Executive Board

UPPDA Executive Board for 2025-2026

President: Monojit (Mono) Bhattacharjee, PhD

President: Monojit (Mono) Bhattacharjee, PhD
Dermatology, School of Medicine

I did not begin this journey thinking, “One day I will become President of UPPDA.” I began as a postdoc trying to understand Pitt, find community, ask questions, build friendships, and make this place feel a little more like home. Along the way, I also wanted to build my soft skills, learn leadership by doing, meet friends from across the world, and collect stories that I can cherish for life. After serving as International Chair and Vice President (for a month) and now stepping up after the elected President has stepped down, I take this responsibility with humility, energy, and a very simple thought: UPPDA should feel close to every postdoc, not like a distant office name. Postdoc life is not only experiments, grants, papers, and deadlines. It is also coffee conversations, visa worries, career confusion, cultural adjustment, family responsibilities, failed experiments, new friendships, and small victories that only another postdoc can truly understand.

As President, I want UPPDA to be a place where postdocs feel heard, connected, represented, and proud to belong. But community should not mean only pizza, flyers, and smiling group photos. Behind every postdoc, there is a real story—long experiments, uncertain contracts, compensation concerns, limited benefits, visa stress for many, family responsibilities, and sometimes the feeling that our work is visible in publications but invisible in institutional conversations. That is why I want UPPDA to grow both as a community space and as a strong representative voice. Events like Postdoc Panthers, Reel Connections, picnics, symposiums, networking sessions, NPAW, cultural gatherings, and career programs should not exist only for attendance numbers. They should create conversations that open doors—toward friendship, collaboration, career confidence, and institutional recognition. I also want UPPDA to strongly represent Pitt postdocs at the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) level and continue raising important issues such as fair compensation, better benefits, stronger career development support, and greater visibility for postdocs across the university. At the same time, UPPDA should create opportunities for postdocs to build their CV beyond the lab—through events and activities that hone soft skills, encourage leadership, and help us meet people who may one day become collaborators, mentors, friends, or even future partners in a company or community initiative. Because postdocs are not only researchers; they are future faculty, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and changemakers.My goal is to make UPPDA more visible, organized, inclusive, and useful. We will strengthen communication, support our committees, build the Community Ambassador network, bring postdoc concerns to university leadership, and make sure our work continues smoothly beyond one person or one term.

I believe leadership should not be cold or complicated. It should be humane, clear, and approachable. I will listen, I will show up, I will work with the Executive Board, and I will try my best to make sure no postdoc feels like they are walking this journey alone.

UPPDA belongs to all of us. Let’s build it with purpose, friendship, diversity, and a little bit of Panther energy.

Vice President: Sagar Dhoble, PhD

Vice President: Sagar Dhoble, PhD
Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering

I am Dr. Sagar Dhoble, a Postdoctoral Associate at the Swanson School of Engineering, University of Pittsburgh. I am grateful to UPPDA for considering my application to be promoted to the Vice President position within our Postdoctoral Association.

Let me give a short background about myself and my previous experiences. I completed my graduation from the Institute of Chemical Technology (formerly UDCT), one of the premier and esteemed institutions in chemical engineering and pharmaceutical technology in India. Following this, I worked as a Postdoctoral Research Associate for two years at the University of Arizona with a startup company and then joined the University of Pittsburgh. I am a formulation scientist with wide experience in the field of nano/micro particulate drug delivery systems and ionic liquid technologies for small molecules, proteins, and peptides. Currently, I am working on developing advanced formulation strategies for the prevention of device and transplant rejections by modulating immune responses.

As we all know, postdoctoral researchers make extraordinary contributions to the University of Pittsburgh’s research mission. Yet they often face challenges like imperfect compensation, limited benefits, insufficient career development support, and a lack of institutional visibility that go unaddressed. As Vice President, my goal is to provide strong leadership with the President across all UPPDA initiatives, ensuring the association runs effectively, our advocacy efforts gain momentum, and every postdoc’s voice reaches decision-makers. If elected, I will drive initiatives that directly address our community’s most pressing needs: equitable compensation and improved benefits like retirement and healthcare benefits similar to a permanent university employee, postdoc rights and institutional policies, establishing clearer channels for postdocs to raise concerns to UPPDA and university administration, and building coalitions with other postdoc associations at peer institutions. I will also support transparency by keeping the postdoc community regularly informed of progress and ensuring that feedback from all postdocs shapes our priorities.

