zgsmit25@gmail.com    (202) 815-7563    Zolismith19    zoligsmith

Education

Johns Hopkins Medicine, Baltimore, MD
Expected May 2030
PhD Student, Health Science Informatics
Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, GA
Expected May 2026
MPH, Epidemiology
  • Thesis: Time-to-Event Analysis of Hormone Therapy Initiation and Cardiovascular Outcomes by Testosterone Dose and Route
  • Coursework: Statistical Methods I-II, Epidemiologic Methods I-III, Design and Implementation of Epidemiologic Studies, Applied Machine Learning, Large-Scale Biomedical Data Analysis, Genetic/Molecular Epidemiology
Spelman College, Atlanta, GA
May 2024
B.A. in Psychology (Minor: Spanish) – Summa cum laude
  • Top 5 Graduate; Ethell Wadell Githii Honors Scholar
  • Thesis: Strong Black Woman Schema and Emotional Overeating

Certifications

CITI Certification – Basic Course in Human Subjects Protection (Social/Behavioral Focus)
August 2024

Research Experience

Single-Cell Genomics Research Assistant – Emory University
Oct 2025 – Present
PI: Dr. Chang Su
  • Analyze single-cell multi-omic data using SCARlink, a regression framework linking chromatin accessibility and gene expression
  • Investigate enhancer-gene interactions and transcriptional regulation in Alzheimer’s disease
  • Identify disrupted regulatory networks contributing to neurodegeneration
MPH Thesis – STRONG Cohort – Emory University
May 2025 – Present
  • Conducting time-to-event and causal inference analyses of EHR data for cardiovascular outcomes associated with testosterone therapy (N approximately 345,000)
  • Build reproducible analytical pipelines, bias analysis, and missing data management
  • Apply survival models, DAGs, and data cleaning workflows to real-world clinical data
Research Fellow – Summer Cancer Research Education Program (SCREP) – Morehouse School of Medicine
June – Aug 2025
  • Retrospective cohort study of 300 lung cancer patients at Grady Health System
  • Used chi-square tests and logistic regression to assess disparities in staging and subtype
  • Presented results at the Cancer Research Symposium (2nd Place Award)

Data Science and Technical Experience

Data Science Intern – CARE (Impact Partners), Remote/Atlanta, GA
June – Aug 2025
  • Analyzed baseline and endline survey data from cocoa-sector programs in Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire
  • Synthesized quantitative and qualitative evidence into mixed-methods donor reports
Student – DATA 550 GitHub Project – Emory University
Jan – May 2025
  • Built a reproducible pipeline in R and GNU Make to process high-dimensional public health data, applying version control and modular scripting for transparent, reproducible analysis
  • Applied literate programming principles through R Markdown to integrate code, analysis, and narrative in a single reproducible workflow

Teaching

Teaching Assistant, EPI 534 – Emory University
Aug – Dec 2025
  • Supported instruction for 46 MPH students in a core epidemiologic methods course
  • Held weekly office hours, assisted with R- and SAS-based problem sets
  • Collaborated with faculty to grade assignments and provide feedback

Presentations

Cancer Research Symposium – Morehouse School of Medicine   2nd Place
August 2025
Histological Subtype, Stage at Diagnosis, and Socioeconomic Disparities in Lung Cancer Patients at Grady Health System
Annual Research Day – Spelman College
April 2023
Strong Black Woman Schema and Emotional Overeating

Publications

Smith, Z., and Isac, J. Small-Cell Versus Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Among African American Patients: Subtype Distributions and Associations with Smoking and Socioeconomic Status in a Safety-Net Hospital System. Manuscript in preparation, 2025.

Skills

Technical

R, SAS, SPSS, Docker, GitHub, R Markdown, ArcGIS Pro

Statistical

Survival Analysis, Causal Inference, Mixed Models, Machine Learning

Data Management

Multi-omic integration, single-cell analysis, EHR data processing

Languages

English (Native), Spanish (Fluent)

Leadership and Service

President (Former Secretary) – Rollins mHealth Collaborative, Emory University
Sept 2024 – Nov 2025
  • Developed workshops in R, SAS, and Power BI; promoted digital health and data science literacy across Rollins School of Public Health
Executive Co-Lead – Rollins Election Day Initiative (REDI), Emory University
Jan – Nov 2025
  • Led civic engagement program to increase voter participation among public health students