Hello Physiology Club! My name is Gia Balsamo, and I am very excited to serve as your President for the 2024-2025 academic year! I am from Long Island, New York. I am a senior in the W.A. Franke Honors College majoring in Physiology and Medical Sciences with minors in Spanish and Biochemistry. I am an Emergency Department Research Associate at Banner University Medical Center, screening patients for clinical studies in the ER. I work as an Athletic Training Technician at the Lowell Stevens Football Facility for our NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. I am the Co-President for The Physiology Honors Academy. Additionally, I spend time shadowing and taking vitals for a Pulmonologist Critical Care Specialist. I have been working as a Research Assistant alongside Dr. Youngstedt and Dr. Patel in the Jet Lag Study at The Center for Sleep and Circadian Rhythms since the end of my freshman year. This year I am looking forward to start volunteering at Banner as a NICU cuddler! Additionally I enjoy volunteering at The Campus Pantry. My future career goal is to attend medical school and become an M.D. The Physiology Club is a great way to get involved on campus, make connections with physicians and professors, and gain life-long friends. I am looking forward to an amazing year ahead for all of our new and existing club members! Feel free to contact me with any questions whether it is about the club, academic or career advice, or anything about PSIO! -Ask me about all of the great study spots on campus! My email is giabalsamo@arizona.edu

Hello PSIO Club!! My name is Jenny Partin and I will be your Vice President for the 2024-2025 academic year! I am so happy that you are here, and I highly encourage you to reach out to me or any of the other board members! As a current Junior, I am majoring in Physiology and Medical Sciences and minoring in Spanish. Outside of the best club on campus (AKA PSIO club), I work at the SALT center as a Lead tutor, volunteer at Zmansion, serve as an EMT with UAEMS, and am a research assistant within a pharmacology and addiction lab. In my free time, I thoroughly enjoy hiking, mountain biking, or just being outdoors! Tucson is such a fun and unique place, and I have enjoyed exploring all that it has to offer, including so many coffee shops!!! I am looking forward to applying to medical school in the near future, in hopes to explore specialties of Pediatrics or Emergency Medicine. I would love to get to know you, so please reach out at jpartin11@arizona.edu.

Hi my name is Joseph Simmons III. I'm a senior at the University of Arizona, and I'm going to be your treasurer for the 2024-2025 school year. I'm from Las Vegas, Nevada. I am majoring in Biology with minors in Physiology and Spanish. I plan to be a Sports Orthopedic Surgeon in the future. I am hoping to go to med school either at the University of Arizona or back home in Las Vegas. Some of my interests include playing sports such as football, basketball and golf. I am a huge football fan and I also work as an Athletic Training Technician with U of A football. I like reading, hanging out with my friends and listening to music. I look forward to meeting all of you and having a great school year. Feel free to reach out to me at josephsimmons3@arizona.edu!

Hey PSIO Club! My name is Ryder Deffinbaugh and I am going to be your Secretary for the 2024-2025 school year. I am currently a sophomore in the W.A. Franke Honors College majoring in Medicine and will be pursuing a minor in Biochemistry. In the coming year, I will be taking EMD 147 to become an EMT with UA EMS. Along with being part of our amazing Physio Club, I am the Secretary for the University of Arizona's HOSA chapter, a member of Crochet for a Cause, and will be a preceptor for Dr. Hidalgo's CHEM 151 class! I am originally from Los Angeles County, California, and my absolute favorite thing is spending time in Southern California visiting my family. In my free time, I love to read, crochet, watch baseball (go Orioles!), and swim. In the future, I plan on applying to medical school to ultimately become a pediatric emergency department physician. I look forward to seeing all of our new and returning members! If you ever have any concerns or just want to chat, feel free to talk to me at meetings or send me an email any time at deffinbaugh@arizona.edu.

Hi everyone! My name is Amelia and I will be serving as the academic chair this year! I am a junior majoring in Physiology and Medical Sciences and minoring in Human Development, and am originally from Colorado. I have been involved in PSIO club since I was a freshman and it has truly been one of the best experiences! I currently work as a CNA and as a nanny. Outside of school and work, I am very active, love being outside, and hanging out with my friends! I plan to attend medical school and have interest in becoming an Neonatologist. I am so excited to meet everyone, feel free to email me anytime at ameliakelly@arizona.edu!

Hey everyone! My name is Ryan Kim and I am excited to be your Career and Development Chair this year. I am from Colorado and I am currently a Junior majoring in Physiology. PSIO Club has played a huge role in my college experience and I can't wait to share all of the great things this club has to offer with all of you! Outside of PSIO Club, I work as an EMT with UAEMS, give tours of the W.A. Franke Honors College through Franke Honors Ambassadors, and volunteer at Z Mansion. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with friends and family, hiking, playing pickleball (it's an addiction), and learning to surf. I cannot wait to meet everyone this year and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out. I am always free to answer any questions you may have or just to chat. I can’t wait for a great year with everyone! Feel free to reach out via my email: ryanjkim24@arizona.edu

