People
Faculty Members
Sapan N. Ambani, MD
Associate Professor, Department of Urology
James A. Ashton-Miller, PhD
Research Professor, Departments of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Biomedical Engineering
John O. L. DeLancey, MD
Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Urology
J. Brian Fowlkes, PhD
Professor, Department of Radiology, Department of Biomedical Engineering
Brian is a physicist who began working in medical ultrasound during his doctoral studies at the University of Mississippi (MS and PhD in Physics in 1986 and 1988, respectively). His research covers both diagnostic and therapeutic ultrasound with interests in understanding the physical mechanisms and technology as well as its translation to clinical application. His research includes acoustic droplet vaporization, gas bubbles in high intensity ultrasound including histotripsy, contrast enhanced ultrasound imaging and flow measurement including volume flow estimation using ultrasonic imaging. He came to the University of Michigan as a postdoctoral fellow in 1988, joined the faculty in 1991 and is currently Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Engineering. He was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas and he got his bachelor's degree in Physics from the University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR in 1983.
Kourosh Kalayeh, PhD
Research Investigator, Department of Radiology, Department of Urology
Kourosh is a mechanical engineer interested in solving problems at the intersection of medical sciences, engineering and mathematics. He obtained his PhD in Mechanical Engineering, Solid Mechanics (with minor in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science) from University of Maryland, Baltimore County in 2018. After a brief period in industry, he realized his strengths lie in academia, prompting him to pursue an academic career. In 2019, Kourosh co-created the UDUS research group at the University of Michigan as a postdoctoral researcher, where he continued to work until his promotion to a faculty position in the Department of Radiology in 2024. He was born and raised in Tehran, Iran, where he got his bachelor's degree in Material Science and Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran Polytechnic) in 2013. He is currently living in Michigan, USA.
Jennifer LaCross, PT, DPT, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Therapy, University of Michigan-Flint
Jenny is a dual credentialed athletic trainer and physical therapist with board specialization in pelvic health physical therapy. She obtained her DPT from Washington University in St. Louis in 2014, completed a pelvic health clinical residency at University of Pittsburgh in 2015, and earned her PhD in Physical Therapy from Texas Woman's University in 2023. She completed a KUH post-doctoral research fellowship with UDUS and the Pelvic Floor Research Group (PFRG) in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Michigan and is now an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Michigan-Flint. As a clinician scientist, Jenny aims to improve the provision of rehabilitation care for individuals identifying as female to help them remain physically active across the lifespan. Her work investigates the intersection of aging, physical activity, and birth injury-related changes on pelvic floor anatomy and motor control, using actigraphy, sEMG, MRI and ultrasound imaging.
William W. Schultz, PhD
Professor Emeritus, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Bill received his BSME and MSME from Purdue in 1974 and 1976. He received his PhD in Applied Mathematics from Northwestern in 1982 after spending three years at Owens-Corning Fiberglas. After beginning his teaching career, he has spent the last 35 years in Mechanical Engineering at University of Michigan. He finished a three-year term as the Program Director in Fluid Dynamics at the National Science Foundation, Engineering Directorate and a year as the Faculty Director of the Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning. He is presently serving as the Immediate Past Chair of the Faculty Senate. He is a fellow of ASME and APS.
Payton Claire Schmidt, MD
Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Payton is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Michigan and a fellowship-trained specialist in Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery. She earned her MD from Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, completed her Obstetrics and Gynecology residency at the University of Michigan, and completed fellowship training in Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Michigan. Her clinical and academic work focuses on pelvic floor disorders, with research interests centered on pelvic floor imaging, pelvic floor biomechanics, and surgical outcomes, with an emphasis on improving diagnosis, risk prediction, and patient care.
Shane Wells, MD
Associate Professor, Department of Radiology, Department of Urology
Shane is a board-certified diagnostic radiologist with clinical expertise in genitourinary imaging and intervention, including tumor ablation, with a translational research focus in 1) improving cancer outcomes through novel imaging and image-guided approaches and 2) the development of image-based biomarkers for the lower urinary tract. His interventional research program is focused on optimizing cancer outcomes through improved patient selection, utility and timing of biopsy, and perioperative techniques to improve treatment efficacy and confirmation. His translational research program is focused on developing non-invasive image-based biomarkers (MRI and US) of the prostate and bladder with the goal of guiding personalized diagnosis and treatment in patients with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS).
Maggie (Man) Zhang, MD, PhD
Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Radiology
Graduate Students
Julia Chaffin
Department of Biomedical Engineering
Julia is a PhD student at the Department of Biomedical Engineering and has a strong interest in working at the intersection of medicine and engineering. Her passion for this field has been shaped by three internships in the medical device industry and hands-on research experience in university research labs.
Haotian Xie
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Haotian Xie is a PhD student at the University of Michigan. He received his BSE from the University of Michigan in 2023 and his current research interest is bio-fluid, especially ureteral peristalsis. Some fun facts about him are that he is a Formula 1 fan and a great bird-watcher who has observed more than 700 species worldwide.
Alumni
Post-doctoral Fellows
- Jennifer LaCross, PT, DPT, PhD
- Haowei Tai, PhD
- Kourosh Kalayeh, PhD
Master's Students
- Caroline Wang, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Undergraduate Researchers
- Grace Heroux, Neuroscience
- Sophia Yeras, Neuroscience
- Amy Chen, Chemical Engineering