People

CURRENT LAB MEMBERS

Jonathan R. Hall, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor – jrhall@ncsu.edu

Dr. Jonathan Hall graduated from Michigan State University with a B.S. in biochemistry. He then completed his Ph.D. in biochemistry at the University of North Carolina under Dr. Jean Cook where his dissertation title was “The Role of Protein Degradation in Maintaining Genome Stability Through the Regulation of Origin Licensing”. Dr. Hall began his work at NCSU in 2008 when he completed a post-doc in the cell signaling and cancer group under Dr. Robert Smart. Following his post-doc in 2013 Dr. Hall joined NCSU as a Research Assistant Professor, and in the time since he has become a member of the Center for Human Health and the Environment, the Toxicology Graduate Program, the Comparative Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Genetics Graduate Program, and the Genetics and Genomics Academy. In 2021, Dr. Hall became an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences.

Hobbies: spending time with his family, cooking, drinking wine, and watching his oldest son play soccer

 

 

                                     Jack Ellis

                                                       Ph.D. Student – Comparative Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program

More Info Coming Soon

 

Megan Welch

Ph.D. Student- Toxicology Graduate Program and Genetic and Genomic Scholar

Originally from Williamsburg, Virginia, Megan moved to Raleigh to attend NC State. She earned her B.S. degree in Biochemistry with a minor in Biotechnology, during which she conducted research on endosymbionts within whiteflies under the guidance of Dr. Trino Ascencio-Ibáñez. After graduating in 2021, Megan worked in RTP at a biotechnology company focusing on engineering bacteriophages for use as an alternative to antibiotics. Megan returned to NC State as a Genetic and Genomic Scholar in 2023, where she joined the Hall Lab. She is currently researching how C/EBPβ regulates activation of the keratinocyte  innate immune response.

Hobbies: Swimming, Baking, Hiking, and Traveling.

 

John G. Witherspoon

Ph.D. Student- Toxicology Graduate Program and Genetic and Genomic Scholar

Born and raised in Charlotte, NC, John attended NC State and worked in Dr. Robert Smart’s lab as an undergraduate research assistant. John graduated in 2021 with a B.S. in Biochemistry, a B.S. in Biological Sciences, and a B.A. in Chemistry and continued to work in the Smart lab as a research technician after graduating. While a technician, John worked to investigate a mutant NRF2’s effect on mouse skin chemical carcinogenesis and helped to characterize a long non-coding RNA involved in apoptotic signaling. John started his Ph.D. studies in the fall of 2024 in the Genetics and Genomics Scholars program before joining Dr. Jonathan Hall’s lab and the Toxicology program in January 2025. John is currently examining C/EBPβ’s role in mouse skin tumorigenesis and cell cycle progression.

Hobbies: Reading, camping, going to art museums, and looking at birds

 

Sydney Preston
Undergraduate Student

Sydney is a senior majoring in Genetics and Psychology.  Sydney joined the Hall lab in the summer of 2024. Sydney’s research is on understanding regulation of UVB induced cell death pathways.

Hobbies:

Allison Rubio-Malo                                                             

Undergraduate Student

Allison is a senior majoring in Microbiology with a Microbial Health Science concentration and minoring in Health, Medicine and Human Values. Allison joined the Hall lab in the summer of 2024. Allison’s research is on understanding the activation of the innate immune response in keratinocytes. Before joining the Hall Lab, Allison interned at the University of Florida under the Ma Lab. There she focused on the characterization of lipid nanoparticles in suspension cell transfection. Here at State, Allison participates as the secretary of the Society of Multicultural Scientists and as a College of Sciences Ambassador. Her goals after graduating are to continue her studies towards a Ph.D. and establish a position in academia.

Hobbies: Drawing, Photography, Baking, and Reading

LAB ALUMNI

Undergraduate Students

  • Sammy Kros (2024) — Sammy graduated from NCSU in 2024 with a degree in Integrative Physiology and Neurobiology. She is currently applying to PA school.
  • Alyssa Pederson (2023) — Alyssa graduated from NCSU in 2023 with a degree in Integrative Physiology and Neurobiology. She is now pursuing her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering at Duke University.
  • Ayushma Sharma (2022-2023) — Ayushma graduated from NCSU in 2023 with a degree in Human Biology. She is now applying to Medical School
  • Sophia Gray (2021-2023) — Sophia graduated from NCSU in 2023 with a degree in molecular biology. She is now pursuing her M.S. in analytics at NCSU.

Highschool Students

  • Keshav Patel (Summer 2023)- Keshav enrolled at Georgetown University in the fall of 2024.