Hey Psio Club! My name is Joey Herrick and I will be in charge of the new Health and Wellness Chair. I am currently a Junior majoring in Physiology and Medical Sciences, with the goal of getting into PA school. The UA Physiology Club has become a backbone to my experience at UA and I am so proud of the community it has developed. I am very excited to kick off this new chair, because it pertains to a lot of my most recent endeavors, with those hobbies including: hiking, swimming, and cooking. Along with some of my other fellow officers, I am a part of UAEMS, and work as an EMT throughout the school year. If there are any questions or if you are interested in getting more involved with the healthcare field, please feel free to reach out! I hope to get to know you all very soon. My email is Josephherrick@arizona.edu

Hi everyone! My name is Amanda Babcock, and I am thrilled to return as your Public Relations Officer this year. I am currently a junior, pursuing a double major in Physiology and Medical Sciences, and Religious Studies for Health Professionals, with a minor in Biochemistry. Joining the Physiology Club as a freshman was the best decision for me to get involved on campus. Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I have been able to find a second home in Tucson. In Wisconsin, I work as a Certified Nursing Assistant at a hospital and as a waitress at a country club. Additionally, I volunteer as a Sunday School Teacher and a Special Olympics track and field coach. Here in Tucson, I am an active member of the Physiology Honors Academy (PHA), a volunteer at Banner Hospital, and an undergraduate research assistant in Dr. Funk’s lab, where we investigate bone metastases in women with stage IV breast cancer. In my free time, I love all different outdoor activities, listening to music, thrifting, getting coffee with friends, and watching the iconic Arizona sunsets. I am currently looking to apply to medical school this coming summer with interests in pediatrics and anesthesiology. I’m so excited to get to know each of you better this year. Please feel free to reach out with any questions via email at ababcock@arizona.edu or DM us on Instagram, I’ll be the one responding!

Hello everyone! My name is Noorie Sandhu, and I am thrilled to be serving as the Physiology (PSIO) Club’s Clinical Chair for the 2024-2025 school year! I am originally from a suburb near Cleveland, Ohio, but I also spent time growing up in Canada. I am a sophomore majoring in MCB and Physiology, and I aspire to go to medical school to become a surgical oncologist. Aside from my involvement with the PSIO Club, I am a member of Alpha Epsilon Delta—a national pre-health honor society—where I have also served on the Senior Retention Committee. I would also like to diversify my experiences by joining the Badminton or Rock Climbing Clubs.  Over the summer, I also joined Dr. Cress’ Lab, which studies the role of integrins (cell surface receptors) on the metastasis of cancer from the prostate. Our lab aims to determine the mechanisms that allow the cancer to invade and migrate so as to localize the tumor during its early stages. In my free time, I enjoy reading, trying new eateries, meeting new people, working out, playing badminton, listening to chill music, and watching the gorgeous sunsets. The PSIO Club has truly been a family to me, and I value the amazing people I have met and the advice I have received from previous club and board members. I am incredibly grateful to be giving back to the club through my position, and I hope to make this year an enjoyable and beneficial experience for all of you! If you need help regarding any aspects of the pre-health journey or simply want someone to talk to, I would be more than delighted to give you my insight and direct you to resources. I can’t wait to engage with all of you, and please feel free to contact me with any questions or suggestions on how I can make my events useful for you! Email: ishnoorsandhu@arizona.edu

Hello everyone!! My name is Rylee Reed and I will be your physiology chair for the next school year! I am from Flagstaff, Arizona but my family is from Oregon, so I spent a significant amount of time in both places. I knew I wanted to come to the University of Arizona because of all of the amazing opportunities it has to offer! I am currently a junior in the W.A. Franke Honors College and am majoring in Physiology and Medical Sciences with minors in Biochemistry, Spanish and Health & Human Values. I am involved with the Physiology Ambassadors and in research in Dr. Pires neurophysiology laboratory. I am also a student technician for McKale, a phlebotomist and a desk manager for UA student housing. In my spare time, I enjoy playing soccer, traveling and hanging out with my family (especially with my sister's french bulldog Gus). Following the completion of my undergraduate degree, I am hoping to go to medical school to become a sports-focused orthopedic surgeon. I am so excited for the school year and to meet all of you!! Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions! My email is rareed@arizona.edu.

Hello PSIO Club! My name is Colin Hanley, and I’m thrilled to be your Philanthropy Chair for the 2024-2025 school year! I originally hail from Long Island, NY and I’m a Senior majoring in Care, Health, and Society (CHS) with a minor in Psychology. I have been involved with the PSIO Club since my freshman year, and I was the Philanthropy Chair during my Junior year. After my time here, I plan on becoming a Podiatrist and attending Podiatric School. Outside of the club, I work as a student assistant at the Disability Resource Center, as well as a researcher at the SCAN lab. I also love to stay active through golf and pickleball, in addition to going to concerts and many UofA sporting events. I look forward to getting to know you all and giving a helping hand to the Tucson community! Always feel free to reach out! My email is chanley247@arizona.edu

My name is Ian Jean and I am so excited to be the new social chair for PSIO club. I am studying physiology and medical sciences with a minor in biochemistry. I also just got accepted in W.A. Franke Honors College. After my undergraduate I want to go to medical school to become an orthopedic surgeon. I work at NorthREC and BearDownREC so you may see me there often. Clubs I am involved in are UAmexzona, I am an ambassador for Precision Aging Network, and I like to volunteer regularly at Z-mansion. In my free time I like to go to the gym, play basketball, make music, and spend time with friends. I hope everybody grows to love the PSIO club as much as I do!