What We Do:
Provide leadership and oversight for NIDA’s extramural programs, including extramural policy and scientific review, grants management, operations planning, and trans-NIH initiatives.
Staff:
- Susan Weiss, Ph.D. – Director
Dr. Weiss is the Director of the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH); which, oversees NIDA’s extramural programs, research training, operations planning, and trans-NIH initiatives, such as the Collaborative Research on Addiction at NIH (CRAN) and the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. Dr. Weiss is also a Senior Science Advisor to the NIDA Director. Previously, she served as the Chief of the Science Policy Branch and Acting Director of NIDA's Office of Science Policy and Communications, where she provided leadership and oversight for all of NIDA’s interactions with its diverse stakeholders. Read a more detailed biography - Katia Howlett, Ph.D., M.P.P., M.B.A.– Deputy Director
Dr. Howlett joined the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2015. In addition to her role in DER as Deputy Director, she serves as the NIDA Clinical Trials Stewardship Policies Implementation Coordinator and Risk Manager. Prior to joining NIDA, she served as the Project Director of the NIDA Blending Initiative contract and the SAMHSA National Campaigns contract with Synergy Enterprises, Inc. Prior to that, she served as Deputy Director of the SAMHSA Underage Drinking Prevention Education Initiatives contract with University Research Company, LLC. In these roles, Dr. Howlett managed the development of evidence-based national educational trainings, materials, resources, and campaigns for researchers, healthcare professionals, children, adolescents, and families to promote the prevention of substance use disorders and the implementation of evidenced-based practices in the treatment of these illnesses in healthcare settings. Dr. Howlett received a Ph.D. in Public Health from the University of California at San Diego and San Diego State University, Master of Public Policy from Pepperdine University, and Master of Business Administration from the Johns Hopkins University. Her doctoral training in Public Health focused on health behavior and the prevention of risky behaviors including primary prevention of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders and other consequences of alcohol misuse. She has expertise in the fields of mental health, public health and safety, health policy, health communication, and substance abuse and addiction. She is widely published in the fields of mental illness and substance use disorders, on topics as varied as adolescent substance abuse, technology-based health interventions, mood and anxiety disorders, and health-related quality of life. - Amanda Burton, Ph.D. – Clinical Research Policy Program Manager
Dr. Burton joined NIDA in 2023 as a Clinical Research Policy Program Manager in the Division of Extramural Research (DER). She will be working with Dr. Howlett (DER Deputy Director) directly to support NIDA’s Clinical Trials Stewardship efforts and policy implementation. Dr. Burton earned her Ph.D. in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science from the University of Maryland, College Park, where her dissertation research focused on the long-term effects of exposure to drugs of abuse on behavior and reward-circuitry in the brain. Upon finishing her degree, she pursued opportunities in health and clinical research policy to gain regulatory experience and support efforts to improve transparency of clinical research. With over five and a half years of experience working with ClinicalTrials.gov at the National Library of Medicine (NLM) at NIH, she has gained extensive expertise in clinical trial registration and results reporting requirements and clinical trial policies and regulations underlying the largest clinical trials database in the world. She is looking forward to providing guidance and support in conducting and managing clinical research institute-wide at NIDA. - Carolyn Tucker – Administrative Technician
Mrs. Tucker has over a decade of experience as an Extramural Support Assistant at NIDA. She joined the Division of Extramural Research (DER) and the ABCD Project in October 2015. Mrs. Tucker has assisted in the coordination of division and institution workgroups as well as logistical and planning operations. Her academic experience includes coursework in applied sciences at the University of the District of Columbia and additional training in Project Management. She is a proud parent advocate for children with special needs and serves as the Secretary for the Parents of Children with Down syndrome of Prince George’s County in Maryland.
