Announcing Hariri Institute Fellows and Focused Research Program Awards
9 Fellows and 3 Focused Research Programs Awarded
The Hariri Institute for Computing is pleased to announce our 2025 Fellows and 2026 Focused Research Program (FRP) award recipients.
The Institute has awarded four Junior Faculty Fellows and five Graduate Student Fellows, representing early-career faculty and exemplary first-year and second-year graduate students who are pursuing innovative computationally-driven research with the potential for high impact. Our 2025 cohort of fellows represents a variety of colleges and schools across Boston University. They are applying computational methods and tools to address complex challenges in diverse fields spanning anatomy & neurobiology, biomedical engineering, biostatistics, computer science, computing & data science, global health, neuroscience, physics, and systems engineering.
2025 Junior Faculty Fellows Awards
Our 2025 Junior Faculty Fellows are Boston University Assistant Professors Huitong Ding, PhD (Anatomy & Neurobiology, Chobanian & Avedisian SOM); Hongwan Liu, PhD (Physics, College of Arts & Sciences); Allison Portnoy, ScD (Global Health, School of Public Health); Pawel Przytycki, PhD (Computing & Data Sciences, Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences).
2025 Graduate Student Fellows Awards
Our 2025 Graduate Student Fellows are Boston University PhD students Tushar Arora (Neuroscience, Chobanian & Avedisian SOM); Zijian Guo (Systems Engineering, College of Engineering); Zachary Loschinskey (Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering); Sarah Milligan (Biostatistics, School of Public Health); and Yuwen Tan (Computer Science, College of Arts & Sciences).
“We’re thrilled to welcome our 2025 Fellows —an inspiring group of early-career researchers and students who are harnessing computational approaches to tackle some of today’s most complex challenges,” says Yannis Paschalidis, director of Hariri Institute, distinguished professor of engineering (ECE, SE, BME), and founding professor of Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences. “Their work exemplifies the spirit of interdisciplinary innovation that drives the Hariri Institute’s mission and Boston University’s leadership in data-driven discovery.”
Learn more about our 2025 junior faculty and graduate student fellows here.
2026 Focused Research Programs Awards
The Hariri Institute awarded three 2026 FRP awards leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to drive interdisciplinary innovation in both biomedical and environmental domains. These initiatives emphasize the use of computational tools to improve early disease detection, optimize clinical decision-making, and advance predictive environmental modeling.
“These FRPs converge on a shared vision: using robust, explainable, and scalable AI/ML methodologies to generate actionable insights across complex, high-impact systems,” says Paschalidis. “The projects demonstrate the Institute’s strategic focus on data-centric, cross-sector solutions to pressing global challenges.”
Aimed at catalyzing convergent research and innovation, Hariri Institute FRPs provide seed funding for faculty-driven efforts in multi-disciplinary teams to coalesce in sustainable ways. The mission is to advance discoveries and innovations in computing and AI, accelerating research with the potential for future funding and broad societal impact.
Our 2026 Focused Research Programs and Research Fellows include:
“AI-driven accurate detection strategies for aggressive early-stage lung adenocarcinoma“
The goal of this FRP is to develop a biomarker that can predict microscopic VI in both lung resection tissues and pre-surgical biopsies using digitized hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained slides which are part of the standard pathology workflow. Learn more about this FRP.
FRP Leaders:
- Dr. Jennifer Beane, Associate Professor, Computational Biomedicine
- Dr. Vijaya Kolachalama, Associate Professor of Medicine & Computer Science; Faculty of Computing and Data Science
- Dr. Kayhan Batmanghelich, Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Dr. Ehab Billatos, Assistant Professor of Medicine; Director of Inpatient Pulmonary Clinical Services
- Dr. Eric Burks, Associate Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, BMC
- Dr. Joshua Campbell, Associate Professor, Computational Biomedicine
- Dr. Jerry Chen, Associate Professor, Biology
- Dr. Jonathan Cherry, Assistant Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
- Dr. Ruben Dries, Assistant Professor, Hematology and Medical Oncology
- Dr. Marc Lenburg, Professor of Medicine, Computational Biomedicine
- Dr. Jesse Mez, Associate Professor, Neurology
- Dr. Pawel Przytycki, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Computing and Data Science
- Dr. Lei Tian, Associate Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
“Environmental Forecasting: From Computational Tools to Scientific Insight“
The goal of this FRP is to lay foundations to establish BU’s leadership in the convergent area of environmental forecasting by bringing together our expertise across computer science, statistics, data science, ML/AI, biology, and ecology. Learn more about this FRP.