Last year, I served the role of Community Ambassador in UPPDA, where I was actively involved in raising postdoc community concerns to the UPPDA board. Some of these suggestions, like an online suggestion box and budgeting for incoming postdoc residentials, are now in the process of consideration and implementation. This experience has given me firsthand insight into the UPPDA’s functioning. This established a strong foundation for my interest in the UPPDA and gave me a chance to serve the role of Advocacy Chair. If promoted to the Vice President position, I will work towards building a more empowered, well-represented, and supported postdoctoral community- one where every member’s voice will be heard and valued.

I would be honored to have your support, and I look forward to working together to shape a stronger future for the University of Pittsburgh Postdoc community.

Advocacy Chair: Divya Mishra, PhD

Advocacy Chair: Divya Mishra, PhD
Department of Neurobiology, School of Medicine

I am Divya Mishra, PhD, a Postdoctoral Associate in the Department of Neurobiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, where my research focuses on the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying auditory function.
As Advocacy Chair, my vision is to ensure that every Pitt postdoc feels heard, respected, supported, and well represented. I aim to create accessible opportunities for postdocs to share their concerns, identify common challenges through listening sessions and needs assessments, and strengthen communication with university leadership. By translating postdoc feedback into practical recommendations, I hope to advance fair policies, improve workplace culture, and foster a more inclusive and supportive environment for all postdocs, including international and underrepresented scholars.

Career Development Chair: Siddhi Jain, PhD 

Career Development Chair: Siddhi Jain, PhD
Pathology, School of Medicine (Division of Experimental Pathology)

My name is Siddhi Jain, and I am honored to announce my candidacy for the position of Career Development Chair on the UPPDA Executive Board. As postdocs, we stand at a pivotal stage in our professional lives, balancing research excellence, career uncertainty, and the pursuit of long‑term stability. I am running for this position because I believe that every postdoc at the University of Pittsburgh deserves structured support, clear opportunities, and a community that actively invests in their future. Having completed three years as a postdoctoral scholar at Pitt, I understand the challenges we face navigating visa constraints, balancing research demands, and planning for a future that often feels uncertain. These experiences have strengthened my commitment to building a supportive, informed, and empowered postdoc community. My vision is to help create the kind of environment where every postdoc feels seen, supported, and equipped to succeed. I respectfully ask for your support and your vote. Together, we can build a stronger, more connected, and more empowered postdoc community. Thank you for your consideration. 

Communications Chair: Ipsita Dey, PhD

Communications Chair: Ipsita Dey, PhD
Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, School of Medicine

I am Ipsita Dey and I am running for Communication Chair. As a communication chair, I will work to ensure that information is clear, accessible, and timely, so no opportunity or resource is missed. I aim to strengthen our UPPDA community by sharing the relevant updates across multiple platforms, through newsletters, our website, or social media. At the same time, I want to create space for two-way interaction, where feedback is encouraged and every voice has a way to be heard. I believe strong communication should build strong community. I will highlight postdoc achievements, promote collaboration, and make our work more visible and connected.
My goal is simple: to create a communication system that keeps postdocs informed, engaged, and truly connected!

International Chair: Han Zou, MD, PhD

International Chair: Han Zou, MD, PhD
Neurological Surgery, School of Medicine

Global talent, local support.

My background

I am Han Zou, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh. I received my MD with specialization in neurosurgery from Xiangya School of Medicine, one of the top medical schools in China founded in 1914 with support from Yale-China Association in the United States. This early history of international partnership shaped my own academic path. While attending university in an institution rooted in global connection, I gained several crucial skills in medicine, leadership, and most significantly, collaboration. Shortly after graduation, I came to the University of Pittsburgh as a visiting scholar in 2019 and began my PhD training in brain tumor research, under the mentorship of Dr. Baoli Hu within the lab of Brain Tumor Evolution and Therapy. Four years later, I received multiple residency offers from leading hospitals in China.

My mentor in China, Dr. Xuejun Li, an extraordinary neurosurgeon and the vice chair of the school, often emphasized that the best way to treat brain tumor patients is through effective drug therapies that can minimize the risks and side effects of craniotomy, despite being such a skilled surgeon himself. With his teaching in mind, I felt that my ability to improve patient outcomes with just surgery could be significantly enhanced through innovative therapeutics research, and that I needed stronger training to truly thrive as an independent researcher. For this reason, I chose to remain at the University of Pittsburgh to further develop my research career.

During the past three years as a postdoctoral associate, I have become increasingly successful in a team oriented environment. I have thus far published a few high-impact papers, currently have three manuscripts covering medulloblastoma and glioma ready for publication, have gained multiple grants including the ALSF Young Investigator Award, and have built a broad collaborative network. I have had the great honor and pleasure to both mentor many students in the lab and be mentored by many distinguished faculty. I have also been fortunate to receive several awards and recognition during this period, including the CNI award. These experiences have strengthened my commitment to both research excellence and community engagement.