Office of Trans-NIH Initiatives
Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Project
- Gayathri J. Dowling, Ph.D. – Director (ABCD Project)
Dr. Dowling is the Director of the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) Project at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH). The ABCD Study, the largest long-term study of brain development and child and adolescent health in the United States, recruited nearly 12,000 children at age 9-10 and is following them through their teens and into early adulthood to explore how diverse experiences during adolescence shape brain, cognitive, social, emotional, and academic development. Previously, Dr. Dowling served as the Deputy Director of the Office of Science Policy, Engagement, Education, and Communications at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the Chief of Science Policy at NIDA. In these positions, she provided scientifically based information to patients and their family members, health professionals, researchers, policy makers, and other stakeholders to inform policy and promote the prevention and treatment of a wide variety of diseases. She has also served as a Program Director with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and as a Scientific Review Administrator at the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Dowling earned a Ph.D. in Neurobiology from the University of California at Davis, where she studied the developing nervous system, and subsequently conducted research at the Parkinson’s Institute. Along with publishing a range of scientific papers and multimedia products and serving as a spokesperson for the ABCD Project and NIDA, Dr. Dowling has earned numerous awards and widespread recognition for her work. - Elizabeth Hoffman, Ph.D. – Associate Director (ABCD Project)
Drug Abuse (NIDA) in 2016 as Scientific Program Manager for the Adolescent Brain Cognitive DevelopmentSM (ABCD) Study. In 2023 she was named Associate Director of the ABCD Study®. Dr. Hoffman leads the data sharing program for ABCD, as well as the study’s communication and dissemination efforts. Prior to joining NIDA, Dr. Hoffman conducted functional MRI research on face perception in the Intramural Research Program at NIMH, taught psychology and cognitive neuroscience, and advocated for science and health policy priorities at the American Psychological Association (APA). Before her tenure at APA, Dr. Hoffman served as an AAAS Fellow and later as a legislative aide on the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee where she had a key role in drafting the Combating Autism Act, a landmark piece of legislation that authorized early screening, education, intervention, and research for autism spectrum disorders, ultimately becoming law. Dr. Hoffman earned a Ph.D. in cognitive neuropsychology from the George Washington University and a BA in psychology and French from Brandeis University. - Kimberly LeBlanc, Ph.D. – Scientific Program Manager (ABCD Project)
Dr. LeBlanc joined the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2018 as Scientific Program Manager for the Adolescent Brain Cognitive DevelopmentSM (ABCD) Study. She is a behavioral neuroscientist, is certified as a level III Contract Officer’s Representative and manages the NIH Brain Developments Cohorts (NBDC) Biospecimen Access Program, as well as several workgroups for the ABCD Study. She comes to NIDA from the Scientific Review Branch of National Institute on Aging. Dr. LeBlanc performed postdoctoral training at the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases, where her research focused on the direct and indirect pathway neurons of the striatum in avoidance and appetitive behavior. She earned her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of California, Los Angeles, where her research focused on the impact of cocaine on habitual control and incentive sensitization in animal models of drug taking. - LCDR Traci M. Murray, Ph.D., MPH, RN, NHDP-BC, CPH – Scientific Advisor (ABCD and HBCD Projects)
Lieutenant Commander (LCDR) Traci M. Murray joins the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) as a Scientific Advisor for the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) and HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) studies. LCDR Murray has been a registered nurse for over 10 years with experience in clinical research, epidemiology, and nursing education. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing with honors from Texas Christian University, her PhD at University of Texas at Tyler, and her Master’s in Public Health at University of North Texas Health Science Center. LCDR Murray spent nearly three years with the Indian Health Service serving the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska and Navajo Nation in various clinical and administrative roles. She most recently served as Assistant Regional Administrator for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in Dallas, where she created and led several initiatives, including the national Partnerships for Equity initiative to address behavioral health inequities through innovative cross-agency partnerships, and The Yard, an internal diversity initiative for HBCU alumni and other interested staff. - Diana Alkire, Ph.D. – Program Analyst (ABCD Project)
Dr. Alkire joins the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) as a Program Analyst for the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. She earned her Ph.D. in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), where she conducted research on social cognition (e.g., theory of mind) in autistic and typically developing youth using varied methods, including functional MRI and behavioral observation coding. She continued this work during her postdoctoral training at UMCP, where she also contributed to the design and implementation of a longitudinal study of the biopsychosocial predictors of loneliness in autistic and typically developing adolescents.
