People

David Mackenzie, MD

Member-at-Large

Maine Medical Center

My name is David Mackenzie. I am the ultrasound director and medical director at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine and Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Tufts University. I completed medical school at McGill University (2008), EM residency at Brown (2012), and ultrasound fellowship at MGH before moving to Maine. I was the first ultrasound-trained faculty member at MMC, and as director have helped build our mature EUS program, now a division of 8 faculty. I co-founded our AEMUS fellowship and medical student ultrasound programming and curriculum integration as well as APP training and system-level ultrasound. I am an experienced educator and researcher; my interests are in hemodynamic monitoring, POCUS test performance, and ultrasound in global health.

AEUS plays an essential role in promoting ultrasound in EM and beyond, in developing the careers of fellows and junior faculty, and providing meaningful educational and research support to our community. Within AEUS, I have had the opportunity to serve as a Sonogames judge and station developer and on the SAEMMIES awards committee. Within the ultrasound community, I have served on the SCUF annual meeting planning committee and was program committee lead for SCUF23 in Portland. Earlier in my career I served on the board of PURE, working to develop ultrasound programs in global health settings. I welcome the opportunity to support the AEUS Executive Committee's strategic priorities as a member-at-large; my experience has me well positioned to support AEUS aims and to further support AEUS membership.

Robert Stenberg, MD

Education Officer

Cleveland Clinic Akron General

Hi, my name is Bob Stenberg, and I wish to be considered for the AEUS Education Officer. I am the Emergency Ultrasound Director at Cleveland Clinic Akron General as well as the Fellowship Director. I completed medical school at University of Wisconsin, residency at University of North Carolina, and fellowship at Virginia Commonwealth University. My focus is on education, with interests in nerve blocks, resuscitation and gamification. I currently serve as the Co-Chair of ACEP Critical Care/Resuscitation Subcommittee.

I love AEUS and Sonogames! I have published content on the AEUS website, run an annual 80+ learner regional games, and have participated in all rounds of Sonogames including a round 2 station lead. If I were elected, I would do my best to elevate Sonogames and continue creating online content, increasing ease and access for people to run local/regional operations. Thank you so much for your time and consideration.

Elizabeth Yetter, MD, MHPE

Education Officer

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

I’ve dedicated my career to ultrasound education and after contributing as a Sonogames Round 1 question writer and Round 2 station member, would love to contribute further to our educational endeavors and organization on a larger scale.

I have been fortunate to work with amazing mentors who continue to inspire me because of their continued passion to expand our scope and conjure up innovative ways to engage learners, from med students to attendings. To share my passion for education, I would like to promote learning through games and formative activities that any program can implement in a central, accessible repository similar to the one we have on our website. Overall, our executive committee has done a wonderful job promoting our field and I hope to contribute to their continuing efforts with expanding and updating the new educational videos, quiz questions, Sonogames, and other efforts.

David Haidar, MD

Education Officer

Northwestern Medicine

Thank you for considering me for a position on the AEUS Executive Committee. I hope that as a member of this committee, I can help support the educational mission of ultrasound programs nationally by providing educational resources, growing the community through social media and the spotlight series, and providing mentorship to residents, fellows, and other early faculty members of AEUS. As Director of Resident Ultrasound Education and AEMUS Fellowship Director, I have experience mentoring both fellows and residents and have a strong interest in helping to develop a standardized national ultrasound curriculum for graduating EM residents.

Through AEUS, I hope to work with other leaders in ultrasound education to help achieve this vision, especially now that ABEM has moved to incorporate ultrasound education in its new certifying exam. I have been lucky enough to earn multiple education focused awards, including the AEUS Rising Star in Education Award, the SCUF Newbie Award, and a SAEMMIE for Best Broadscale Innovation. I have also served on multiple committees including the SCUF24 Planning Committee, AEUS Social Media and Awards Committee, SonoGames Creative Team as both a judge and question writer, and served as the CORD Academic Assembly Resident Track Chair as a resident and fellow. I hope that my experience on these national committees will help me better serve the AEUS community. Thank you so much for your consideration! 

