Shivayogi Hiremath, PhD – Director of PHIRE Laboratory
Dr. Hiremath is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Physical Therapy, College of Public Health. PHIRE lab’s research focuses on studying health and physical activity patterns of people with disabilities in the community through wearable sensors and smartphone-based technologies. We also develop and apply novel physical activity monitoring and feedback technology, which when combined with behavioral programs would improve the health and quality of life of people with disabilities.
Tessa Johnson, MS – Neuromotor Science – PhD Student
Tessa is a PhD student in the Neuromotor Science program. She earned a Master’s degree in Kinesiology from Temple University (‘18), and a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Bryn Mawr College (‘10). She is also a Registered Yoga Teacher. Before starting her PhD at Temple, she worked for three years as a Research Assistant in the Neuroplasticity and Motor Behavior Laboratory at Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute. She is interested in upper extremity motor behavior and rehabilitation following stroke and spinal cord injury, functional movement disorders, movement-specific reinvestment, attentional focus effects on motor behavior, and how metacognitive and psychological factors impact motor behavior.
Cole Hagen, BS – Neuromotor Science – PhD Student
Cole earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Saint Cloud State University in 2019. Following graduation, he dedicated two years to researching pain and sensory mechanisms in individuals with neurological injury that were in clinical settings. Now, as a PhD student in Neuromotor Science at Temple, Cole concentrates on identifying patterns from human movement, leveraging innovative tools such as machine learning techniques paired with mobile technology to predict clinically relevant outcomes in individuals with spinal cord injury and elderly individuals in naturalistic settings.
Rachel Carey, MS – Neuromotor Science – Research Associate
Rachel earned a Master’s degree in the Neuromotor Science program at Temple in 2022. When she is not in the lab or classroom, she works as a fitness trainer. She is interested in the effects that different forms of exercise have on rehabilitation.
Melissa Nunn, BS – Consumer Advocate
Melissa serves as a peer mentor through the Philadelphia Peer Mentorship Program at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital. She is a consumer advocate and an active collaborator for several research projects being conducted in the lab. She has been associated with the lab’s research since 2017.
Key External Collaborators
Dr. Stephen S. Intille, Northeastern University
Dr. Ralph J. Marino, Thomas Jefferson University
Dr. Mary Schmidt-Read, Magee Rehabilitation Hospital, Jefferson Health
Dr. Marlyn S. Ramos Lamboy, MossRehab, Jefferson Health
Dr. Kelly M. Heath, University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Inbal Billie Nahum-Shani, University of Michigan
Dr. Amol Karmarkar, Virginia Commonwealth University
Dr. Carole A. Tucker, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Dr. Mohanraj Thirumalai, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Alumni
High School Students (who spent 6 to 8 weeks in PHIRE lab)
Ramez Hamad, Partnerships for Achieving Careers in Technology and Science (PACTS) Program at The Franklin Institute, Northeast High School (Magnet), School District of Philadelphia (Summer 2019)
Absalom Hobson, STEM Scholar Student at The Franklin Institute, Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School, Philadelphia (Summer 2019)
Steven Ho, STEM Scholar Student at The Franklin Institute, Mastery Charter Thomas School Philadelphia (Summer 2018)
Tigidankay “TK” Saccoh, Science Leadership Academy, School District of Philadelphia (Summer 2017)
