Meet the members of the LaViolette Lab

Peter LaViolette, PhD

Dr. LaViolette is an alum of the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) Biophysics Department, where he completed his PhD in 2011. He is now an Endowed Professor of Radiology, Biophysics, and Biomedical Engineering at MCW. His research focuses on developing radio-pathomic machine learning models using MRI and histology to characterize brain and prostate cancer. He directs the Quantitative Imaging Lab (QIL), supporting cancer clinical trials. If that wasn’t enough, he is also the Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Radiology! Dr. LaViolette has published over 70 papers and been awarded multiple grants from the NIH, industry, and foundations. He received the MCW Robert C. Olson Professorship in Radiology in 2021. Dr. LaViolette mentors numerous trainees and serves on NIH study sections.

Outside of lab, he likes spending time with his two crazy kids and lots of hobbies including home renovations, wood working, collecting orchids, and traveling.

Allison Lowman

Program Manager I

Allie has been with us since 2018 where she started as a Research Technologist. She has climbed the ranks since then as a Research Associate and now a Program Manager for the QIL. Around the
lab she is known for knowing where all data exists, solving most
problems, and doing independent projects in the brain. Outside of
the lab she can be found exploring State and National Parks, coaching the WWHS Cheer Team, or cheering on all things Wisconsin Badgers.

Fitzgerald Kyereme

Research Technologist I

Fitz joined us in 2020 after completing his bachelor’s degree
in Biochemistry from
UW-Milwaukee. Fitz is primarily
responsible for digitizing stained
histology for the lab, as well as creating 3D printed slicing jigs for
our prostate cancer patients.

Programmer Analyst II

Michael completed MCW’s software engineering apprenticeship in 2022 and has been with us since. He is responsible for the research infrastructure in the lab, and deploying and managing the local Kubernetes cluster and the
services deployed on it, specifically OMERO and XNAT, digital
pathology and radiology services, respectively. Michael loves trying
to figure out how new things work
and their applications.

Michael Barrett

Assistant Professor

Sam is the newest Assistant
Professor in MCW’s Department of Radiology! He is a former
LaViolette Lab graduate student
and post-doctoral fellow. His
research focuses on training
machine learning models to non-invasively measure autopsy tissue characteristics using MRI to
improve disease tracking in brain cancer. In his free time he enjoys making pasta, playing with synthesizers, and watching old movies.

Samuel Bobholz, PhD

Savannah Duenweg, PhD

Research Scientist I

Savannah is a Research Scientist
in the lab, staying on after
completing her PhD with the LaViolette Lab. Her primary work focuses developing radio-pathomic
machine learning models using
MRI and whole mount prostate
tissue to assess cancer risk. If she’s not in lab or traveling for a conference, you can find her
serving brunch at Café Benelux, playing with her dog, or
reading a good book.

Aleksandra Winiarz

Graduate Student

Aleks is a fifth year graduate student in the lab from the Neuroscience Doctoral Program. Her research focuses on clinical applications of radio-pathomic mapping in GBM patients. Aleks is the Biophysics representative for the Graduate Student Association for the second year in a row! Aleks is an avid
runner and yogi. She also enjoys dancing, traveling, and her queen Taylor Swift!

Biprojit Nath

Graduate Student

Bipro is a third year graduate
student, joining us after receiving
his MSc in Nuclear Medicine from Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. He is passionate about applying his background in
medical physics and nuclear
medicine to our brain datasets.
The Huberman Lab podcast fuels
his brain, and he loves to travel
and whip up delicious meals in
the kitchen.

Graduate Student | MSTP

Ben is a second year of graduate student from the Medical
Scientist Training Program. He is currently experimenting with
new ideas of tumor probability
maps in GBM patients and plans
to predict longitudinal tumor
growth patterns. Outside of work,
Ben is a huge gym rat, loves video games, his cat Corn, and
mentoring at Badger Boy State.

Benjamin Chao

Rachel Beers

Clinical Research Coordinator III

Rachel joined MCW in 2021 as a Clinical Coordinator in Radiology after completing her Masters at
UW-Madison. She manages
multiple studies within the MRI research realm which are led by various departments. Her main
focus is prostate and brain cancer,
as well as regulatory efforts within the department. Outside of work, Rachel has an appointment as an Adjunct Professor at B&SC and
can be found at local eats as a
Milwaukee foodie.

MD/MS Dual Degree

Daniel is a second year student in
the MD/MS program. He is
currently exploring the use of radio-pathomic maps as a noninvasive biomarker of tumor biology and exploring clinical application of tumor probability maps. Outside of work and school, Daniel
enjoys playing golf and traveling.

Daniel Kim

MD | Post-Doctoral Fellow

Hope worked extensively with the
lab during medical school, and
now after graduating is joining us
for a postdoctoral fellowship.
Since receiving her BS from the
University of Pittsburgh, her
research passions have been in epilepsy and neurosurgery. Her role
in the lab is to establish RPMs in epilepsy, and to validate them
inside the OR. When not in lab at 3am, she is likely off solo-camping, rock climbing, teaching Sunday school, or tending to her 41 plants.