Directory

Cheryl Robinson joined Duke CTSI as a Research Aide and is now a Clinical Research Specialist with the Duke Kannapolis group in Durham, N.C. She spent just over five years serving in the U.S. Navy boot camp in Orlando, Fla. and the Naval Operations Base in Norfolk, Va. to begin courses in underwater sound surveillance. Her advanced training took her to Eureka, Calif. and her career as an Ocean Systems Technician officially began at the base in Dam Neck, Va.

Ms. Rockett has been with Duke since February of 2012. With a bachelor’s degree in biology, Ms. Rockett serves as a clinical research coordinator, providing clinical help for many different studies, as well as regulatory oversight, staff training and maintenance on specific protocols, data collection and miscellaneous support to faculty as needed.

Ms. Rockett enjoys having the opportunity to introduce people to important research underway in Cabarrus County. When not working, Ms. Rockett enjoys spending time with her husband and young son.

Vonda Rodriguez, PhD, is the Director of Operations for CTSI Accelerator.  She provides project management and support to Duke translational research teams to advance research along translational paths.

Raquel Ruiz joined Duke’s CTSI as the Co-Director of the Equity, Learning Health Communities Pillar. In this role, she provides senior operational and project management leadership to the core activities including development and implementation of the strategic plan, partnering with stakeholders, and monitoring and measuring the success of the pillar’s activities.

Dr. Cinthia E. Sanchez joined the Duke CTSI in November 2020. As the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Program Director, she provides strategic leadership and administrative coordination for the CTSA. Prior to joining CTSI, Dr. Sanchez worked as a program manager at the Duke Human Vaccine Institute (DHVI), managing multiple research contracts funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and assist in evaluating SARS CoV-2 research proposals as part of the RADx Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) initiative funded by the National Institute of Health.

Tarun Saxena joins CTSI as pilot program manager in CTSI Accelerator. Tarun is an assistant research professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Duke. Prior to this, Tarun was a research engineer at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he focused on elucidating failure mechanisms of brain-machine interfaces. Tarun completed his PhD and master’s degrees at Syracuse University and his undergraduate studies in biomedical engineering at Osmania University, India.

Dr. Scales serves as the director of the Clinical Research Networks Pillar. As Associate Dean for Clinical Research Initiatives,Scales provides strategic vision and oversight of clinical research initiatives within the Duke SOM. In his CTSI Clinical Research Networks Pillar role, Scales oversees functions associated with the ethical and equitable conduct of clinical research within Duke, leveraging best practices and working to disseminate learnings across the clinical research domain.

Michelle has worked at Duke for 12 years. She has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. Her first position at Duke was with the Cell Therapy/Bone Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials department as a Grants and Contracts Administrator. Her most recent position was with the Center for Documentary Studies as a Departmental Business Manager II, before joining the CTSI as a Grants and Contracts Administrator with the Office of Physician-Scientist Development (OPSD). 

Dr. Svati H. Shah, a physician-scientist, is the Ursula Geller Distinguished Professor of Research in Cardiovascular Diseases, associate dean for translational research, and director of the Duke Center for Precision Health and the Precision Genomics Collaboratory in the Duke University School of Medicine. Dr. Shah is the vice-chief of translational research and director of the Adult Cardiovascular Genetics Clinic in the Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine.