Dr. Li has more than 30 years of experience in science management and research administration, including federal government contract management experience managing and supporting research, scientific peer review, project management, policy development, fundraising, committee management, staff recruitment and development, meeting planning and organizing, and writing and editing. She directs a number of projects, interacting directly with clients, and contributes to the substantive content of deliverables as well as running the company. She currently serves as Co-Principal Investigator of the National Institute on Aging (NIA)-funded (U24) Coordinating Center for the Artificial Intelligence and Technology Collaboratories for Aging Research program. The U.S. Small Business Administration named Dr. Li the 2024 Small Business Person of the Year for Maryland. She was also honored in 2024 to receive small business leadership awards from the International Leadership Foundation and the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce.
Prior to founding RLA, Dr. Li served the National Institutes of Health in leadership roles, including as Senior Policy Advisor to the NIH Office of Extramural Research, Special Assistant for Policy Development with the NIH Office of Communication and Public Liaison, Chief of the Population and Social Processes Branch within the NIA Division of Behavioral and Social Research, and Health Scientist Administrator with the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. She earned her BA in economics and MBA in finance and international business, both from the University of Chicago, and her PhD from Princeton University in public and international affairs, with a concentration in population policy. She completed postdoctoral research in demography, epidemiology, and economics of aging in Asia at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Dr. Li was appointed by Governor Larry Hogan to the Maryland Commission on Aging in 2015, named its Chairperson in September 2016, and renewed for a second 4-year term as chairperson beginning in 2022. By appointment of Governor Hogan, she also served on the Maryland State Board of Education (2016-2021), and has been serving since 2021 as an inaugural member on the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Accountability and Implementation Board Nominating Committee. She is the recipient of the 2019 Award for Service to Princeton, past President of the Association of Princeton Graduate Alumni (2010-2012), and Co-Chair of the Asian American Alumni Association of Princeton (A4P)—DC Region (since 2012).
Ms. Curran oversees financial strategy, operational direction, and management of corporate administrative functions for RLA. Leveraging over two decades of experience supporting small businesses in the federal sector, Ms. Curran is adept in the administration of accounting, contracts, human resources, facilities, information technology, and event operations. She oversees financial reporting and life-cycle contract and grant administration operations, ensuring compliance with federal regulations.
In her role overseeing RLA’s Meeting and Event Planning division, Ms. Curran directs the planning and execution of conferences, workshops, advisory meetings, and events for federal, scientific, and academic organizations. She guides strategic event planning, budget development, vendor and venue negotiations, and operational execution, ensuring the team’s successful delivery of complex events that foster collaboration, innovation, and scientific exchange.
She collaborates with RLA leadership to manage strategic business initiatives, optimize financial management workflows, and identify and target areas for sustainable growth. With a holistic view of operations, she plays an integral role in shaping RLA’s operational strategy, supporting organizational growth, and ensuring the successful execution of company-wide initiatives. Ms. Curran is dedicated to optimizing processes that promote quality and efficiency while fostering a collaborative environment where talented team members thrive and contribute to RLA’s success. She received her BS in accounting from George Mason University.
Dr. Lee serves as a subject matter expert, providing strategic advisory support in science management and research administration. His expertise includes portfolio analyses, program impact evaluations, grants management process improvement, and research administration training. He currently serves as a Principal Investigator on the National Institute on Aging-funded (U24) Coordinating Center for the Artificial Intelligence and Technology Collaboratories for Aging Research program, and as Senior Project Director of RLA’s support for the HHS Office of Research Integrity.
Dr. Lee’s previous experience includes serving as a Program Director at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute for 12 years in the Division of Cardiovascular Sciences, leading its bioengineering program, overseeing clinical trials, and managing small business innovation research and translational programs. He also has held leadership roles at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering Extramural Science Programs & Division of Discovery Science and Technology, where he led NIBIB interagency initiatives that bridge the life and physical sciences, directed the NIBIB Quantum Grants program, and oversaw extramural research portfolio of biointerface sciences, biocompatibility, medical devices and implant sciences, bioprocessing and manufacturing technology grants. While at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Dr. Lee served as Group Leader for Pressure & Vacuum Metrology in the Process Measurements Division. Prior to government service, Dr. Lee oversaw prototype engine development as an advanced technology engineer with Detroit Diesel Corporation.
Dr. Lee earned his PhD in mechanical engineering, with a focus on combustion, from the University of California, Davis and completed his graduate research while serving as a visiting researcher at Princeton University. He also earned an MS in Combustion from Northwestern University Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, and his BS in chemical engineering from the University of California at Berkeley. He is an avid tennis player with NTRP 4.5.
Dr. Carluccio provides strategic leadership and planning, management oversight, and training for RLA’s science writing team and plays a key role in shaping the strategic growth of the company and driving business development. Dr. Carluccio has 20 years of experience leading communications for interdisciplinary academic communities and general audiences.
Prior to joining RLA, she grew and led the first communications team at a professional services firm for nonprofit organizations, helping the company double in size. Dr. Carluccio previously had an extensive academic career. She was Assistant Director of a University of Maryland Honors College program focused on the humanities, life, and social sciences; Assistant Director of the Programs in Professional Writing at the University of Illinois; and Postdoctoral Fellow in the Program in Writing and Rhetoric at Stanford University. Dr. Carluccio earned her PhD in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she conducted and published research on the development of evolutionary models of psychology in professional and lay discourse.
Dr. Walsh provides strategic planning and management oversight for a growing team and portfolio of projects in research administration, program design and evaluation, data analysis, and scientific synthesis.
With more than 20 years of experience in clinical epidemiology, clinical research, health policy development, and program management, Dr. Walsh brings deep expertise in advancing evidence-based programs and fostering effective scientific collaboration. Throughout her career, she has managed and supported high-profile programs within the federal government, including multiple federal advisory committees, and partnered with industry and healthcare stakeholders to support strategic research, policy development, and systems-level patient safety initiatives. Prior to joining RLA, she served as a senior clinical epidemiologist and research project manager within a Canadian health authority, building a strong foundation in data-driven research, population health analysis, and public health evaluation. Her extensive background enables her to successfully guide multidisciplinary teams, oversee complex scientific operations, and support collaborators in achieving impactful research and policy outcomes.
She is a decisive leader, known for cultivating effective partnerships and high-performing teams, and an accomplished author of numerous scientific publications. Dr. Walsh earned her PhD in clinical epidemiology from Memorial University of Newfoundland, Faculty of Medicine, with her dissertation on a mixed-methods approach to long-term care.
