School and Investigator at the JDRF Center of Excellence in New England. For over 30 years, Dr. Harlan has conducted basic and clinical research to explore the pathophysiology underlying diabetes. He is interested in understanding the tolerance mechanisms involved in organ and tissue transplantation, autoimmune illness, human beta cell biology, and improving diabetes care delivery systems.  

Dr. Harlan served on the National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Advisory Council and Medical Science Review Committee of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International.  He’s been a respected member of the Biological Response Modifiers Advisory Committee for the FDA, chaired the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions Planning Committee, and been an ad hoc member of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Scientific Review Board. 

He has also received numerous honors and awards including the Frank Brown Berry Prize for Federal Medicine, Legion of Merit from the United States Navy, Peter Forsham Award for Academic Excellence from the Society of Uniformed Endocrinologists, U.S. PHS Physician Researcher of the Year Award, Children with Diabetes Foundation Friend for Life Award, and Massachusetts Medical Law Report Rx for Excellence Award for “Leader in Quality.” 

Dr. Hayward is a physician-scientist who has been providing care since 2000 for patients in the UMass Chan MDA Neuromuscular Clinic and serves as Co-Director of the multidisciplinary FSH Muscular Dystrophy Clinic. His research group focuses on defining molecular mechanisms that cause selected neuromuscular diseases, including ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), FSH (facioscapulohumeral) muscular dystrophy, and hyperkalemic periodic paralysis. Our objective is to direct this knowledge toward designing more effective treatments for our patients with these conditions. His laboratory applies expertise in basic muscle biology, cellular and animal modeling, gene regulation, protein biochemistry, and ion channel physiology to understand how genetic changes and environmental influences trigger various pathological responses in these diseases.   

Dr. Ionete is a clinical neuroimmunologist and educator with special interests including clinical trials in multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune neurological diseases, and neurological complications of HIV infections. She is a professor of neurology and the director of MS Center at UMass Memorial Medical Center. She received her medical degree from Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania. She has been in practice for 25 years.  

Dr. Ko is an associate professor in the department of radiation oncology. He has clinical interests in adult oncology, gynecological oncology, and thoracic oncology.  

Jennifer Tjia, MD, MSCE is Associate Professor of Medicine at the UMass Chan Medical School and a Research Associate at the Meyers Primary Care Institute. Dr. Tjia’s research interests include health services research and pharmacoepidemiology. Her interests focus on optimizing the use of chronic prescription medication by older adults, particularly in nursing home residents with advanced dementia and near the end-of-life.