Grant Writing Academy Team
Director & Founder of the Grant Writing Academy
Dr. Crystal Botham’s passion for writing proposals was ignited as a graduate student while writing an AHA fellowship. The Grant Writing Academy (started in 2014) is based on her successful Tackling Your K course (70% success rate for career development awards).
In addition to being the founder and director of the Grant Writing Academy, she provides strategic advice to faculty and others in the Department of Pediatrics to enable competitive funding applications and productive research programs.
Associate Director of Training & Research
Dr. Courtney Peña-Lima is a social scientist and education researcher. She works closely with our team of Grant Coaches to develop effective and engaging grant writing training curriculum. She teaches writing productivity for graduate students, and her research focuses on scientific communication training in the biosciences.
Associate Director of Research Development and Belonging
Dr. Amber Moore is a trained immunologist whose goal is to connect individuals with the resources they need to excel holistically. Dr. Moore is leading the Grant Writing Academy’s new faculty-focused strategies for belonging and activities including new bootcamps, workshops, and resources development.
Academic Program Officer
Adela graduated from Santa Clara University where she completed her M.S. in Marketing. She has worked for Kaiser Permanente and Wells Fargo and served in the United States Marine Corps as an Administrative and Legal Specialist. At the Grant Writing Academy, Adela provides administrative and project management support as the Academic Program Officer.
Graduate Research Assistant
Miroslav Suzara is a PhD candidate at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education in the Learning Sciences and Technology Design program and holds an M.S. in Computer Science from Stanford. At the Grant Writing Academy, he works with Dr. Courtney Peña-Lima on various mixed-methods research projects related to biosciences education and training in scientific communication.
SBSA Fellowship Chairs
SBSA Graduate Student Fellowship Chair
Sophia Manukian is a rising fourth year in the Biochemistry program. She joined the Dixon lab where she is researching the mechanism behind a novel form of non-apoptotic cell death. Sophia received her NSF GRFP prior to coming to Stanford but has served as mentor in the peer mentoring program last year. She looks forward to helping to organize the program this year. In her free time, Sophia enjoys social dancing, climbing and soaking up the sunshine.
SBSA Graduate Student Fellowship Chair
Sophia Shen is a rising fourth year in the Bioengineering program. She is in the Bao and Coleman Labs working on developing novel wearables for women’s health. While Sophia received her NSF GRFP prior to coming to Stanford, she has served as a mentor in the peer mentoring program for 2 years. In her free time, Sophia enjoys painting and hanging out with her cat.
Advisors
Associate Dean for Postdoctoral Affairs
Senior Associate Dean, Graduate Education & Postdoctoral Affairs
Senior Associate Dean, Research
Associate Dean for Graduate Education and Diversity