Current Executive
President
Abdullah Mohiuddin
Dr. Abdullah Mohiuddin is keen to bring forth improvements to the postdoctoral program at the Univeristy of Alberta. Specifically, he believes the postdoc program should have a vision statement, there should be a mandate or responsibility assigned to PIs to train postdocs so that postdocs can become future PIs, senior scientists, and faculty members. There is a significant loss in terms of retirement because of low CPP contributions for several years starting from Masters, PhD and then during postdoctoral fellowship. The minimum salary of postdocs as per current collective agreement is less than professions which require minimal education and training. I want to make sure that during negotiations for collective agreement, the university takes into account the amazing work that postdocs do, and make significant improvements in the financial and career deficiencies of the program.
VP Internal
Md Shaheen
Md Shaheen is currently working as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Alberta. He is working on developing biosensors targeting different biomolecules for clinical diagnostic use. He is trained as a microbiologist (B.Sc. in Microbiology) and obtained an M.Sc. degree in Microbiology and Biotechnology from the Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta and a Ph.D. in Public Health with a specialization in Environmental Health Sciences from the School of Public Health, University of Alberta.
In addition to his academic pursuits, he has been actively involved in different student organizations and advocacy initiatives. During his graduate studies, he served as president of the Michener Park Residents Association and the Bangladeshi Students Association at the U of A. His dedication to serving the community is also exemplified by his previous role as a resident assistant, where he actively contributed to fostering a safe and inclusive living environment for international student families. He helped facilitate their smooth transition in Canada through educational initiatives and community engagement programs.
VP External
Alsayed Mostafa
Alsayed Mostafa is a postdoctoral fellow (PDF) in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. His current work focuses on combining the principles of environmental biotechnology and bioelectrochemistry to develop bioenergy and resource recovery from waste and wastewater. Alsayed completed his Ph.D. in Smart-City Engineering at Inha University, South Korea. Before joining the U of A, Alsayed worked as a postdoc in the Department of Environmental Resources Engineering at the College of Environmental Science and Forestry, State University of New York, USA. He has gained large professional experience from his career working in multiple countries: the USA, South Korea, India, and Egypt. Alsayed has been a member of many student organizations during his student life. Outside of the university, he worked and volunteered with many organizations related to human rights, social initiatives, charity, and political campaigns in Egypt, South Korea, and the USA. Based on his social activity, Alsayed was selected by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation to participate in a program supporting the development of youth capacities, which lasted for 18 months.
VP Communications
Ayesha Iqbal
Ayesha Iqbal joined the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry in January 2023 as a postdoctoral fellow. She is a trained pharmacist with a Pharm-D, Masters in Pharmacy Practice, and a PhD in Pharmacy Practice and Policy from the UK. Her research interests include social, administrative and policy research, chronic disease and medication management, realist evaluation, implementation science, health services research, and intervention design and evaluation. Ayesha Iqbal won the International Vice Chancellor Scholarship for Research Excellence at the University of Nottingham, UK, and the Future for Faculty Grant by Schlumberger Foundation for women from LMICs to pursue her doctoral degree.
She attended several training courses at the University of Oxford and King’s College London in qualitative research and implementation science. Miss Iqbal received the Research Productivity Award in 2015 for outstanding research contributions in Pakistan and was also honored with the Rising Star Award in 2022 from the University of Nottingham for her extensive research contributions during her PhD.
Miss Iqbal also has a special interest in advancing health in Low-Middle Income Countries by aiming to achieve the WHO sustainable development goals and the application of Universal Health Coverage principles in developing countries. Alongside her professional interests, she also holds a special interest in female professional development.
VP Finance
Simran Kaur Dhillon
Simran Kaur Dhillon is a postdoctoral fellow in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at the University of Alberta. She is currently developing biosensors for environmental remediation and real-time monitoring. Her research endeavours primarily revolved around developing alternatives to address the world's most pressing challenges in water-energy-food security, emphasizing creating eco-friendly and sustainable solutions accessible to all. Her expertise lies at the interface of material science, electrochemistry, microbiology, and biotechnology for developing sustainable and emission-free bioenergy, bioremediation and real-time monitoring systems based on Microbial Electrochemical Technologies (METs) and their evaluation using electrochemical techniques.
Having recently completed her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India, following a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Bath, UK, in Chemical Engineering, she is eager to transition into the next phase of her academic and research career. She has demonstrated leadership by taking on roles such as student representative in the Institutional council during my Ph.D. These experiences have honed her organizational skills, time management, and ability to coordinate and lead projects effectively. Over the course of her academic journey and research endeavours, she has developed a diverse set of skills and experiences that she believes can be put to excellent use as a member of the PDFA executive.
VP Operations
Razieh Firouzihaji
Razieh is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Physics at the University of Alberta. Her research focuses on the preparation of graphene quantum dots and the evaluation of the microstructural and optical properties of graphene and other carbon-based quantum materials. Razieh is passionate about exploring the potential of these materials to revolutionize the field of electronics and energy storage. She is originally from Iran and has a background in organic chemistry. Razieh is very enthusiastic about participating in PDFA and contributing to the scientific community.
Member-at-Large
Henry Prown
Henry Prown is in his third year as the Temerty Postdoctoral Fellow in Holodomor Studies with the Holodomor Research and Education Consortium here at the University of Alberta. He is also an ATS in the History, Religion, and Classics department teaching topics related to modern world history. Henry's PhD is in American Studies from William & Mary in the USA, which he received in 2022. His research focuses on Soviet-American media in the early 20th century. As a founding member of that university's graduate union and former acting VP Communications for this university's postdoctoral union, he is very grateful to have the chance to serve his third consecutive term on the PDFA executive board.
Member-at-Large
Michael Baggaley
Michael Baggaley is a new postdoc in the Department of Mechanical Engineering working with Dan Romanyk. His work is focused on understanding the mechanobiological processes that modulate how biological tissues grow and adapt to match the constraints of their environment. He completed his PhD in Biomechanics at the University of Calgary in 2022 and worked as a postdoc at the U of C for two years before moving to Edmonton. He is interested in improving the well-being and recognition of postdocs at the University of Alberta. He is particularly passionate about the strengths of unions to enact change, and is excited to be a part of the process in working on a new collective bargaining agreement with the university.
Member-at-Large
Sarita Bassil
Sarita Bassil is currently a postdoctoral fellow in forestry at the Forest Growth & Yield Lab in the Department of Renewable Resources of the University of Alberta. She completed her PhD in Natural Resources Management with concentration in Silviculture from the State University of New York-College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF) in 2018, and was a lecturer at the Department of Agroforestry of the University of the Valley of Guatemala between 2020 and 2022. Sarita is eager to serve the postdoc community at the University of Alberta as a member-at-large with the PDFA executive council.
Member-at-Large
Ramana Vaka
Ramana Vaka is a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Jason Dyck in Pediatrics at the University of Alberta. His research focuses on studying molecular pathways involved in cardiac energy metabolism regulation to improve heart function in patients living with heart failure.
Ramana has a PhD in Experimental Therapeutics and Pharmacology and has previously completed industry and academic postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Southern California-Allergan, and the University of Ottawa Heart Institute respectively.
Ramana has a strong passion for academic service, and he was fortunate for the opportunities to serve on several institutional and national student/trainee associations during his training. Currently, as a member of the PDFA, he is very excited to contribute towards PDFA's efforts on fostering enriched postdoctoral experience at the University of Alberta.