Current (2024-2025) Board Members

Irma Avdic

Irma Avdic

President

Irma is a fourth-year chemistry Ph.D. candidate in the Mazziotti group studying quantum algorithms for molecular simulation and quantum sensing. When she is not fixing broken code, she enjoys crocheting, lifting weights, and reading novels.

iavdic@uchicago.edu

Jill Belluomini

Jill Belluomini

Treasurer

Jill is a second-year chemistry Ph.D. candidate in the Tokmakoff Group studying the phase separation dynamics of thermoresponsive polymers through temperature-jump infrared spectroscopy. In her free time, she enjoys playing with her dog Simon, dancing with the University Ballet of Chicago, and reading fantasy books.

jbelluomini@uchicago.edu 

 
Qijie Shen

Qijie Shen

Treasurer

Qije studies excited dynamics in photosynthetic proteins using ultrafast two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy. She likes solving problems related to instruments and data processing, and sometimes writing, often accompanied by a good coffee. In her free time, she loves exploring different neighborhoods in Chicago during the summer, while in the winter, she turns to baking and crocheting. The company of friends always makes these activities more enjoyable.

qijie@uchicago.edu

Elizabeth Jamka

Elizabeth Jamka

Post-doc Representative

Liz is a third year postdoctoral fellow, who works in the Sibener group studying how molecules adsorb, react, or diffuse into frozen ice films, as this is often a first step for reactions to occur in ice mantles in space using molecular beam and  in situ Reflection Absorption Infrared Spectroscopy analysis. When not in lab Liz is either reading, crafting, or going on adventures with her rescue dog Chloe.

ejamka@uchicago.edu

Kristina Trifonova

Kristina Trifonova

Media Coordinator

Kristina is a second-year chemistry Ph.D. candidate co-advised by Suri Vaikuntanathan and Arvind Murugan, and she studies the neural network-like abilities of biophysical processes like protein dimerization and phase separation. When she is not coding, Kristina enjoys ballet, reading, and spending time outside biking, climbing, or swimming in Lake Michigan.

ktrifonova@uchicago.edu

Spela Kunstelj

Spela Kunstelj

Administrative Coordinator

Špela is a fourth-year chemistry Ph.D. candidate in the Wuttig lab, where her research focuses on tuning interfacial microenvironments for selective electrosynthesis. Outside of the lab, Špela likes to bake desserts, read books,  and play sports.
 

The WiC+ Leadership Board changes annually, with student-led nominations and elections taking place during the summer quarter each year. If you are interested in joining WiC+ Leadership take a look at our Bylaws page and keep an eye out for the nomination email sent to the listserv during the summer!

Past Leadership

2023-2024

Julie Korsmeyer
Allison Hohreiter
Yumin Lee

2022-2023

Julie Korsmeyer
Allison Hohreiter
Yumin Lee
Jelena Momirov
YouYou Li

2021-2022

Maia Czaikowski
Olivia Laxton
Shubhashree Pani
Julie Korsmeyer
Yuqing Qiu

2020-2021

Kate Berger
Brooke Schuster
Kathryn Segner
Clare Keenan
Yuqing Qiu

2019-2020

Kate Berger
Michelle Brann
Brooke Schuster
Nasim Mirzajani

2018-2019

Sarah Brown
Julia Murphy
Tessa Lynch-Colameta
Nanetta Pon

2017-2018

Becca Thompson
Sarah Zinn
Youjin Lee
Sara Sohail

2016-2017

Becca Thompson
Sarah Zinn
Youjin Lee
Sara Sohail