I have a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Youngstown State University and a Ph.D. in Bioengineering with a focus in Tissue Engineering from The University of Pittsburgh. During my post-doc in the Department of Plastic Surgery at Pitt, I had my son, Cole, and decided to stay home with him. I started to teach as adjunct faculty in 2009 and eventually found my way to Seton Hill in 2017, and finally feel like I am home with my career. While I never thought of myself as a teacher, I love it. I love to run, even though my pace has slowed over the years, and have run 6 marathons including Boston. Running has always kept me grounded and is like therapy for me. A trail in the woods is my happy place.

Education

• B.S., Youngstown State University (Youngstown, OH), 2004

• Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA), 2009

Publications

• Haworth DJ, Kitta T, Morelli B, Chew, DW, Yoshimura N, de Groat WC, Vorp DA, (2011). Strain-dependent Urethral Response. Neurourology and Urodynamics, 30(8), pp. 1652-58.

• Kitta T, Haworth DJ, Miyazato M, Honda M, de Groat, WC, Nonomura K, Vorp DA, Yoshimura N, (2011). Effects of Ovariectomy and Estrogen Replacement on the Urethral Continence Reflex During Sneezing in Rats. The Journal of Urology, 186(4), pp. 1517-23.

• Chung CW, Marra KG, Li H, Leung AS, Ward DH, Tan H, Kelmendi-Doko A, Rubin JP, (2012). VEGF Microsphere Technology to Enhance Vascularization in Fat Grafting. Annals of Plastic Surgery, 69(2), pp. 213-9.

Awards

• NIH Training Fellowship under Cellular Approaches to Tissue Engineering and Regeneration (CATER) 5T32EB001026 (2005-2006)

• Significantly contributed to the preparation of an R21 application entitled “Bioengineered Urethral Augmentation”, which received funding (2006; R21 EB006318-01A1), and its progress report (2007)

• Second place in the MS Student Paper Competition in the Tissue Engineering and Cellular Biomechanics Category at the Summer Bioengineering Conference (2008)

• Co-chair of the Cell and Organ Engineering Session of the University of Pittsburgh, Department of Bioengineering Summer Colloquium (2008)

• Participant in the “Ask the Junior Scientist” segment of the Pittsburgh Tissue Engineering Initiative’s traveling science center exhibit “If a Starfish Can Grow a New Arm, Why Can’t I?” (2009)

• Winner of the University/Post-Secondary Student Award from the Carnegie Science Center (2009)

• Recipient of the Provost’s Development Fund Pre-doctoral Fellowship (2009)

Certifications

• Environmental Protection Agency Certification in pH testing (2002)