John Hennessy

Medical Student Representative

University of Michigan

I have been an educator since 2009, when I started my first tutoring company as an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan. Over the next seven years, we grew to over fifty employees in seven locations across three states. It was during this time (during which I went back for graduate school but kept putting off applying to medical school) that I initially fell in love with teaching and also developed a lifelong interest in how to teach, not just what to teach. Outside of the private sector, my teaching experience continued when I eventually began teaching in academia. Since 2015, I have been a lecturer for the University of Michigan. I have taught 1,000+ students over 20 semesters, and I have continued to teach while in medical school. In addition to actively teaching both undergraduate and graduate students as a lecturer, I have designed new courses and served as an instructor for the National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps program, where I’ve taught academic researchers and clinicians to look beyond the lab and accelerate research into commercial success.

In addition to my teaching experiences, I am also an entrepreneur who has collaborated across disciplines and departments at the university for over 10 years. Since 2014, I have been CEO and co-founder of a battery/membrane technology startup originally commercialized from research at the University of Michigan. I have the experience of leading a diverse research staff and working with multiple external partners and university stakeholders. I hope to bring this leadership quality to medicine, where I believe the future of medicine will involve diverse, interdisciplinary teams. I want to leverage my entrepreneurial and education experiences into a career where I can critically evaluate problems, do more with less, and improve outcomes through education.

By serving as a RAMS medical student, I hope to continue my passion for teaching and curriculum development in the realm of medical education and the specialty of emergency medicine. During my time in medical school so far, I’ve worked on multiple medical education projects, such as developing new content (pre-recorded lectures and active learning) for the first-year curriculum. As a co-president of my medical school’s emergency medicine interest group, I also manage educational workshops (such as splinting, IV, suturing, and ultrasound workshops) that happen throughout the year. I hope to use my position as a RAMS medical student to further my passion for teaching how to think, not just what to think. Going forward, I want to work on medical education projects that focus on teaching the critical appraisal of evidence, the benefits and flaws of diagnostic/treatment algorithms (especially when used in emergency settings), and deductive reasoning when generating differentials. I want to help develop workshops and entrepreneurial resources to assist RAMS residents and students in need-finding, ecosystem mapping, and assumption testing to help bridge the gap between practitioners who see a problem or need in their field (critical care, ultrasound, etc) and the necessary tools/resources to leverage emerging technologies in the field to solve those problems.

Olivia Neidigh-Lloyd

Medical Student Representative

Kansas Health Science University

My name is Olivia Neidigh-Lloyd, and I am honored to be considered for a position on the RAMS Board.

I am a well qualified candidate for the RAMS Board, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Health Science Studies from Baylor University and a current 2nd year medical student at KansasCOM. My healthcare experience is rooted in diverse clinical settings, including internships with Abbott Vascular and Ascension Providence, and an Atlantis Fellowship in Italy, where I shadowed specialists in cardiology, orthopedics, and neurology. These roles provided firsthand exposure to patient interaction, clinical protocols, and the importance of research-backed approaches to care. During undergrad I served as a lead scribe in a Baylor Scott and White Emergency Department where I worked closely with physicians to train scribes, manage detailed patient records, identify data discrepancies, and ensure compliance with HIPAA standards. This experience has deepened my commitment to data accuracy, quality patient care, and the ongoing need for research-driven improvements in emergency medicine. Additionally, I bring leadership experience from my three years on Baylor’s Student Health Advisory Council, where I helped lead health outreach programs and advocated for student wellness. 

Currently, I serve as Secretary for the American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians where I manage administrative tasks, including organizing meeting minutes, event planning, and coordinating with medical professionals for educational lectures and simulation events. This position has deepened my understanding of the organizational needs of medical trainees and enhanced my ability to work collaboratively within a large, multifaceted organization. I am also involved in supporting the mission of the American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians (ACOEP) and their Resident and Student Organization (RSO), which fosters career development, osteopathic philosophy, and continuing education for emergency medicine students and residents.

My passion for advancing research is central to my candidacy. I believe emergency medicine thrives on innovation and continuous improvement, and I am committed to advocating for expanded resources that support member-led research, encourage high-quality submissions to national conferences, and promote professional development through evidence-based practices. By providing RAMS members with increased access to research tools, mentorship, and emerging medical knowledge, we can drive meaningful advancements in patient care.

I am running for a position on the RAMS Board because I am passionate about supporting my peers in their journey through academic emergency medicine. If elected, I plan to focus on three main objectives. First, I hope to strengthen mentorship programs by creating structured pathways that connect trainees with seasoned leaders in the field. Second, I aim to expand RAMS’ virtual educational resources, including workshops and case-based simulations, on topics such as AI in emergency medicine, telemedicine, and healthcare policy, to better prepare members for the evolving landscape of emergency care. Finally, I am committed to advocating for member well-being by supporting initiatives that promote work-life balance, mental health resources, and wellness practices for trainees.

Through my unique blend of clinical, academic, and leadership experiences, I am prepared to serve RAMS members by fostering a supportive community that prioritizes education, research, and personal well-being. I am excited about the opportunity to contribute to the growth of RAMS and help members achieve their professional and academic goals.

Thank you for considering my candidacy.

Nathaniel Sands, MPH

Medical Student Representative

California Northstate University College of Medicine

I am a second-year medical student at California Northstate University (CNSU) in Elk Grove, California, and the Secretary of the CNSU EM Interest Group. I initially became interested in EM as I was finishing my BS in Biochemistry at UC Santa Barbara.  I figured, what better inroad to explore medicine than EM? So, I became an EMT, and concurrently volunteered in the Emergency Department at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.  After exploring interests in infectious diseases and public health at UC Berkeley and UCSF, I returned to EM as a Clinical Research Coordinator in the Center for Resuscitation Science, a research group in the Emergency Department at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. While in Philadelphia, I worked on a project to provide COVID-19 testing to people experiencing homelessness, served as President of the Penn Pre-Health Program’s Student Government, and helped establish the Resuscitative TEE Collaborative Registry (rTEECoRe).  Now, in medical school, I remain active in the community by volunteering with Sacramento Street Medicine and at local elementary schools in the Sacramento area.

Throughout my journey, I have established so many fantastic relationships with people in EM and related disciplines. At the SAEM Annual Meeting in Phoenix last May, I enjoyed reconnecting with many of my colleagues, and I felt honored to meet so many exceptional practitioners of academic emergency medicine.  I feel at home within this community, so I would love to expand my role within SAEM.

This is my motto: whatever we wish to achieve, let’s do it together. As a RAMS Medical Student Representative, I want to connect with as many EM residents and medical students interested in EM as possible. I strive to harness resources and networks within SAEM to build a community that supports and advances the careers of all members.  In turn, I hope that you, the reader of this statement, will reach out to me with ideas, concerns, advice, or questions so that I may address them to the best of my ability.  I am excited to be part of your team!

Joseph Williams, MPH

Medical Student Representative

Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences

I am a current MS3 at Kansas City University and a graduate of the Yale School of Public Health, where I specialized in Chronic Disease Epidemiology. Earning my MPH before medical school added a valuable public health perspective to my medical education, complementing my prior training as an EMT and clinical research at UMass Chan and Yale University that addressed the opioid crisis and refugee health, and mental health within the emergency department.

I've been involved with SAEM since 2019, first attending the NERDS conference in Worcester, MA. In 2020 I submitted an abstract on an ED-suboxone bridging program which was accepted for the 2020 NERDS conference. This early involvement, even before medical school, empowered me to attend SAEM'23 and SAEM'24 as a medical student ambassador and join AGEM as a medical student representative on the awards committee in 2023. SAEM has played a key role in nurturing my passion for Emergency Medicine and providing a professional foundation.

If elected, I aim to advocate for continued integration of public health competencies within emergency medicine, especially for early-career students. I understand the importance of mentorship, particularly for students at institutions without emergency medicine faculty, and I hope to expand mentorship access to these students. I hope to expand the EMF-SAEMF Medical Student Research Grant to accept additional students and to pair accepted students with additional research mentors. Furthermore, I hope to expand the mentorship initiative within the medical student ambassador program to include resident-physician mentors and engage with a greater number of SAEM-member medical students who may not be able to attend SAEM as an ambassador. The mentorship program is purposed to enhance medical student engagement in SAEM committees and fostering greater interest in emergency medicine among future applicants.