- Dr. Michael Dietze, Professor, Computer Science and Computing and Data Science
- Dr. Jonathan Huggins, Assistant Professor, Mathematics and Statistics, Computing and Data Sciences; Founding Professor, Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences
- Dr. Yves Atchade, Professor, Mathematics and Statistics, Computing and Data Sciences
- Dr. Elizabeth Barnes, Dalton Chair of Environmental Data Science
- Dr. Roelof Boumans, Pardee Visiting Scholar
- Dr. Peter Buston, Associate Professor of Biology and Director of BU Marine Program
- Dr. Luis Carvalho, Associate Professor, Mathematics and Statistics
- Dr. Julio Castrillon, Research Assistant Professor, Mathematics and Statistics
- Dr. Sarah Davies, Associate Professor, Biology
- Dr. Cedric Fichot, Associate Professor, Earth and Environment
- Dr. Tom Gardos, Associate Professor of the Practice, Computing and Data Sciences
- Dr. Deepti Ghadiyaram, Assistant Professor, Computer Science
- Dr. Boqing Gong, Assistant Professor, Computer Science
- Dr. Suchi Gopal, Professor, Earth and Environment
- Dr. David Hamer, Professor of Global Health and Medicine
- Dr. Lucy Hutyra, Distinguished Professor and Chair, Earth and Environment
- Dr. Les Kaufman, Professor of Biology
- Dr. Patrick Keys, Professor, Earth and Environment
- Dr. Mark Kon, Professor, Mathematics and Statistics
- Dr. Jessica Leibler, Associate Professor of Environmental Health
- Dr. Debarghya Mukherjee, Assistant Professor, Mathematics and Statistics
- Dr. Pawel Przytycki, Assistant Professor, Computing and Data Sciences
- Dr. Daniel Segrè, Professor of Biology and Computing and Data Science
- Dr. Pamela Templer, Distinguished Professor and Chair, Biology
- Dr. Langdon White, Clinical Assistant Professor; BU Spark! Technical Director
- Dr. Xuezhou Zhang, Assistant Professor, Computing and Data Sciences
“AI-PRISM (Artificial Intelligence for Precision Recommendations and Integrated Scoring in Medicine)“
This FRP aims to apply AI and machine learning to clinical care applications to (1) optimize prescriptions for hypertension and (2) compute NIH Stroke Scales from unstructured clinical notes, emphasizing safety, robustness, and explainability. Learn more about this FRP.
- Dr. Charlene J. Ong, Assistant Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery; BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine; Neurointensivist, Boston Medical Center (BMC)
- Dr. Nicholas Cordella, Medical Director of Quality and Safety, BMC; BU Chobanian School of Medicine
- Dr. Ioannis Paschalidis, Distinguished Professor, BU Engineering; Director of Hariri Institute for Computing
Core and Affiliated Faculty
- Dr. Nicholas Bosch, Pulmonologist and Co-Director, BU Center for Implementation and Improvement Science
- Dr. Benjamin Brush, Assistant Professor, Neurology, NYU Langone
- Dr. Huimin Cheng, Assistant Professor, Biostatistics, BU School of Public Health
- Dr. Rebecca Mishuris, Chief Medical Information Officer and VP of Digital, Mass General Brigham
- Dr. Stelios Smirnakis, Associate Professor, Neurology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
“These outstanding researchers and multidisciplinary teams exemplify the power of interdisciplinary research in computing and AI, which is at the core of the Institute’s mission,” says Paschalidis. “Each award underscores our commitment to advancing data-driven approaches that tackle critical challenges in science, medicine, and society.”