Charissa is a Midwest-native passionate about science, art, and community. At Webster University, she double majored in biology and audio production and minored in art. She went on to receive her M.S. in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology from Saint Louis University in the Fall of 2019. She previously worked at WUSM as a bioinformatics intern within the labs of Meagan Baldridge and Scott Handley. She later joined Eli Roberson’s staff as a bioinformatics analyst where she helped to create a pipeline for processing RNA sequencing data. Charissa joined Ibáñez lab in March 2023 and is assisting with ongoing RNA sequencing projects. Outside of the lab, Charissa stays busy juggling her own hobbies with those of her husband and two kids. She especially enjoys performing as a member of the St. Louis Community Chorus.