I also believe that improving RAMS' social media presence could further engage members and increase visibility for emergency medicine. Expanding regional community activities, such as local meetups or events, would also strengthen connections and provide more accessible networking and learning opportunities. These initiatives would allow RAMS to engage members more deeply and create a more connected emergency medicine community.

SAEM has been instrumental in my engagement and professional growth in Emergency Medicine, and as a RAMS Medical Student Representative, I hope to advocate for more students nationwide to gain the same valuable experience.

Carlisle Topping

Medical Student Representative

Yale University

I am a current medical student at Yale University pursuing my MD/MHS degree. I would make a great representative due to my passion for community, mentorship, and wellness. As a fifth-year research student, I have the time, experience, and flexibility to devote to amplifying the voices of medical students within RAMS.

I’m particularly passionate about creating a community and support system for medical students interested in Emergency Medicine. As an undergraduate at Columbia University, I was a member of the women’s soccer team. One of my favorite aspects of being an athlete was entering college with the built-in support system of my team. I love that RAMS brings together medical students and residents, and I hope to work with RAMS to create a welcoming, inclusive, and supportive environment for medical students as they prepare to enter the field of Emergency Medicine.

I have been involved with SAEM since my second year of medical school, when I attended the national SAEM conference in Austin, TX, to give an oral presentation on my research focused on Medicaid coverage of out-of-state abortions. As a medical student attending my first large conference, I was initially nervous and intimidated. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the conference’s fun and welcoming atmosphere. RAMS contributed to this by hosting a costume-encouraged POCUS competition, dodgeball tournament, and party for both medical students and residents. I would love to build on this spirit and ensure that everyone feels welcomed into the RAMS community, whether they are a first-year medical student or a final-year resident. 

In addition to attending SAEM, I recently joined the SAEM Workforce Committee and applied to continue to be involved in the next year. This aligns with my research interests as showcased by my thesis, which focuses on residency programs and rotation sites at for-profit vs. non-profit hospitals. I hope to contribute to SAEM through this committee as well as through RAMS.

I also have experience working with students and administrators in student leadership roles as a Women in Medicine leader and Emergency Medicine Interest Group leader. I enjoyed organizing events, including a book club event with Anne Gardiner Perkins, author of "Yale Needs Women," about the first female class at Yale College. Additionally, I am the student leader of Hamburg House (Yale school of medicine is adapting its own college system) and have helped organize our first House Cup. I would love to contribute my experience as a student leader to the RAMS board. 

As a RAMS medical student representative, I hope to amplify medical student voices and create stronger mentorship between residents and medical students. I would love to create more informal ways for medical students to connect with residents, encouraging greater medical student participation and interest in academic Emergency Medicine. Ideas to accomplish this include hosting statewide or smaller regional events such as POCUS competitions, social events, and conferences that bring together medical students and residents.

Thank you for your consideration; it would be an honor to serve as your medical student representative.

Michael Makutonin, MD

Member-at-Large

Yale University

When I went to my first SAEM conference, I was floored by the number of cool things I could get involved in at SAEM. That year was a blur – working with the SAEM research committee to put on talks, designing a machine learning series, and running a Datathon for med students. I always wondered what could have been possible if I could have gotten involved earlier, without the financial barrier of going to conferences, and benefited from the resources and mentors I ended up finding in SAEM.

I have been lucky to find opportunities to contribute and lead both in SAEM and in other organizations advancing emergency medicine. For four years I served as the curriculum representative at the George Washington School of Medicine, helping my classmates advocate for fairer grading and better feedback among other initiatives. I have also spent several years in the EMRA research committee, helping organize events like Case-Con, our annual national case conference for trainees. I’ve contributed to projects on ACEP informatics-focused committees using my background in machine learning. Finally, I've participated in organizing trainee-facing didactics and training events as part of the SAEM research committee and SAEM AI interest group.

Now as a PGY-1 resident at Yale, I am eager to leverage my experiences in emergency medicine and my passion for education to make SAEM a more inclusive, welcoming, and useful organization for all of us. The headwinds that emergency medicine is facing, like AI and workforce challenges, are opportunities in disguise, ones that require a lot of passionate work by medical students and residents interested in moving the needle in academic EM. If elected, I will work to ensure that MS1s can find what they are looking for in RAMS as easily as they can sign up for their local EMIG, that students and residents can find mentorship and contribute to projects no matter the resources of their home institutions.

