Meet The AI & Digital Health Innovation Team

Executive Leadership

  • Steve Kunkel

    Steven Kunkel, PhD

    Executive Vice Dean for Research

  • Brahmajee Nallamothu

    Brahmajee Nallamothu, MD, MPH,

    Co-Director,
    AI & Digital Health Innovation

  • Jenna Wiens

    Jenna Wiens, PhD

    Co-Director,
    AI & Digital Health Innovation

  • Sebastian Zoellner

    Sebastian Zoellner, PhD

    Co-Director,
    AI & Digital Health Innovation

  • Phil Jacokes

    Phil Jacokes, MBA

    Managing Director,
    AI & Digital Health Innovation

Faculty Leads

  • Mike Burns

    Michael Burns, PhD, MD

    Associate Director,
    Research Implementation

  • Mike Dorsch

    Michael Dorsch, PharmD, MS

    Associate Director,
    MGI Data Collection

  • Megan Haymart

    Megan Haymart, MD

    Associate Director,
    Data Solutions

  • Headshot

    Mariel Lavieri

    Associate Director,
    Research Implementation

  • Mike Sjoding

    Michael Sjoding, MD, M.Sc.

    Associate Director,
    Research Implementation

  • Jennifer Smith

    Jennifer Smith, PhD

    Associate Director,
    MGI Data Collection

Team Leaders

  • Janet Houghtby

    Janet Houghtby

    Senior Manager, Enrollment and Engagement

    Janet leads our MGI enrollment team, providing the vision to expand and diversify our MGI database. She also leads researcher engagement initiatives including the measurement and tracking of support we provide.

    jhoughtb@med.umich.edu

  • A man with a beard and short hair, wearing a dark blue polo shirt, standing against a plain white wall.

    Giovanni Siciliano

    Team Lead, Data & AI Engineering

    Gio provides the vision and strategy for our Data & AI Engineering team. With a focus on automation and reliability, he leads the mission to find optimal ways to make health data available to researchers and to leverage AI to improve the way researchers interact with the data.

    siciliag@med.umich.edu

  • Cinzia Smothers

    Cinzia Smothers

    Director, Research Services

    Cinzia is responsible for developing effective processes and systems needed to provide scaleable technical solutions to our researchers.

    cinziavs@med.umich.edu

  • Megan VanStratt

    Megan VanStratt

    Director, Marketing and Communications

    Megan is responsible for AI & Digital Health Innovation’s marketing operations including brand management, marketing strategy, internal and external communication programs.

    vanstrat@umich.edu

Support Team

  • Emily Bertucci-Richter

    Emily Bertucci-Richter

    Genetic Data Analyst

    Emily is a Genetic Data Analyst for AI & Digital Health Innovation. She analyzes genetic data using computational, statistical, and bioinformatics methods to uncover new insights.

    embricht@umich.edu

  • Joe Blackmer

    Joe Blackmer

    Research Implementation Engineer

    Joe is adept at implementing models into existing systems. From data pipelines to workflow integration, he’s a key piece in finding ways to successfully implement models at Michigan Medicine.

    joblackm@med.umich.edu

  • Gaspare Leone

    Gaspare Leon

    MGI Participant Recruiter

    As an an MGI Participant Recruiter at AI & Digital Health Innovation, Gaspare is responsive for enrolling new, diverse participants in the MGI Genomics Initiative.

    gleone@med.umich.edu

  • Arika Lykan

    Arika Lykan (They/Them)

    Event Manager

    Arika is responsible for ensuring a positive experience for our researchers, managing events, and growing our communities.

    arikal@med.umich.edu

  • Jaye Minghine

    Jaye Minghine

    MGI Participant Recruiter

    As an an MGI Participant Recruiter at AI & Digital Health Innovation, Jaye is responsive for enrolling new, diverse participants in the MGI Genomics.

    mjaye@med.umich.edu

  • Kate Moran

    Kate Moran

    Data Solutions Manager

    Kate is a Data Solutions Manager for AI & Digital Health Innovation. She meets with researchers to understand their data needs and facilitates the pulling and delivery of the data needed to complete their research.

    moranke@med.umich.edu

  • A man with glasses, dark hair, and a goatee wearing a suit and tie, taking a selfie indoors.

    Miles Morley

    Research Cloud Solutions Designer

    Miles is responsible for managing the Secure Enclave Services (SES) at AI & Digital Health Innovation. He ensures that the enclave is functioning properly to fulfill the computing needs of our researchers.

    msmorley@med.umich.edu

  • Kate Murphy

    Kate Murphy

    Marketing & Communications Specialist

    Kate Murphy is a graphic designer and creative copywriter. She helps with design needs related to proposal development, web design, and event collateral, in addition to supporting the overall work of AI & Digital Health Innovation’s Marketing department through newsletters and other content needs.

    mukately@umich.edu

  • Jacob Ortlieb

    Jacob Ortlieb

    AI Solutions Manager

    Jacob is an AI Solutions Manager for AI & Digital Health Innovation. He leads the end-to-end delivery of AI-powered solutions — from initial discovery meeting with researchers to deployment and adoption.

    ortliebj@med.umich.edu

  • A smiling man with a beard and short hair, wearing a suit jacket and a collared shirt, standing in front of a blue background.

    Justin Ortwine

    Data Architect

    Justin is responsible for designing the Data Operations systems at AI & Digital Health Innovation. He ensures that we provide a secure and scaleable development environment for our Data Engineers.

    ortwinej@med.umich.edu

  • Portrait of a woman with curly black hair and glasses, smiling outdoors with a blurred green background.

    Snehal Patil

    Encore Administrator

    Snehal is the Encore Administrator for AI & Digital Health Innovation.

    snehal@med.umich.edu

  • Portrait of a woman with long brown hair smiling against a gray background.

    Lori Robertson

    Administrative Specialist

    Lori is responsible for leading administrative responsibilities at AI & Digital Health Innovation by supporting our team with scheduling, finances, event planning and more.

    lorimr@med.umich.edu

  • A young man with short dark hair, glasses, and a checkered shirt smiling at the camera, with a background of blurred blue and yellow decorations.

    Brett Vanderwerff

    Genetic Data Analyst

    Brett is a Genetic Data Analyst for AI & Digital Health Innovation. He analyzes genetic data using computational, statistical, and bioinformatics methods to uncover new insights.

    brettva@umich.edu

  • A young man with dark hair and glasses, wearing a black suit and tie, smiling in front of a yellow background.

    Adrian Weyhing

    Data & AI Engineer

    Adrian is a Data & AI Engineer at AI & Digital Health Innovation. He builds data pipelines to integrate diverse data types and sources into our database and develops AI tools to help improve the way researchers interact with data.

    weyhing@med.umich.edu

  • A man with short black hair, glasses, and a slight smile, sitting outdoors in front of trees and a house, wearing a blue polo shirt.

    Qihua Zhao

    Data & AI Engineer

    Qihua is a Data & AI Engineer at AI & Digital Health Innovation. He builds data pipelines to integrate diverse data types and sources into our database and develops AI tools to help improve the way researchers interact with data.

    qizhao@med.umich.edu