Stanford Neuroscience Journal Club
Teaching Kids How to Read and Interpret Scientific Publications
Scientific publications remain the key mechanism for scientists to communicate the results of their original scientific research and findings to the field of medicine. The Stanford Neuroscience Journal Club was initiated by faculty members, Dr. Odette Harris in the Department of Neurosurgery and Dr. Reena Thomas in the Department of Neurology. The intent of this group is to mentor high-school scientists in the critical analysis of a scientific paper and encourage participants to consider a career in the Neurosciences. Our once-per-month meetings offer students an opportunity to read and discuss scientific literature and newsworthy developments in the field of neuroscience in a low-pressure environment, with expert Stanford scientists. There are no coursework prerequisites for participation, just a curiosity for science and a desire to learn how to understand scientific literature.
Application information
Applications for 2025-2026 open March 21, 2025. The deadline is May 30, 2025.
Application and criteria information:
- Must be in high school during the 2025-2026 school year
- International students are welcome to apply
2024-2025 Meetings
*Tentative Schedule, Some Dates Subject to Change
*All meetings take place via Zoom
Students are expected to attend these meetings as an important part of their participation in the Club. Meeting dates are on Tuesdays at 4 PM PT.
- Tuesday, September 10th 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, October 15th from 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, November 5th from 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, December 3rd from 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, February 4th from 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, March 4th from 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, April 1st from 4-5:15pm PT
- Tuesday, May 6th from 4-5:15pm PT
Our Team
Contact Julia Blanchet and Maria Ceja with questions.
Odette Harris, MD, MPH
Professor of Neurosurgery
Director, Brain Injury
Department of Neurosurgery
Dr. Odette Harris specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI), and conducts TBI research with a focus on epidemiology and outcomes. Dr. Harris serves in leadership positions at both Stanford and the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Health Care System.
Neelam Goyal, MD
Clinical Professor, Division of Neuromuscular Medicine Neurology & Neurological Sciences
Wellbeing Director, Neurology Department
Dr. Goyal focuses on the diagnosis, management, and electrophysiological testing of neuromuscular disorders, including SFEMG. Her expertise extends to immune-mediated disorders such as myositis, myasthenia gravis, CIDP, and vasculitis. Her research interests involve monitoring and managing the short and long-term toxicity of immunosuppressive agents. She is actively involved in a grant-supported project investigating steroid toxicity in patients with myasthenia gravis.
David J. Park, MD, PhD, FCNS
Clinical Assistant Professor, Neurosurgery
Dr. David Park, MD, PhD, is a neurosurgeon who graduated from medical school at the Catholic University of Korea in Seoul, South Korea. He completed his internship and residency training in the Department of Neurosurgery at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital. He became a board-certified neurosurgeon in South Korea in 2014 and subsequently completed a 2-year fellowship at the same hospital, specializing in brain tumor surgery and skull base surgery. During his residency, he also attended graduate school while practicing neurosurgery as a trainee and successfully defended his Ph.D. thesis, titled “Combination therapy for gliomas using temozolomide and interferon-beta secreting human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells,” in 2015.
As of July 2022, Dr. Park joined the Department of Neurosurgery at Stanford University as a Clinical Instructor, working with Dr. Steven D. Chang in the fields of Neurosurgical Oncology and CyberKnife SRS. As of July 2024, he has been promoted to Clinical Assistant Professor in the same field.
Deyaaldeen “Deya” AbuReesh, MD
Neurosurgical Neuro-Oncology and Stereotactic Radiosurgery
GME Fellow
Yusuke Hori, MD
Stereotactic Radiosurgery (Cyberknife)
Clinical Instructor
Dr. Hori received his MD from Sapporo Medical University, Japan, and during that time he served as a Medical Student Research Fellow in the Department of Pharmacology. He explored the functional role of the SIRT1 gene, a longevity-associated gene, and its association with various conditions such as muscular dystrophy. He also completed a Visiting Student Research Fellowship at the Health Sciences University of Hokkaido and participated in Human Genetics projects focusing on an association between the 27-bp deletion and 538G>A mutation in the ABCC11 Gene.
After graduating from medical school, Dr. Hori completed a neurosurgery residency at National Hospital Organization Okayama Medical Center in Japan. Subsequently, he completed a Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery Fellowship and then a Neurosurgical Oncology and Radiosurgery Fellowship at The Cleveland Clinic. He also completed an International Neurosurgery Fellowship at Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School. In 2022, he moved to Stanford University as a postdoctoral fellow, and under the supervision of Dr. Anca Pasca, he participated in brain organoid research focusing on hypoxic brain injuries.
Since July 2023, Dr. Hori has been working as a Clinical Instructor (Neurosurgical Oncology and Radiosurgery) in the Department of Neurosurgery at Stanford under the supervision of Drs. Steven D. Chang and Antonio Meola. His clinical interests include malignant brain and spine tumors in both adult and pediatric patients. His clinical research focuses on the application of minimally invasive treatments such as laser interstitial thermal therapy, focused ultrasound, and radiosurgery to treat various neurosurgical conditions. His current lab research aims to develop an organoid model for radiation-induced brain injuries and a high-throughput screening platform to identify novel therapeutic compounds, for which he received a Clinician Educator Grant from Stanford University Maternal and Child Health Research Institute. Outside of medicine, he enjoys playing music including guitar and drums.
Fred Lam, MD, PhD, FRCSC
Stereotactic Radiosurgery (Cyberknife)
Clinical Instructor
Fred is a Canadian board-certified neurosurgeon with a PhD in neuroscience. He obtained his neurosurgical fellowship training at Harvard Medical School specializing in tumors of the brain and spine. Fred then pursued postdoctoral research in cancer biology, DNA damage, and epigenetics at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT studying the use of nanotechnology and precision medicine approaches for the treatment of brain tumors.
Prior to coming to Stanford, he was a junior attending neurosurgeon at Saint Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, with a clinical and research focus on the neurosurgical treatment of patients with primary and metastatic brain and spine tumors. He is honored to be a Clinical Instructor in the SRS and neurosurgical oncology program at Stanford Neurosurgery and am excited to be learning from the Stanford Neurosurgery faculty.
Featured Alumni
Georgia Hutchinson is a current undergraduate at Harvard and was involved in JClub from 2019-2023. She presented at the forum in 2021 and helped moderate/organize from 2022-2025.
Reflecting on her time, Hutchinson said, “Stanford faculty supported me in high school through the Journal Club, Summer of Neuroscience and the forum. Starting to learn how to read papers at age 15 was a valuable experience and has given me a leg up in both neuroscience classes and research. I've loved taking neuroscience classes in undergrad and getting a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms driving the disorders we learned about in Journal Club. Working on clinical research has been really cool, and I’m still in touch with other students I met through the forum!”
Featured Student
Harris Intern and JClub participant, Nainika, is the co-founder of The Neurokidz. The goal of The Neurokidz is to spark curiosity and deepen understanding of neuroscience among young children.
“As a co-founder of The Neurokidz, I have shaped its mission by developing curriculum modules, leading workshops, and creating engaging activities that simplify complex neuroscience concepts for kids. To promote inclusivity, I also focus on outreach initiatives to bring neuroscience education to diverse communities. Participating in the Harris Internship and JClub has increased my knowledge and enthusiasm for neuroscience. I include interesting advancements in neuroscience in my class material, making lessons more engaging and inspiring for young students.
Working with kids and making a meaningful difference in their lives is the most rewarding part of my involvement with The Neurokidz. There’s nothing more fulfilling than seeing the students’ excitement as they proudly show off their brain hats or neuron models to their parents at the end of class.”