Mel Ebeling

Member-at-Large

University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine

My name is Mel Ebeling (they/them), and I am a fourth-year medical student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Emergency medicine has been a long-standing passion of mine, and I take pride in having served my community as an Emergency Medicine Technician since freshman year of college and have been involved in teaching first responders, assisting in writing grant proposals to secure pandemic funding, and interviewing new departmental personnel. As a trained Hazardous Materials Specialist, achieved through partnerships with the Department of Homeland Security, I also possess knowledge and interest in disaster medicine and have experience developing and publishing immersive simulation in this realm for emergency medicine residents. My collaborative approach to leadership stems from service on several institutional and emergency medicine-focused committees–largely in the medical education and DEI spaces–where I have been involved in re-designing preclinical curricula and establishing system-wide strategic plans to enhance diversity and inclusion, for example.

Throughout the entirety of my education, SAEM has served as a critical resource for me, connecting me with resources and mentors that have ignited my desire to become an academic physician, so I understand the importance of this election. As someone who is known for their reliability, integrity, and workhorse nature, I am committed to advancing our organization so that it continues to be an invaluable resource for residents and students. If elected to the RAMS Board as a Member-at-Large, I am excited to bring my diverse background and experiences to advance initiatives that support our academically minded and research-oriented membership. Specifically, my goals include the following: (1) developing a comprehensive guide for junior residents and medical students expressing an early interest in an academic career, addressing key topics such as detailing the academic promotion process, navigating resources and contacts for a variety of niche interests; (2) making available to our membership a standardized curriculum vitae specifically designed for the emergency medicine physician; and (3) creating a research guide containing best practices for manuscript revision and a complete repository of emergency medicine-focused journals.

I look forward to the opportunity to serve you, the next generation of academic emergency physicians, on the RAMS Board. I hope I can earn your vote!

KC Hummer

Member-at-Large

University of Colorado School of Medicine

Having spent a decade prior to medical school working in education and leadership, KC Hummer (she/they) is enthusiastic about providing high-quality academic resources to learners and supporting future and current emergency medicine physicians as they navigate medical school and residency. As a member-at-large, KC Hummer intends to accomplish this by improving the study materials associated with the SAEM exam many rotating students take during their sub-I rotations with clearer explanations, and by creating a centralized list of resources for medical students preparing to apply to residency. Previous roles and experience that will make KC Hummer a strong addition to the RAMS Board include her decade-long career as a teacher and education program director prior to medical school, as well as her prior experience as a Medical Student Ambassador at SAEM24.

Indrani Guzmán Das, MD

Member-at-Large

Stanford University

I am passionate about making healthcare cheaper and more accessible to lower-resource and underrepresented patients. I believe that the emergency department is where systemic health inequities meet the frontline and the best place to help the most vulnerable people in my community. As a RAMS Member at large, I will create opportunities for emergency medicine physicians to build their medical competencies and provide support to high-need patients.

I am a PGY-1 at Stanford Healthcare in California and a graduate of Weill Cornell Medical College and the Harvard Chan School of Public Health. As a resident, I serve on Stanford’s program evaluation committee to identify improvement areas for the residency, on the recruitment committee, and I am a mentor in programs that expand opportunities for underrepresented students, including LMSA, HPREP, and SEO Scholars.

By way of background, I am a first-generation American whose parents became medical practitioners after arriving in the United States as refugees. Before attending medical school, I worked as a management consultant at Bain & Company where I helped S&P 500 corporations and international nonprofits define their strategic goals and improve their finances and operations. I subsequently worked at the International Rescue Committee on their global refugee resettlement program and public-private partnerships to deliver nutrition supplements to rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa.