HEALthy Brain Child Development (HBCD) Project
- Christopher Sarampote, Ph.D. – Director (HBCD Project)
Dr. Sarampote is the Director of the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH). With funding from the NIH HEAL Initiative, NIDA launched the HBCD Study in 2021 to examine how the brain responds to substance exposures prenatally and during early childhood, as well as to other environmental and genetic factors. The study will track brain development in a diverse cohort of approximately 7,000 children, who are being enrolled along with their parents starting in pregnancy and will be followed through age 10. Dr. Sarampote joined NIDA and the Division of Extramural Research after his nearly 20-year tenure at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). At NIMH, he served as the Chief of the Biomarker and Intervention Development for Childhood-Onset Disorders Branch within the Division of Translational Research, where he worked to develop extramural research programs and initiatives to prevent the onset of mental disorders in children. Previously, he served as a Scientific Review Officer then as a Program Officer focused on child traumatic stress, research training and career development, and pediatric mental health intervention. Dr. Sarampote holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from George Mason University. He completed his predoctoral internship at SUNY Upstate Medical University and postdoctoral fellowships at the Kennedy Krieger Institute and George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. He continued his work at Children’s National Medical Center where, in addition to providing direct care to children and families, he studied the pharmacogenetics of stimulant treatment for ADHD and collaborated with researchers at the National Human Genome Research Institute. - Katherine Cole, Ph.D. – Associate Director (HBCD Project)
Dr. Cole is the Associate Director for the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study within the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Dr. Cole is co-chair of the HBCD Communications, Engagement, & Dissemination Committee and contributes to HBCD Study working groups to promote scientific management and progress. In addition, she aids in outreach to leaders across HHS to identify opportunities for synergy with other initiatives relevant to maternal and child health, represents NIDA and the HBCD Study on internal and trans-NIH committees, and proposes and participates in symposia on HBCD science at national conferences. Prior to joining NIDA in 2022, Dr. Cole was a research fellow and postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Division of Intramural Research Programs where she studied the role of sex hormones on brain development as part of the NIMH Intramural Longitudinal Study of the Endocrine and Neurobiological Events Accompanying Puberty. Dr. Cole received her doctorate in Neuroscience from Emory University and is experienced in both human and non-human primate neuroimaging with a focus on the impact of sex steroid hormones and stress on brain structure and function. - Darci Johnson, MPH – Scientific Program Manager (HBCD Project)
Ms. Johnson is a Scientific Program Manager for the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study within the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Prior to joining NIDA, she was a Fulbright Research Scholar, collaborating with the University of Oslo and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health to analyze nationwide, registry-based population datasets to understand the relationship between the social determinants of health and maternal pregnancy outcomes. She has a strong interest in maternal health, child outcomes, and health equity, as well as specialized training in the use of mixed-methods and epidemiological approaches. She holds a BA in public health & education studies and an MPH with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health from Brown University, and previously served on the Women and Infants Hospital and the Flourish Collective and Northwestern University Infant Cognition Lab and Menstrual Hygiene Management Team. - Jennifer (Jen) Zink, Ph.D. – Scientific Program Manager (HBCD Project)
Dr. Zink is a Scientific Program Manager for the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study within the Division of Extramural Research (DER) at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Prior to joining NIDA, she was a Cancer Prevention Fellow within the Health Behaviors Research Branch in the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Trained in epidemiological and health-related research methods, she conducted research at NCI focused on the emotional health implications of engagement in screen time, sleep, and physical activity in youth using cross-sectional and longitudinal data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Dr. Zink holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology and Economics from the University of Miami and earned her PhD in Preventive Medicine (Health Behavior Research) from the University of Southern California (USC), Keck School of Medicine. Over the course of her research training and career, Dr. Zink has been committed to efforts to better the health of children and adolescents; she contributed to research on implementing a novel physical activity program for preschool children in Miami-Dade County Public schools, and at USC, she served as a project manager on a randomized crossover trial to test the acute metabolic, affective, and cognitive effects of interrupting sedentary time in youth.