Workshop Schedule
8:00 - 8:30 AM
Arrival, check-in, and continental breakfast.
8:30 - 10:15 AM | Session 1
Discuss CF as a chronic disease, with changing complications over the lifespan. Discuss the utility of longitudinal cohorts and methods to identify trajectories of disease progression in people with CF. Discuss the needs of the community in their hopes to apply data science methodologies to their own research. After the session, speakers will form a panel for group discussion with workshop participants.
Moderator: Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins (NHLBI)
Presenters: Nael McCarty (Emory), Andrea Kelly (University of Pennsylvania), Arlene Stecenko (Emory), Joshua Chandler (Emory), and Amy Ryan (University of Iowa)
10:15 - 10:30 AM | Morning Break
10:30 AM - 12:15 PM | Session 2
Describe the CF patient data registry and other efforts by the national CF Foundation over decades to collect and make use of patient data. Discuss data-driven discoveries from a variety of fields, the importance of metadata, issues of data quality, and the importance of informatics in data science. Discuss the hurdles associated with incorporating data from heterogeneous sources and multiple institutions, including the need for data standardization and harmonization by way of a CF-specific OMOP common data model. After the session, speakers will form a panel for group discussion with workshop participants.
Moderator: Arlene Stecenko (Emory)
Presenters: Albert Faro (CF Foundation), Anirudh Prabhu (Carnegie Science), Evan Orenstein (Emory and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta), Manoj Bhasin (Emory), and Rishi Kamaleswaran (Duke)
12:15 - 1:15 PM | Lunch Break
1:15 - 2:30 PM | Session 3
Discuss the GACFDEW’s process of integrating clinical data from the EMR, data from the longitudinal study cohort, the collection of patient-derived samples via the CF-BR, and clinical and laboratory research data from the study of these patients and their samples. Discuss the ethical conduct of data science research via the GACFDEW. After the session, speakers will form a panel for group discussion with workshop participants.
Moderator: Nael McCarty (Emory)
Presenters: Arlene Stecenko (Emory) and Rishi Kamaleswaran (Duke)
2:30 - 2:45 PM | Afternoon Break
2:45 - 5:00 PM | Session 4
Participants will develop study cohorts in a HIPAA-compliant manner and analyze anonymized datasets to test their own hypotheses. Available assets will include OGTT data, CGM data, actigraph data, and radiographic data from the longitudinal cohort. The mini-hackathon will build on McCarty’s experience hosting the Hack-for-CF hackathon in Atlanta in 2013.
Leads: Nael McCarty (Emory), Arlene Stecenko (Emory), and Rishi Kamaleswaran (Duke)
5:00 PM | Self-Guided Tour of the NCCHR
Attendees are invited to see the exhibits of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. Your registration includes admission to the center.
About Your Hosts, Speakers, and Moderators
Nael McCarty, PhD
Joshua Chandler, PhD
Nael McCarty, PhD
Host, Speaker (Session 1), Moderator (Session 3), and Lead (Session 4)
Dr. Nael McCarty is a Professor of Cystic Fibrosis and Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University and serves as Director of the Emory+Children’s Cystic Fibrosis Center of Excellence (CF@LANTA) and the Center for Cystic Fibrosis Research. His research focuses on the mol
Host, Speaker (Session 1), Moderator (Session 3), and Lead (Session 4)
Dr. Nael McCarty is a Professor of Cystic Fibrosis and Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University and serves as Director of the Emory+Children’s Cystic Fibrosis Center of Excellence (CF@LANTA) and the Center for Cystic Fibrosis Research. His research focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying cystic fibrosis, including CFTR function, airway disease, and CF-related diabetes. Throughout his career, Dr. McCarty has advanced basic and translational CF research while fostering multidisciplinary collaborations aimed at improving the health and quality of life of people with cystic fibrosis.
Manoj Bhasin, PhD
Joshua Chandler, PhD
Nael McCarty, PhD
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Manoj Bhasin is a Professor of Pediatrics and Biomedical Informatics at Emory University School of Medicine. He serves as Director of Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology and Director of the Single Cell Biology Program at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. His research focuses on bioinformatics, s
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Manoj Bhasin is a Professor of Pediatrics and Biomedical Informatics at Emory University School of Medicine. He serves as Director of Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology and Director of the Single Cell Biology Program at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. His research focuses on bioinformatics, systems biology, single-cell and multi-omics analysis, machine learning, and precision medicine, with an emphasis on understanding disease mechanisms and identifying clinically meaningful biomarkers. Dr. Bhasin’s work integrates large-scale genomic, transcriptomic, epigenomic, proteomic, and metabolomic data to advance translational research across a range of diseases.