While in medical school, I supported multiple health equity projects in the US and abroad. As a medical practitioner, I served in the Weill Cornell Community Clinic to provide care to uninsured, non-English speaking patients in New York City, as well as in the Weill Cornell Center for Human Rights to provide medical forensic exams to asylum seekers hoping to receive sanctuary in the US. From a research perspective, I partnered with Johns Hopkins and the Associated Press to report on hospitals that utilized predatory billing practices, conducted field investigations through the Harvard Chan School of Public Health on progressive insurance programs in the Chilean healthcare system, and collaborated with Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Partners in Health to identify opportunities to expand access to emergency care in Western Africa.

As a RAMS board member, I would leverage my background in strategy consulting to expand educational resources to members. RAMS has a massive archive of data and educational material, such as the Residency/Fellowship Maps and overviews on how to perform uncommon procedures that are currently difficult to access. By improving the website navigation and organization of these resources, residents and medical students can make informed decisions in their training and career paths.

I would also implement a structured mentorship program at our annual meeting to match faculty, residents, and medical students with shared interests. Emergency Medicine is full of unique challenges and exciting opportunities - we can best serve our patients and enjoy the experience when we can rely on and learn from our diverse experiences.

Financial literacy is another critical area I plan to address. With over 40% of emergency departments now managed by private equity organizations, residents must be equipped with the knowledge to navigate various hospital structures effectively. Having worked with private equity, nonprofit, and publicly-funded hospitals, I will help RAMS members understand how their careers may be impacted by the organization structures that they join.

Ultimately, I am committed to expanding RAMS as a vibrant, engaging, and resourceful community where every member feels supported and empowered to thrive in their careers. By prioritizing education, mentorship, and health equity, I hope that RAMS meets the needs of our current members and attracts future generations of emergency medicine professionals.

Thank you for considering my candidacy for the RAMS Member-at-Large position. I look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with you and enhance our community in emergency medicine. As you make your voting decision, please reach out if you would like to discuss any of the ideas that I’ve shared.

Jared A. Escobar, MD

Member-at-Large

Rutgers - New Jersey Medical School

My path to medicine has been shaped by a unique blend of military service, healthcare experience, and a deep commitment to leadership and education. After high school, I enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, where I served for five years as part of the Marine Special Operations community. Toward the end of my time in the Marines, I began cross-training with Navy Corpsmen, which ignited my passion for healthcare and set the foundation for my transition into medicine.

After my military service, I completed my undergraduate studies at Fordham University before pursuing my medical education at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. While in medical school, I also joined the U.S. Army, where I was commissioned as a Captain. In this role, I continued to develop my leadership skills, applying military principles to the healthcare setting. Throughout medical school, I worked closely with senior leadership and fellow veterans to integrate teamwork training and leadership principles into the residency curriculum at RWJ. As a Curriculum Research Fellow, I contributed to the development of programs aimed at strengthening teamwork dynamics in medical education—principles I had refined in the military—and published qualitative research on this work. I was honored to be inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha and named a Rutgers Rising Star Scholar for my academic achievements and leadership contributions.

Now, as a PGY-2 resident at New Jersey Medical School, I continue to integrate the leadership lessons I learned in both the Marine Corps and the Army into my medical training. I have been actively involved in initiatives focused on improving patient care in high-acuity environments, including the development of critical airway equipment and the application of teamwork principles such as briefing and debriefing to enhance performance during acute events. These experiences have deepened my respect for the pivotal role that emergency medicine plays in patient care and within healthcare systems.

As a resident, my goal is to make meaningful contributions to the field of academic emergency medicine, with a focus on research, education, and leadership. I am excited about the opportunity to support the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) in advancing initiatives that promote academic development and the integration of team dynamics—principles that are crucial for improving patient care. Through my involvement with the Resident and Student Association (RAMS), I hope to advocate for policies that enhance the educational experience for residents and medical students, while fostering a sense of community, collaboration, and shared purpose among all members.

With my combined military leadership experience, commitment to academic excellence, and passion for emergency medicine, I am eager to contribute to the continued growth of SAEM and the broader field of emergency medicine.

