Kelley Roark is a driven research technician and master’s student at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. She blends her clinical background with neuroscience and public health training to advance translational medicine. Inspired by mTOR science, she returned to academics and secured research roles across epilepsy, neurodegeneration, and vascular physiology. Her first-author publication on rapamycin bridges aging and epilepsy research. She’s a BRIDGE Scholar, a San Servolo trainee, and a passionate writer with a vision for patient-focused scientific impact. Kelley plans to pursue a Ph.D. in neuroscience and lead research that transforms rare disease care from bench to bedside.