Rising Stars Symposium to recognize innovative substance use disorder researchers
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 30, 2025) — The University of Kentucky’s Substance Use Priority Research Area (SUPRA) will host the Rising Stars Symposium to highlight different perspectives in research on substance use disorders.
The symposium will be 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 21, in the Healthy Kentucky Research Building (HKRB) Room 150.
Three early career researchers from across the country will present their research:
- Mariel Bello, Ph.D., Medical University of South Carolina, “Applying a Sociopharmacology Framework to Advance Health Equity in Addiction Science and Public Health”
- Allison Glasser, Ph.D., Rutgers University, “Informing Evidence-Based Policy to Prevent Substance Misuse and Inequities”
- Daniel McCalley, Ph.D., Stanford University, “Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Alcohol and Substance User Disorders: Leveraging Individually Tailored Neuroimaging Data to Enhance Treatment Outcomes”
“We are excited to welcome this group of researchers to our campus,” said William W. Stoops, Ph.D., SUPRA associate director for clinical research and associate vice president for research integrity. “Our goal with the Rising Stars Symposium is to recognize innovative research in understanding and combating addiction. Drs. Bello, Glasser and McCalley offer valuable perspectives to this important work.”
The symposium also allows invited researchers to examine the various programs in the College of Medicine Department of Behavioral Science, Center on Drug and Alcohol Research and Department of Psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.