Ethan Grant, MD

Member-at-Large

University of Utah Health

Dr. Ethan Grant is a PGY-2 resident at University of Utah Health. Dr. Grant is a native of rural West Texas, and completed his medical school training at Texas Tech University Health Science Center in 2023. His journey to medicine began by working as an emergency department scribe at Denver Health, where he grew to love the pace and changing environments of EM. During medical school, Dr. Grant served as the Wilderness Medicine Liaison for the emergency medicine interest group, and the Quartermaster for the Wilderness Medicine club. In these roles he broke down barriers that often prohibit students from training in austere environments. During residency, Dr. Grant has worked to improve the learning of incoming interns by coordinating education month. Additionally, he has invested in the future of emergency medicine by being involved with the interview process and by teaching medical students.

If selected to be a Member at Large for RAMS, I hope to increase the visibility of RAMS at medical schools and residencies to improve member engagement. As a key point of relations between residents and medical students interested in EM, RAMS has an important opportunity to excite students about the many career possibilities within EM. I hope to broaden the ways in which students and residents view their career paths, as the world of EM steps into a post-COVID era. Additionally, I hope to use my education and training opportunities to build connections for members with the wilderness and austere medicine community.

Eileen Williams, MD

Member-at-Large

University of Texas Southwestern

My name is Eileen Williams, and I am currently a second-year emergency medicine resident at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and completed my undergraduate education at Stanford University, where I worked in a research lab exploring the functional neurological correlates of anxiety and depression. I also worked as a residential counselor for adolescents with eating disorders and helped manage a team of podcast editors, writers, and engineers as a lead producer at the Stanford Storytelling Project. After college, I spent two years completing my final pre-med classes, as well as preparing for and taking the MCAT. During this time, I also worked as a medical scribe and trainer, fell in love with emergency medicine, and developed my own bustling tutoring business.

I moved to Houston for medical school at Baylor College of Medicine, where I was lucky enough to meet an incredible role model and inspiration within the field of academic emergency medicine. Together, we designed and completed a literature review on existing adolescent medicine curricula targeted to emergency medicine residents. Finding very little, we then moved on to conduct a national Delphi study to identify key competencies in this space.

During medical school, I also leveraged my undergraduate experience in the media sphere to help develop and produce our new official school podcast, Resonance. I did everything I could to invest in academics, including the creation of a pre-clinical EKG course that I later went on to facilitate as a TA. As a member of the Curriculum Renewal Workgroup (CREW) at Baylor College of Medicine, I collaborated with a team composed primarily of faculty to redesign the entire structure of the Baylor experience, including succeeding in expanding the graduation requirement to include four rather than merely two weeks of emergency medicine experience.

Now in residency, I am helping to spearhead the new academic medicine track that I helped to develop. Additionally, I initiated a working group now in the process of developing a new medical Spanish curriculum for the program. I also co-chair our monthly podcast club, which necessitates both logistical skill and the ability to facilitate complex educational discussions. When I’m not working, sleeping, or studying, you can find me watching football, writing crossword puzzles and reading twisty murder mysteries.

My passion for emergency medicine colors my perspective on the world, shaping me as a clinician and as a person. I am incredibly fortunate to be completing an emergency medicine residency and pursuing this career. Still, I recognize that the specialty is far from perfect. As much as I love – and will always love – emergency medicine, I appreciate that we are facing many challenges. I believe trainees and residents must step up to take action and be part of the solution: we are the future of the field. RAMS enables us to work together within the academic space and do just that. As a member-at-large, I would strive ceaselessly to serve as an effective advocate and liaison for the ideas and concerns of my co-residents.

James Colletti, MD

Member-at-Large

Mayo Clinic Rochester

I am James E. Colletti, MD, Chair of the Mayo Clinic Rochester Emergency Department and Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine. I earned my medical degree from The Chicago Medical School and completed residency in the combined Pediatrics/Emergency Medicine program at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. I have held several leadership roles throughout my career, including Mayo EM Program Director and Mayo Emergency Medicine Department Academic Development Chair. I have also contributed to national efforts, serving on the ACEP Pediatric Committee, the AAEM Education Committee, and the SAEM Faculty Development Committee. Additionally, I have spoken nationally on Pediatric Emergency Medicine and education topics and have served as course director for CORD Navigating the Academic Waters and the Mayo Clinic Emergency Medicine CME Conference.