Joshua Chandler, PhD
Joshua Chandler, PhD
Joshua Chandler, PhD
Speaker (Session 1)
Dr. Chandler is a molecular toxicologist who completed his dissertation with Brian J. Day at the University of Colorado Denver, where he studied the impact of thiocyanate on anti-Pseudomonal therapy in cystic fibrosis. He trained as a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dean P. Jones where he gained expertise in hi
Speaker (Session 1)
Dr. Chandler is a molecular toxicologist who completed his dissertation with Brian J. Day at the University of Colorado Denver, where he studied the impact of thiocyanate on anti-Pseudomonal therapy in cystic fibrosis. He trained as a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dean P. Jones where he gained expertise in high-resolution mass spectrometry and metabolomics. His research program is focused on using metabolomics and isotope tracing to study inflammatory pathology in cystic fibrosis and other diseases. He is also the Scientific Director of the Emory Pediatric Metabolomics and Biomarkers Core.
Albert Faro, MD
Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD
Joshua Chandler, PhD
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Albert Faro is Senior Vice President of Clinical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. He leads national initiatives focused on evolving CF care in the modulator era, improving lung transplant outcomes, modernizing the CF Foundation Patient Registry, advancing newborn screening, streng
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Albert Faro is Senior Vice President of Clinical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. He leads national initiatives focused on evolving CF care in the modulator era, improving lung transplant outcomes, modernizing the CF Foundation Patient Registry, advancing newborn screening, strengthening care in under-resourced settings, and supporting quality improvement across the CF care network. Prior to joining the Foundation, Dr. Faro was Professor of Pediatrics at Washington University in St. Louis, where he co-led the CF Therapeutic Development Center and served in several clinical leadership roles in pediatric pulmonary medicine.
Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD
Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD
Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD
Speaker (Sessions 2 & 3), and Lead (Session 4)
Dr. Rishi Kamaleswaran is an Associate Professor at Duke University with appointments in Surgery, Anesthesiology, Biomedical Engineering, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, and Electrical and Computer Engineering. His research applies artificial intelligence, machine learning, signal processing
Speaker (Sessions 2 & 3), and Lead (Session 4)
Dr. Rishi Kamaleswaran is an Associate Professor at Duke University with appointments in Surgery, Anesthesiology, Biomedical Engineering, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, and Electrical and Computer Engineering. His research applies artificial intelligence, machine learning, signal processing, and large-scale clinical data to improve care in critical illness, perioperative medicine, and cystic fibrosis. Dr. Kamaleswaran develops predictive and data-driven tools using electronic health records, physiological waveforms, wearable sensors, and other multimodal data, with the goal of translating advanced analytics into better clinical decision-making and patient outcomes.
Andrea Kelly, MD, MSCE
Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD
Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD
Speaker (Session 1)
Dr. Andi Kelly is a Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and an attending physician in the Division of Endocrinology & Diabetes at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Kelly pursues multi-disciplinary clinical research focused on endocrine co-morbidities in chronic ch
Speaker (Session 1)
Dr. Andi Kelly is a Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and an attending physician in the Division of Endocrinology & Diabetes at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Kelly pursues multi-disciplinary clinical research focused on endocrine co-morbidities in chronic childhood conditions. This investigator-initiated research includes studies of the underpinnings of insulin secretion defects in individuals with cystic fibrosis, interventions to delay and/or prevent development of cystic fibrosis-related diabetes, and diabetes complications in this population. Dr. Kelly also considers growth, bone accretion, and body composition changes in persons with cystic fibrosis and, to this end, has help developed “healthy” reference datasets that incorporate expected sex-, age-, and pubertal impacts and that can be used to examine these outcomes in youth with chronic health conditions.
Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins, MFS, GCCP, PhD
Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins, MFS, GCCP, PhD
Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins, MFS, GCCP, PhD
Moderator (Session 1)
Dr. Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins is Branch Chief for the Lung Development and Pediatric Diseases Branch at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), where she oversees a research portfolio focused on pediatric lung development and rare airway diseases, including cystic fibrosis and other disorders affecting
Moderator (Session 1)
Dr. Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins is Branch Chief for the Lung Development and Pediatric Diseases Branch at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), where she oversees a research portfolio focused on pediatric lung development and rare airway diseases, including cystic fibrosis and other disorders affecting mucociliary clearance. Her work supports research aimed at improving understanding of respiratory physiology, mucosal immunology, infection susceptibility, and disease progression from infancy through adulthood. She also oversees research related to congenital lung and airway anomalies, pediatric pulmonary vascular disease, and chronic respiratory insufficiency. With a background in comparative pathology and experience spanning clinical and translational research, Dr. Lachowicz-Scroggins is committed to advancing collaborative science that improves outcomes for people with cystic fibrosis and rare lung diseases across the lifespan.
