What is your current position?
My current position is Research Technician in the Samarasinghe Lab in the Department of Medicine.
When did you start working in SMPH? At UW?
I started working at SMPH in July of 2025, but I have been working part-time at UW in different positions since May of 2021.
What does a typical day look like for you?
My lab, the Samarasinghe Lab, joined UW last year, so currently I am working on getting the lab set up and starting some initial experiments. This means I do a lot of communication with different companies to get our equipment up and running as well as make sure we have the supplies that we need for experiments. I also spend time organizing the lab space to get it in an efficient working condition, and complete laboratory techniques like culturing cells and working with our mice.
What is your workplace superpower?
I would say my workplace superpower is my organization. I have lists on lists on lists, and many excel sheets, but it helps me keep track of all the things I need to accomplish, as well as keep orderly records for everything in our lab.
What is something personal you keep on your desk? (feel free to share a photo if you’d like!)
My boss gave me this little troll with pink hair. I like to make him have different hairstyles when I am thinking.
Where are you from originally?
I am originally from Cambridge, WI which is just 30 minutes east of Madison.
What is your favorite place to spend time in Madison? In the world?
My favorite place to spend time in Madison is my apartment because I am a homebody. In the world my favorite place to spend time is an island I went to in Belize during my undergrad. It was a research island and when I went, we had no internet, so it was peaceful to be able to connect with nature and the group of people I was with.
What are you reading right now? (Alternatively: What 1-2 books, articles, or podcasts, can you recommend to your SMPH colleagues?)
A podcast that I like to listen to is Rotten Mango, which is a true crime podcast.
Share one fact about yourself that you co-workers might not be aware of.
One fact that my co-workers might not be aware of is that my three favorite animals are porcupines, hippos, and trunk fish.