Meet the Team

Shaista Afzal is a research coordinator for the Brain Aging Network for Cognitive Health (BRANCH) program.

Gloria Aguirre is an artist and community advocate who has been part of the Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center since 2019. She is an Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and serves as the Artistic Director of Creative Minds, a San Francisco-based community arts initiative advancing brain health. She also works as the Community Engagement Manager for the Fein Memory and Aging Center’s Community Outreach Program.

Shawna Vesco Ahern, PhD, is the NeuroArts communications specialist at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, part of the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. She uses storytelling, multimedia, and artistic expression to share scientific discoveries, promote brain health, and broaden public understanding of dementia. A writer, curator, and arts organizer, Dr. Ahern has spent her career championing emerging voices in the arts and humanities and creating spaces where art can foster connection and belonging.

Cecilia Alagappan, RN, has been at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center since 2011 and serves as a clinical and research nurse. She has over 30 years of nursing experience caring for older patients with various medical conditions, including those with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, cardiac disease, and cancers needing home infusion therapy and pain management. As a nurse educator in a home care agency, Cecilia trained caregivers to care for patients with dementia, including assisting the family with behavior management and activities of daily living.

Celina graduated from the University of San Diego with a BA degree in Behavioral Neuroscience and a minor in Philosophy before she obtained her MS degree in Neuroimaging and Informatics from the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine.

Janet Allen-Williams joined the UCSF Department of Neurology in 2015. Since April 2023, Janet has served as an Academic Assistant for the Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, providing Academic Core Team services to the education team.
 

Florianne is a Staff Research Associate in the Specimen Processing Lab at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center. A San Francisco native, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Health Sciences from Cal State University, East Bay. Prior to joining the Fein Memory and Aging Center, Florianne worked in the Core Immunology Laboratory at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, where she supported infectious disease research, coordinated study activities, and contributed to sample processing for HIV clinical trials and related studies.

Jorge Archila Puac, MSc, BCSP, is a senior psychometrist for clinical trials at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, part of the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. He administers and scores neuropsychological assessments in English and Spanish and supports clinical trials and research on Alzheimer’s disease, homelessness, and the social determinants of health. He also contributes to the Fein Memory and Aging Center’s community outreach efforts.

Andrea earned a Master of Science degree in biomedical engineering, with a specialization in stem cell research, from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She is a specialist in the Kao Lab at the Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center.

Nicole Azevedo, RN, is a Clinical Research Nurse with the Neurosciences Clinical Research Unit (NCRU) and the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, part of the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. She supports clinical trials that evaluate new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. Nicole also works as a Neuro Intensive Care Unit (Neuro ICU) nurse, caring for patients with complex neurological conditions.

Nilgoun Bahar, SLP, PhD, is a postdoctoral research scholar in the ALBA Lab at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center, where she works primarily on the Dyslexia Project. She earned her PhD in experimental psychology from the University of Oxford’s Brain, Speech, and Language Lab and holds a clinical master’s degree in speech-language pathology from the University of Toronto. She completed her clinical residency at the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto.