PGY2

Born and raised in Southeastern Massachusetts, Melissa stayed local for college attending Boston University where she majored in Human Physiology and minored in Spanish. While at BU, she was introduced to the realm of clinical research, focusing on children with asthma & allergies. In her spare time, she enjoyed volunteering at Boston Children’s Hospital, teaching the violin to elementary students in inner-city Boston, and eating at the various brunch spots.

After college, Melissa moved back home and worked as a clinical research assistant at Rhode Island Hospital, focusing on Pulmonary Hypertension. There, she realized that what she admired most was developing relationships with patients and their families. She decided she couldn’t venture too far for medical school and stayed within the New England area attending UNE, loving all things outdoor and Maine. Melissa is beyond excited to return to her home state and begin training as a pediatrician (something she’s wanted to do since middle school!). Outside of work, Melissa enjoys baking, coffee shops& donuts, hiking with her partner, and spending time with her family.

Megan grew up in Garden City, New York. She went on to attend Duke University where she studied Neuroscience and spent many winter nights camping out for basketball tickets. After graduation, Megan moved to Boston and worked in life sciences consulting for two years before ultimately deciding to pursue medicine. For medical school, she returned to the hospital where she was born to become part of the first class at NYU Long Island School of Medicine. There she was involved in several medical education projects, the student admissions committee, and was even co-president of a club dedicated to performing magic for pediatric patients. Initially, Megan was drawn to the diverse pathology and problem solving of internal medicine. But having worked as a camp counselor for most summers, she also knew she loved working with kids and couldn’t imagine giving up that population. Med peds was the perfect fit! While not completely decided on her future career choice, Megan is passionate about primary care, preventative medicine, and medical education. In her free time, she enjoys spending time outside (preferably on a beach), reading historical nonfiction, eating good food, drinking good coffee, and (hopefully) playing pickleball with her co-interns! 

Katie grew up in Warwick, RI where she first fell in love with patient interactions in the hospital working as a dietary aide. She attended Siena College majoring in Biology and during her free time she was often with the Siena College Mentoring Program or working in the chemistry department as a TA. After college, she stuck around the Capital Region to attend medical school at Albany Medical College where she could often be found mentoring and tutoring younger students as they transitioned to medical school or volunteering at the Double H Ranch throughout the year. It was at Double H that she first gained an interest in young adults with chronic illnesses making the transition to adulthood. Around the same time, she learned about Med/Peds as a specialty and how it was the best of both worlds, and never looked back. She is psyched to be moving down Route 90 a little closer to home at UMass. Katie does not know exactly what she wants to be at the end of training, but currently is interested in palliative care, complex care, and hospital medicine. She is excited to see where the opportunities at UMass take her, but ideally will also be able to pursue working to better understand transitions of care for adolescents, and medical education as well. In her free time, Katie can be found reading a good book on the beach, listening to all kinds of podcasts while trying to increase the distance she can run, exploring the Worcester food scene with her husband, and taking every chance she can to get outside.

Catherine grew up in Grafton, MA, and always knew that she wanted to work with children. She studied human physiology at Boston University and fell in love with pediatric medicine after volunteering with child life services at Boston Medical Center and completing a pediatric cardiology internship at Tufts Children’s Hospital. After college, she first worked for an education technology start-up in Boston and as a scribe in family medicine here at UMass. However, she missed hands-on patient care, so she returned to the bedside as a clinical care technician at Tufts Children’s Hospital. There, she found her passion for hematology/oncology while working in their pediatric bone marrow transplant unit. As a medical student at the University of New England, she was an elementary student mentor and helped develop a weekly health and nutrition curriculum for fourth and fifth graders. In the spring of 2020, she co-founded Maine COVID Sitters, a volunteer organization that matched healthcare workers with medical students to provide free childcare during the COVID surge in Maine.  Though she is very interested in hematology/oncology, Catherine is excited to see where her residency journey at UMass takes her. In her free time, she loves to cook, take care of her (way too many) tropical plants, travel, and spend time with her family, friends, and fiancé Mihir. She is so grateful for this unique and wonderful opportunity to care for children in her home community and to train at the hospital where she was born.

Hans grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts. He attended Wesleyan University and graduated with a major in Neuroscience and Behavior. He also played on the soccer team and worked part time at a local children's museum called Kidcity. After college, Hans moved to Boston to work as a clinical research coordinator for a neurologist at the MGH Neurological Clinical Research Institute. While there, he assisted in a variety of clinical trials related to circadian dysregulation in Parkinson’s disease. Hans then attended medical school at the University of Massachusetts where he had the wonderful opportunity to work with the UMass Chan Med/Peds team as a student. Their passion for improving the community around them while caring for a robust patient population solidified his interest in pursuing a career in Med-Peds. Hans is thrilled to be continuing his training as a resident at UMass and hopes to pursue a fellowship in Sports Medicine while also seeking out opportunities to work with transition-age individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Outside of the hospital, Hans enjoys playing sports, exploring the local food and drink scene, traveling to visit friends, anything iced-coffee related, and trying (and failing) to learn the guitar.

Peter was raised southeast of Worcester in Upton, MA with his four brothers and one sister. He attended Boston College where he studied Biology and Bioinformatics. During his time at Boston College, he developed a passion for pediatrics while spending his summers working in the Boston Children’s Hospital Pathology Department. Peter co-led a first year undergraduate mentorship program at Boston College, was an RA, and hopes to continue mentoring pre-medical and medical students. Peter was overjoyed to attend UMass Chan Medical School and continue spending time with his friends, family, and three dogs in Upton. While at UMass, he spent his time in Worcester trying to find the best Italian food, and in his pursuit spent lots of time with friends at local restaurants and breweries. He also co-led a medical school chapter of Best Buddies with his co-resident Hans. He has a passion for primary care, underserved populations, and is beyond excited to keep Worcester and UMass as his community and home for residency. In his free time, Peter can be found catching up on Netflix’s latest reality TV show with his dogs, spending time with friends at the gym (but mostly on the couch), or catching some sunshine by hiking or just driving with the windows down listening to music.

