Meet Our 2023-2024 Team

Alita Gideon

President

Hey friends :) I am honoured to serve as this year’s KAHS GSA President. I am a second year MSc student under the supervision of Dr. Roudier. Besides my work looking at adipose tissue angiogenesis, you’ll find me working out, climbing, hiking, or walking my dog, Chanel. Looking forward to a great year! Fun fact: I’m allergic to dogs ☹ Looking forward to a great year!

Shahrzad

Khajehzadehshoushtar

Vice-President

Tania Pereira

Secretary

Hello! My name is Tania Pereira, and I am the Secretary for the KAHS GSA. I am a 5th-year Ph.D. Candidate researching sex differences and the effects of hormonal contraceptives on autonomic control of the physiological response to exercise, supervised by Dr. Heather Edgell. When I am not in the lab or writing, I enjoy hiking with my dog, trying new recipes, and photography.

Madison Garibotti

Treasurer

My name is Madison Garibotti, and I am the Treasurer for the KAHS GSA. I am a 1st year Ph.D. student researching the relationship between skeletal muscle health and mitochondrial function under the supervision of Dr. Christopher Perry and Dr. Ali Abdul-Sater. Outside of the lab, I enjoy spending time with friends and family, hanging out with my cat Albus, watch scary movies, traveling, and reading true crime books! I am excited for a great year on the GSA!

Priyanka Khemraj

Website Programmer

Hello! My name is Priyanka Khemraj, and I am the Website Programmer for the KAHS GSA this year! I am currently a MSc. student investigating the relationship between mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation and skeletal muscle health under the supervision of Dr. David Hood. Outside of school, you can usually find me dancing, reading or finding new things to paint! I’m super excited for the amazing year to come!

Casey Arguelles

Sports/Social

Representative

My name is Casey Ann and I am one of GSA’s Sport/Social Representatives. My supervisor is Dr. Meisner and my research interests include aging, interdisciplinary care, and long term care. One thing I love to do for fun is going on nature walks/hiking. Looking forward to a great year!

Azin Tariniya Gilani

Social Media Coordinator

I'm Azin, your go-to Social Media Coordinator for the year! I'm also an MSc student in Dr. Sater's lab, and my research focuses on the immunology aspect of exercise physiology. Oh, and just for fun, I'm a language enthusiast and can chat in five different languages!

Lauren Turner

EDID Graduate Student Representative

Hi friends! My name is Lauren, and I am a first year PhD student in Dr. Michael Riddell’s lab, where my research focuses on type 1 diabetes and exercise. Outside of the lab I love all things outdoors including dog walks, hiking, and running. I am also currently on a mission to try doing bakery crawls across Toronto!

Nicholas Cheng

MSc Representative

Hi everyone, my name is Nick and I’ll be your MSc Representative for this upcoming year! I am currently a first year MSc student under the supervision of Dr. Andrea Josse and my thesis project will be investigating the bone biomarker response following post-exercise dairy supplementation. Other than my love for research, I enjoy lifting, watching anime, eating noodles and hanging with friends!

Olivia Ramraj

PhD Representative

Hi, I'm Olivia and I'll be PhD representative for this year. Currently I am researching the relationships between vascular and autonomic function and cognitive decline in type 2 diabetes. When not in the lab I love watching movies with friends and family, playing musical instruments, and learning historical fun facts.

Wajeeha Rasul

MA Representative

Hi everyone! My name is Wajeeha (she/her),your MA representative, and I am a first year Master of Arts student under the supervision of Dr. Parissa Safai! My research interests lie in gender/racial equity, and making sport a more inclusive place for all and my current research focuses on high-performance sport with a specific focus in understanding impression management techniques BIPOC female sport coaches employ in their respective workplaces. In terms of my personal interests, I love going on hikes, travelling and reading. I’m super excited to be your MA representative this year and I can’t wait for all of you to see what we have in store!

Neushaw Moradi

Conference Co-Chair

Hi everyone! I’m Neushaw, a second year PhD student with Dr. David Hood, studying mitochondrial turnover and signaling toward lysosomal biogenesis in skeletal muscle. I’m honoured to participate as a Conference Co-Chair and hope to see you all eager and excited to share your commendable work at Broaden Horizons this year. If I’m not in lab, you’ll find me taking way too many pictures of my cat, Fish, and marathoning Harry Potter for the umpteenth time.

Brooke Morris

Member at Large

Deanna Vervaecke

Past President

Hi everyone! My name is Deanna Vervaecke and I am the Past-President of the KAHS GSA. I am currently completing the third year of my PhD under the supervision of Dr. Brad Meisner. My dissertation focuses on the purposes of adult day programs from multiple perspectives, and my broader research interests involve age, aging, and health. Outside of my research, I like to play with my dog King, watch scary movies, and go on long road trips.

Dr. Heather Edgell

Faculty Advisor

Interested in joining the team? We send out a call for nominations via email each year in September. Be sure to stay tuned for opportunities to get involved. For more information, please contact kahsgradsoc@gmail.com.