My motivation

Looking back on the seven years I have spent in Pittsburgh, I do not regret my decision to move to a completely new country to begin my new life. However, the journey has not been easy. I experienced significant challenges with cultural adjustment, including differences in communication styles, language habits, housing, legal systems, and expectations between mentors, coworkers, and myself. Although I have received warm and generous support from both U.S. citizens and international colleagues, adapting to a new environment remains an ongoing process, for me and many of my international colleagues. With approximately 53% of the postdoctoral community at the University of Pittsburgh coming from international backgrounds and about 81% working in health-related fields, where interactions may be more difficult, I believe many of us share similar experiences. It is never easy to take such a big step in life, with sometimes no support and simply the mere hope of changing the world for the better, and everyone who does so deserves to be comfortable with the changes that they experience. These challenges motivate me to dedicate my time and energy to serving as International Chair.

My priorities

To better support the community, I propose establishing two complementary advisory groups. The first would include residing and acclimated postdoctoral researchers who can provide guidance on adapting to life in the United States, including practical aspects of daily living and professional development. This peer mentorship style has been largely successful in the undergraduate space at the University of Pittsburgh, and we could model their structure to foster relationships that would better connect our researchers when unexpected challenges may arise. The second would consist of senior international postdoctoral researchers representing major regions and countries, who can offer culturally informed support related to communication, workplace expectations, and community integration. With closer cooperation with the Office of International Services (OIS), these groups could provide more personalized and tailored support for international scholars. This support could also take form in the shape of monthly events for the students to connect, panels where we can meet others who are more advanced in the careers we hope to pursue, and peer workshops where senior peers guide younger researchers through common but critical skills such as resumes, cover letters, and how to tackle interviews, for example.

Another important issue is the recent decline in international postdoctoral research under the current political climate. I believe the UPPDA could develop an updated and systematic guide for international postdoctoral researchers, covering visa processes, relocation, career development, and community resources. This would have to be a carefully organized collective effort that draws from personal lived experiences and would need a strong team I would be thrilled to coordinate. In addition, collaboration with senior international postdoctoral researchers could help with outreach and recruitment, providing mentorship to scholars interested in pursuing postdoctoral training in the United States. I would hope to grow this effort into a separate student ambassador system that mainly connects with prospective students, to ensure our community continues to thrive.

International postdoctoral researchers are essential to the strength of our research community. They contribute to scientific innovation, technological advancement, and improvements in human health. More importantly, they foster direct collaboration and understanding between countries. My own medical school was founded through international cooperation during the turbulent time of World War I, with the shared goal of changing lives. I believe that spirit remains relevant today. By strengthening support for international scholars, we can promote collaboration, advance science, and build a more connected and peaceful global community. I hope to have your vote to be able to make the change I envision.

Networking Chair: Marie-Charlotte Allichon, PhD

Networking Chair: Marie-Charlotte Allichon, PhD
Psychiatry, School of Medicine

My name is Marie-Charlotte Allichon, and I am a Postdoctoral Associate in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh, where I study opioid addiction and prefrontal cortex mechanisms in rodent models. I earned my PhD in Paris, France, and when I arrived at Pitt one year ago, I quickly realized how difficult it was to connect with other postdocs. Because we are spread across multiple buildings and campuses, many of us work in isolation with few natural opportunities to meet outside our labs. After only two months at Pitt, I created an informal Slack community for postdocs to make it easier to connect, share information, and build a sense of belonging. That Slack group has since grown to over 130 members across departments and research fields, and I also began organizing informal social gatherings to encourage in-person connections.

Seeing the strong interest and need for these spaces, I reached out to UPPDA to expand the Slack community and promote it more widely. This is how I first became involved in the Networking Committee, and later stepped into the role of Networking Chair when my predecessor relocated. Since February, serving as Chair has allowed me to better understand how the university and the association function internally, and to contribute more directly to UPPDA’s mission. I also had the opportunity to represent Pitt postdocs at the National Postdoctoral Association Annual Conference in March, which strengthened my commitment to building community and advocating for postdoc needs.

As Networking Chair, my goal is to further strengthen connections among Pitt postdocs by organizing regular social and professional networking events, supporting interdisciplinary collaboration, and creating more accessible opportunities for postdocs to meet regardless of department or location. I am especially motivated to foster an inclusive and welcoming environment for all postdocs, including international researchers. I am excited to continue bringing energy, organization, and initiative to help UPPDA build a more connected and engaged postdoctoral community at Pitt.