Who We Are

Avery M. Anderson, PhD, MS, PMHNP-BC, APRN
he/him – Assistant Professor
Dr. Anderson's Bio

Dr. Anderson is an Assistant Professor and Endowed Early Scholar in Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing at the University of Colorado College of Nursing. His primary research interests center on TGD youth and young adult mental health. With a focus on health equity, Avery examines socioecological contributors to suicide among TGD young people and plans to expand his program of research to include upstream interventions aimed at suicide prevention. He received his PhD in nursing from Ohio State University and holds a part-time appointment as a Nurse Scientist with Children's Hospital Colorado. Avery loves all things outdoors - skiing, hiking, mountain biking, frolicking with his dog, etc. - and cookies! 

Christine Tagliaferri Rael, PhD
she/her/ella – Assistant Professor
Dr. Rael's Bio

Dr. Rael is an Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado College of Nursing. She is interested in using user-centered design principles to tailor the use of existing and emerging biomedical HIV prevention products to the needs of transgender women and other potential end-user groups. In addition to being MPI of the GenSight study, she leads other studies. Specifically, Dr. Rael is MPI of an R21 (R21MH132421; MPIs: Rael, Stonbraker, Soler) to develop and test a virtual tool to recruit and enroll transgender women in Phase 1 HIV vaccine studies; an R34 (R34MH136932; MPIs: Rael, Stonbraker) to develop and test a digital shared decision-making tool to help transgender women and their healthcare providers to choose between long-acting and daily forms of PrEP; and an R21 (R21MH135779; PI: Rael) to scale-up dual HIV/syphilis self-testing for transgender women in South Africa. Dr. Rael is a Gray Matters Fellow, a 5-time NIH LRP recipient, a K01 Awardee, and a Fulbright scholar. She enjoys the Colorado outdoors with her husband and two daughters. Originally from Rochester, NY – she is a lifelong Buffalo Bills fan. GO BILLS!

Samantha Stonbraker PhD, MPH, RN
she/her/ella – Assistant Professor
Dr. Stonbraker's Bio

Dr. Stonbraker’s research focuses on developing and evaluating informatics-based interventions to improve health outcomes and reduce health disparities in populations experiencing health disparities locally and globally. She specializes in designing and evaluating information visualizations and digital tools to enhance communication and shared decision making. She recently completed her NIH-funded K99/R00 career development award (K99/R00NR017829) that assessed the efficacy of using a mobile application that contains the HIV-related infographics she developed to enhance clinical communication with people with HIV through a multi-site randomized controlled trial. She is also an MPI (Rael/Soler/Stonbraker) of an NIMH-funded R21 (R21MH132421) aiming to develop a mobile app to promote recruitment and retention of transgender women in HIV vaccine trials and also an MPI (Rael/Stonbraker) of an NIMH-funded R34 (R34MH136932), that aims to develop a digital tool to facilitate shared decision making between transgender women and their providers regarding their appropriate PrEP method. She is also an MPI (Rael/Stonbraker/Sun) of the inaugural research study of the Together Forward research group, the Dean’s Intramural Research Award-funded GENSIGHT Together study.

Christina J. Sun, PhD, MS
she/her – Associate Professor
Dr. Sun's Bio

Dr. Sun’s research is focused on reducing health inequities through community-based approaches and interventions. Since 2013, she has been working with transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) populations locally and globally.  In addition to being an MPI of the GenSight Together study, she is currently PI of an NIH-funded project to develop and pilot test the first tobacco cessation mobile-optimized website tailored to TGD adults (R34DA058191). She is also a Fulbright Global Scholar and conducts photo-elicitation interviews with TGD adults in Botswana and Taiwan. Christina loves analog stationery, and you can find her thinking through what paper/pen combo feels just right!

Anthony Nuñez
he/him/él – Research Services Professional

Anthony Nuñez is a Research Services Professional at the University of Colorado College of Nursing. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in applied psychology at Regis University, where he also completed his Bachelor of Science in the same specialization. Anthony comes with a background in healthcare and a previous role as a behavioral health crisis specialist at Rocky Mountain Crisis Partners. Presently, his work is primarily centered on assisting with research projects, with a particular focus on transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) populations. Beyond his academic and research endeavors, Anthony is passionate about the arts and music. He's also an accomplished aerialist, specializing in both the aerial rope and dance trapeze.

Heather L. Smyth, PhD
she/her – Research Associate

Dr. Smyth is a Research Associate at the Center for Innovative Design and Analysis (CIDA) in the Colorado School of Public Health’s Department of Biostatistics and Informatics. As a collaborative team scientist, she provides statistical support in the design and analysis of research studies, data management and quality assurance, statistical modeling of outcomes, and the interpretation and dissemination of results. Trained as a Quantitative Psychologist, Heather specializes in mediation & moderation, causal inference, psychometrics, and latent variable modeling. She is deeply interested in measurement and study design issues related to health equity in the LGBTQ+ community. Heather spends her free time performing with Mile High Freedom Bands, an inclusive community band that makes positive contributions to the LGBTQ+ community and allies through music.

Roque Anthony F. Velasco, MS, APRN, AGPCNP-BC, CNS
he/they/siya – PhD Candidate

Anthony Velasco is a PhD candidate at the University of Colorado College of Nursing. His research centers on stigma and primary care access among TGD older adults. He led the creation of a regionally recognized TGD Health Program at DAP Health clinics in Southern California. Anthony is a credentialed HIV Specialist, WPATH-certified provider in TGD Health, and board-certified in three specialty areas. He was awarded the Stonewall Humanitarian Award by the Transgender Community Coalition and Excellence in Clinical Practice by the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care. Anthony is passionate about improving healthcare access, especially among historically minoritized communities.

Sarah Eskew, BA
she/her – Research Services Professional

Sarah Eskew is a Research Services Professional at the University of Colorado College of Nursing. She earned both her BA in Public Health and a graduate certificate in global health with a concentration in healthcare policies and systems from the University of South Carolina. She is currently working towards a Master of Public Health with a concentration in Global Health Systems, Policy, and Management. She works on a variety of wonderful research studies that cover topics including the health and well-being of transgender youth and workflow analysis in long-term care facilities to improve staff and resident outcomes (R18 HS030017-01). Through research, she eventually hopes to uncover the best ways to address global health disparities through better care delivery. In her free time, Sarah loves to read. She is always looking for book recommendations!