I am proud to have received multiple awards, including induction into the Mayo Fellows Association Teacher of the Year Hall of Fame, the AAEM Young Educator Award, the AAEM Written Board Speaker of the Year Award, the Council of Residency Directors/Society of Academic Emergency Medicine Faculty Teaching Award, the AAEM Joe Lex Educator of the Year Award, the Program Director Recognition Award from the Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education, and the Distinguished Emergency Department Clinician Award from the Mayo Clinic Rochester Department of Emergency Medicine. I have also authored numerous articles and served as an editor for Clinics of North America and Pediatric Emergency Medicine Reports.

With a deep passion for academic emergency medicine, I am seeking office to help address key issues in our specialty, particularly workforce shortages, the evolving landscape of emergency care, and the future of medical education. If elected, I will work to foster collaboration across institutions, create more opportunities for research funding, and advance mentorship and faculty development. By building on our strengths, I believe we can continue to grow and improve emergency medicine for the benefit of our patients and colleagues.

Benjamin Sun, MD, MPP

Member-at-Large

University of Pennsylvania

Nancy Kwon, MD, MPA

SAEM Nominating Committee Member

Long Island Jewish Medical Center/Northwell Health

I believe that SAEM is the most important and formative organization for Emergency Medicine. I have been an active member of SAEM since residency, and am currently the Chair of the SAEM Faculty Development Committee, and an active member of the Equity and Inclusion, and Research Committees, and was elected in the past to be a member of the Nominating Committee. I was also selected previously to take part in the AACEM Chair Development Program.

In my prior term on the Nominating Committee, and my current application, I recognize the great importance and responsibility this position holds in identifying and vetting future leaders for SAEM.

I am currently the Vice Chair of Emergency Medicine at Long Island Jewish Medical Center and a Professor at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. Most recently, I became the Central Region Medical Director of Diversity and Health Equity for Northwell Health under Northwell's Center for Equity of Care.

I have many years of experience in academics and have served in the past as the Associate Chair of Academics and Research in Emergency Medicine. I have been a member of the Appointments and Promotions Committee for the Zucker School of Medicine, and have been chosen to take part in multiple Chair and Vice Chair search committees. I have been a recipient of Northwell's President’s Award for Teamwork in 2014., the Emergency Medicine Service Line Guttenberg Award in 2017 for my work in Emergency Medicine, and was one of five finalists for Northwell Health System's Truly Leadership award, and was awarded the Truly Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award in 2024. I have a focus on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Population Health, developing and implementing programs for vulnerable and underrepresented patient populations, faculty development, and mentorship.

I received a Bachelor of Science from Brown University, and a Doctorate of Medicine from The University of Rochester. I completed my Residency in Emergency Medicine at NYU Langone School of Medicine/Bellevue Hospital Center, and stayed on as faculty until 2013. I received a Masters in Public Administration from The NYU Wagner School of Public Service.

I would be honored to serve in this role, would use my prior experience in SAEM as a Nominating Committee Member, and my years of academic experience to assist in supporting the efforts of SAEM.

Sara M. Hock, MD

SAEM Nominating Committee Member

Rush University Medical Center

Dr. Hock is seeking to build the team of leaders that will serve our SAEM membership through opportunities, collaborations and career advancement. As part of the nominating committee, she hopes to help select qualified candidates to lead our academic organization to continue as the preeminent organization for academic emergency physicians. Dr. Hock recognizes the incredible strength that a national network of collaborators and mentors can offer to junior faculty and trainees, and hopes to continue her work that began as a leader in the Simulation Academy by serving the broader SAEM community as part of the nominating committee.

Dr. Hock's previous experience with SAEM includes service as a member of the Simulation Academy board. Dr. Hock has served as a member at large, contributor to Education Subcommittee, Treasurer for two one-year terms, and subsequently served as the president-elect, president (2023-2024), and past president (2024-2025) of SAEM Simulation Academy. Her initiatives during that time included a continued development of virtual mentoring opportunities for members, in person mixer events at various national conferences, and advocating to encourage residency leaders to incorporate high quality simulation into resident didactic experiences through recruitment of fellowship trained faculty. Dr. Hock has also presented as faculty at SAEM and the International Meeting for Simulation in Healthcare, in workshops and didactics focusing on simulation facilitation, debriefing, faculty continuing education and diversity, equity and inclusion in simulation.