University of Texas Genetic Counseling Graduate Program

10/30/2026

Happy Friday Folks! We are back with another installment of Faculty Fridays. Up next is another UTGCP alumni and current faculty member, Gina Sanchez!

Gina is a prenatal genetic counselor and clinical instructor at UTHealth Houston in the department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at McGovern Medical School. Gina currently serves as the head supervisor for our summer Spanish immersion and as the advanced prenatal rotation head supervisor. Let's hear from Gina on what she loves about her position and working with the program.

"I love being one of the counselors that covers our LBJ clinic. Lyndon B. Johnson is a safety net hospital in Houston and most of the patient population is Spanish-speaking and under/uninsured. Providing counseling to them in their native language is very rewarding and I feel like I am able to really connect with each patient during our sessions. I recently became the advanced rotation head supervisor, and it has been a lot of fun connecting with each student and really getting to help them progress in their training and watch their counseling skills grow."

Thank you, Gina for all that you do for the UTGCP and your patients ♥️

10/16/2026

Let's kick off the weekend with another Faculty Friday from the UTGCP!

Up next is UTGCP alumni and current faculty member, Christina Falugi!

Christina is a cancer genetic counselor and assistant professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch where she serves as the Director of Cancer Genetics. Let's hear from Christina directly on what she loves about her job and her role with the program.

"I absolutely love my position and was excited to build the cancer genetics program at UTMB from scratch in 2016 as a recent graduate. It’s been rewarding to see how this program has grown with additional cancer GCs to care for our large and diverse patient population. I love UTMB’s large geographical footprint where we see patients across Southeast Texas. Our institution also has the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Hospital (TDCJ) where we exclusively care for incarcerated patients. It’s important for me to apply equitable care to all our patients. GC students who are also on rotation with us are able to counsel patients in the TDCJ genetics clinic and learn about the specific barriers these patients' face.

I love being able to give back to the UTGCP as a supervisor on student’s cancer rotations, mentor, teacher, and thesis committee member. Getting to watch students’ growth over the course of their two years as they prepare to be future GC colleagues is incredibly rewarding."

Thank you, Christina! Your patients and our students are so lucky to have you 🎉🧬

10/08/2026

A well deserved recognition for our very own program director, Claire Singletary!!

Great mentors do more than share what they know. They see potential, build confidence and help others find their own path.

Congratulations to Jian Hu, PhD, and Claire Singletary, MS, CGC, recipients of the 2026 D. Dudley and Judy White Oldham Faculty Award. Through their different fields, both have made mentorship central to their careers — from helping students develop their scientific voice to offering guidance that continues long after graduation.

Meet this year’s honorees and learn what mentorship means to them: https://loom.ly/N11qWjA

University of Texas Genetic Counseling Graduate Program

10/05/2026

We are back with another second year take over! Join us tomorrow on Instagram stories as Allison Brewer gives us a snapshot of her life on her advanced cancer rotation here at the UTGCP!

09/28/2026

Join us over on Instagram tomorrow 9/29/26 to check out what life is like as a second year at the UTGCP! Melana Vaughn is currently on her advanced medical genetics rotation and will take you along with her as she goes about her day. Follow along in our stories!

09/25/2026

Happy Friday folks! To kick off the weekend, we want to share a new installment on UTGCP socials: Faculty Fridays!

We have an amazing group of faculty and supervisors here at the UTGCP and love to brag on them, their accomplishments, and their roles with the program. To get us started, our first faculty member is our very own Associate Program Director, Meagan Choates!

Meagan is a prenatal genetic counselor and assistant professor within the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at UTHealth Houston McGovern Medical School. She was recently promoted to Associate Program Director of the UT Genetic Counseling Program at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. A title reflective of all of the hard work she puts into the UTGCP.

Let's hear from Meagan directly on what she loves about her job and her role with the program!

“The part of my job I love most is teaching! I teach a large part of our first and second year classes, and love getting to see and interact with our students frequently as a result. Hearing our students' insights and questions is so intellectually stimulating and pushes my own growth; I also love getting to see the lightbulb moments for the students when things click. I also love findings innovative solutions for things that aren't best serving the students or program, like transitioning our thesis and logbook system into REDCap!

Outside of teaching, a large part of my role is overseeing our students' thesis research process by providing mentorship, helping with aspects of study design, data analysis, and science communication. I am also heavily involved in tracking of student progress, admissions, and evaluating and reflecting on areas for change and growth within the program and developing plans for implementation. I love a good project!”

Thank you Meagan for all that you do! We couldn’t do it without you 🎉🧬

09/24/2026

Another great opportunity for prospective students! Starting at 11 am CST 9/24/26 join NSGC to learn more about the genetic counseling profession. Then from 1-3pm, stop by our individual program zoom room to talk with faculty and current students. Come ask questions and learn about what makes the UTGCP special. We hope to see you there!

https://studentfair.nsgc.org

09/22/2026

Attention prospective students!

Coming up in three days! Join us September 24 at 4:00 PM ET as Jessica Giordano, MS, CGC, Assistant Professor of Genetic Counseling at Columbia University Irving Medical Center provides guidance for students and trainees interested in exploring as a career.

The FREE session will be followed by a live Q&A, allowing students to ask questions about genetic counseling, education and training, patient care, research, and career preparation.
https://tinyurl.com/E392026

09/09/2026

UTGCP faculty and friends had a major presence at the 3rd annual International TSC Consensus Conference this summer, where experts collaborated to advance care for individuals living with Tuberous Sclerosis Complex. Following that, faculty also had a presence at the TSC World Conference, a family centered meeting of more than 2,000 attendees from all over the world.

We are proud to recognize UTGCP medical director, Dr. Farach, medical genetics GC, Kate Richardson, and medical genetics faculty, Drs. Northrup and Rodriguez, for their work on various presentations and panels.

Second year Melana Vaughn also attended the conference and recruited for her thesis research studying sleep concerns among individuals with TSC.

Keep up the good work!

https://med.uth.edu/pediatrics/2026/09/04/uthealth-houston-tsc-experts-lead-on-the-international-stage/

08/27/2026