Raul grew up in Brockton, MA and majored in biochemistry at Stonehill College in Easton, MA. He developed a passion for the biomedical sciences, conducting research while studying abroad in Granada, Spain and working as a research assistant at MIT after graduating. He then enrolled in the Tri-Institutional MD-PhD Program at Weill Cornell Medicine and studied the epigenetics of melanoma for his PhD work. During medical school, he was involved in the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA), becoming a strong advocate for Latinx health. Raul fell in love with pediatrics early on, finding it rewarding to work with children and the village that takes care of them. He is especially interested in the environmental factors that affect the physical and mental health of children and adolescents. Raul enjoys swimming, hiking, Zumba, and the essential weekend brunch with friends.  

Colby was born and raised in Brattleboro, Vermont. After high school, Colby attended the University of Vermont and pursued a degree in mathematics with a minor in biology. While at UVM, Colby played on the club lacrosse team (go Cats!), was an active member of the pre-health mentoring program, and spent lots of time in the Vermont mountains and on the shores of Lake Champlain. Colby stayed in Burlington for medical school at the Larner College of Medicine, where he met his partner and fellow UMASS intern Rose (Internal Med). He was a four-year member of the student wellness committee and remained active in the Vermont chapter of the Area Health Education Committee, where he continued to develop his love for primary care and pediatrics. Colby loves working with kids and spent many years as a camp counselor. His desire to pursue pediatrics was reaffirmed in med school, and he is now so excited to connect with his patients and their families during residency. In his free time, Colby loves to spend time outside. Skiing, running, swimming, and hiking are a few his favorite activities. Colby is also a massive Boston sports fan and can’t wait to catch some games at Fenway or The Garden in the coming years. Coming from Burlington, he also loves a great brewery (Treehouse is on the list of must-try’s) and is excited to explore the awesome places to grab a bite, beer, or coffee with co-residents in Worcester. Colby is stoked to call Worcester home for the next three years and is so excited to be at UMASS.

Hayden grew up near Worcester in Bolton, MA, a town best known for its apple orchards. At Nashoba Regional he enjoyed playing basketball and participating in Unified Sports. As an undergraduate at Brown University, he dabbled as a student-athlete (one year walk on rower and biochemistry major) and spent time as an afterschool and in-class tutor at the local Providence high school. After attending UMass Chan Medical School and loving his time with the pediatric team, he is thrilled to be staying in Worcester for residency. He has a clinical interest in hematology/oncology and palliative care plus a particular affinity for medical education. In his free time, Hayden enjoys cheering on the WooSox, rowing on lake Quinsigamond, cooking with local produce, reviewing books on Goodreads, and venturing to Lake Winnipesauke with his family. 

Ariana grew up in sunny San Diego, California, where she enjoyed being surrounded by a rich diversity of cultures (and of course the beach!). Ever the adventurer, Ariana moved across the United States after high school to attend Boston College where she studied Biology and Slavic Studies. Upon graduation, Ariana pursued a research opportunity studying the fitness cost of inactivating specific structured RNA regulators in bacteria with the hope of determining novel antimicrobial targets. Ariana then went on to attend UMass Chan Medical School, which continued to foster her passion for working with diverse, underserved populations. In line with this interest, she helped create the Urban Health Scholars Pathway at UMass, a 4-year longitudinal program to encourage student interest in working with this population. She loves Worcester and the UMass community and is thrilled to be staying here for her residency. In her free time, Ariana enjoys taking nature walks with her husband Max, baking/cooking, and cuddling up with her two cats to watch TV.

Daria grew up in Holliston, MA with her parents and two younger siblings. She attended WPI for her undergraduate education, where she earned her degree in Biochemistry and first developed an interest in public health, contributing to health education programs both locally in Worcester and abroad in Bangkok, Thailand. After college, she spent 2 years conducting immunology research at Boston Children's Hospital before returning to UMass for medical school. During her time in medical school, Daria continued to grow her passion for public health and advocacy, earning her MPH from UMass Amherst along with her MD. Her interests include improving health literacy in children and young adults and addressing systemic barriers to care. Daria has had a lifelong goal of becoming a pediatrician, and her passion for pediatrics was solidified by the amazing pediatric attendings and residents at UMass. She is thrilled to stay at UMass to continue her pediatrics training. In her spare time, Daria enjoys running, playing guitar (badly), and making science-related sewing and cross stitch projects. 

Kayla grew up in New Jersey before moving to Lexington, Massachusetts. She attended Northeastern University for her undergraduate education with a major in Biochemistry and minor in Business Administration. During her time at Northeastern, Kayla became interested in mentorship after serving as a teaching assistant, peer mentor, and president of her sorority. She also had the opportunity to work as a clinical research assistant at Brigham and Women’s Center for Adrenal Disorders, which confirmed her interest in medicine.  She moved to Chicago to attend Rosalind Franklin University Medical School where she fell in love with both her Medicine and Pediatric rotations. Kayla is undecided on her career path (like many Med-Peds residents), but she is interested in preventive medicine, nephrology, hospitalist medicine, and medical education. Outside of the hospital, she enjoys hiking, running, jigsaw puzzles, playing tennis, and spending time with friends and family!