Diego Moncada-Giraldo, PhD
Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins, MFS, GCCP, PhD
Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins, MFS, GCCP, PhD
Speaker (Session 3) and Lead (Session 4)
Diego Moncada-Giraldo, Ph.D., is a Scientist (Assistant Bioinformatics) in the Department of Pediatrics at Emory University. He integrates multi-omics and high-dimensional immune profiling—including bulk and single-cell transcriptomics, spatial approaches, proteomics/metabolomics, and advanced flow
Speaker (Session 3) and Lead (Session 4)
Diego Moncada-Giraldo, Ph.D., is a Scientist (Assistant Bioinformatics) in the Department of Pediatrics at Emory University. He integrates multi-omics and high-dimensional immune profiling—including bulk and single-cell transcriptomics, spatial approaches, proteomics/metabolomics, and advanced flow cytometry—with rigorous computational modeling to define disease-relevant myeloid cell states in the lung. His research centers on neutrophil and monocyte plasticity in cystic fibrosis and infection-associated lung inflammation, with the goal of enabling host-directed strategies that restore antimicrobial function while limiting tissue-damaging inflammation. Dr. Moncada-Giraldo has contributed to peer-reviewed publications in Nature, Journal of Clinical Investigation, and Cell Reports Medicine, and collaborates closely with clinical and translational teams to connect mechanistic immune programs to therapeutic target discovery.
Evan Orenstein, MD
Marrah Lachowicz-Scroggins, MFS, GCCP, PhD
Anirudh Prabhu, PhD
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Evan Orenstein is a pediatric hospitalist and clinical informatician at Emory University and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, where he serves as Chief Medical Informatics Officer and Vice President of Data & Analytics. His work focuses on using clinical informatics, human-centered electronic health record design, a
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Evan Orenstein is a pediatric hospitalist and clinical informatician at Emory University and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, where he serves as Chief Medical Informatics Officer and Vice President of Data & Analytics. His work focuses on using clinical informatics, human-centered electronic health record design, and data-driven decision support to improve quality, safety, and efficiency in pediatric care. Dr. Orenstein is particularly interested in reducing medical errors, improving clinical workflows, and building scalable informatics tools that support both patient care and research.
Anirudh Prabhu, PhD
Arlenee Stecenko, MD
Anirudh Prabhu, PhD
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Anirudh Prabhu is a Research Scientist and Principal Investigator at the Earth and Planets Laboratory at Carnegie Science. A data and information scientist by training, his research applies data analytics and machine learning to questions in Earth and planetary science, including planetary evolution, biosignature de
Speaker (Session 2)
Dr. Anirudh Prabhu is a Research Scientist and Principal Investigator at the Earth and Planets Laboratory at Carnegie Science. A data and information scientist by training, his research applies data analytics and machine learning to questions in Earth and planetary science, including planetary evolution, biosignature detection, mineralogy, astrobiology, and complex systems. Dr. Prabhu holds a PhD in Multidisciplinary Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Geoscience Data Journal. His work has been recognized with several honors, including the 2025 Andrei Borisovich Vistelius Research Award and the 2024 EGU Outstanding Early Career Scientist Award.
Amy Ryan, PhD
Arlenee Stecenko, MD
Arlenee Stecenko, MD
Speaker (Session 1)
Dr. Amy Ryan is an Associate Professor at the University of Iowa and Director of the Precision Medicine Center for Cystic Fibrosis. Her research focuses on airway epithelial stem cell biology, precision medicine, and the development of next-generation therapies for cystic fibrosis and other chronic lung diseases. Her la
Speaker (Session 1)
Dr. Amy Ryan is an Associate Professor at the University of Iowa and Director of the Precision Medicine Center for Cystic Fibrosis. Her research focuses on airway epithelial stem cell biology, precision medicine, and the development of next-generation therapies for cystic fibrosis and other chronic lung diseases. Her laboratory uses induced pluripotent stem cells, genome engineering, and patient-specific disease models to study CF mechanisms, evaluate CFTR-targeted treatments, and advance regenerative and cell-based therapies. Dr. Ryan has authored more than 115 publications and is nationally recognized for her work in stem cell biology, gene therapy, and translational cystic fibrosis research.
Arlenee Stecenko, MD
Arlenee Stecenko, MD
Arlenee Stecenko, MD
Speaker (Sessions 1 & 3), Moderator (Session 2), and Lead (Session 4)
Dr. Arlene Stecenko is a Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine and a physician-scientist with extensive expertise in cystic fibrosis and pediatric pulmonary disease. She has led clinical and translational research examining the mechanisms and com
Speaker (Sessions 1 & 3), Moderator (Session 2), and Lead (Session 4)
Dr. Arlene Stecenko is a Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine and a physician-scientist with extensive expertise in cystic fibrosis and pediatric pulmonary disease. She has led clinical and translational research examining the mechanisms and complications of CF, including oxidative stress and cystic fibrosis-related diabetes. Dr. Stecenko has also played a key role in building research infrastructure for the Atlanta CF community, including leadership of the Emory and Children’s CF Biospecimen Repository, supporting multidisciplinary research aimed at improving outcomes for people living with cystic fibrosis.