Faculty

We are delighted to announce that Peter Franzen, PhD, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. After completing an internship in clinical psychology at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH), Dr. Franzen received his PhD and joined the Pitt Department of Psychiatry as a postdoctoral scholar and sleep medicine fellow under the mentorship of Daniel...

We are delighted to announce that Priya Gopalan, MD, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Gopalan earned her MD from the University of Virginia and completed her residency training in general psychiatry at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH). She is a consultation-liaison (C-L) psychiatry specialist, as well as an expert in perinatal...

We are delighted to announce that Colleen McClung, PhD, has been appointed Tenured Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. McClung’s research focuses on using animal models to understand how circadian rhythm alterations contribute to the liability for substance dependence, as well as for mood disorders such as bipolar disorder and major depression. She is an expert in the application of cutting...

We are delighted to announce that Michele Levine, PhD, has been appointed Tenured Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Levine is a highly regarded and internationally recognized expert in perinatal women’s health. Her research focuses on the intersection of mood, weight and health behavior. She is currently investigating the role of impulsive phenotypes on weight trajectories and...

Congratulations to Meryl Butters, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science. Dr. Butters has been awarded the Edith Kaplan Award, which is given biannually by the Massachusetts Neuropsychological Society to a clinician/researcher in the field of neuropsychology who has continued to uphold the theory of the Process Approach to Neuropsychology. Dr. Butters is nationally and internationally...

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has recognized recent Pitt Psychiatry research on suicide as a “Notable NIMH Grant.” “2020 Spring Inside NIMH” featured “Notable NIMH Grants” among its Director’s Highlights. Notable grants are a selection of the NIMH’s recently funded projects that exemplify the Institute’s efforts to accelerate research on mental illness, and to advance the NIMH Strategic Plan for...