Council

Participation:

James P. Luyendyk

President (2026–2027)

Michigan State University

Dr. Luyendyk is the Albert and Lois Dehn Endowed Chair and Professor in Pathobiology and Diagnostic Investigation and member of the Institute for Integrative Toxicology at Michigan State University. Dr. Luyendyk has 15 years of uninterrupted support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for his research focused on mechanisms linking components of the hemostatic system with hepatotoxicity and liver repair/regeneration. He is a prior recipient of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Outstanding New Environmental Scientist Award.

Dr. Luyendyk has published nearly 130 peer-reviewed manuscripts and co-authored the liver chapter of Casarett & Doull’s Toxicology. He has served on the editorial board of Toxicological Sciences and as a standing member of the Xenobiotic and Nutrient Disposition and Action Study Section, including as Chairperson. Dr. Luyendyk also is a Fellow of the Academy of Toxicological Sciences.

Dr. Luyendyk has been a meaningfully engaged member of SOT for more than 20 years, joining in 2001. Previously, Dr. Luyendyk served on SOT Council as the Secretary and was Chair of the SOT Graduate Student Leadership Committee Executive Board, the SOT Postdoctoral Assembly Board, and SOT Committee on Diversity Initiatives. Within the Component Groups, he has served as President of the Michigan Regional Chapter and as a Councilor for the Central States Regional Chapter and Mechanisms Specialty Section.

Participation:

Robyn L. Tanguay

Vice President (2026–2027)

Oregon State University

Dr. Tanguay is a distinguished scholar recognized for her groundbreaking research on zebrafish models, which has significantly enhanced our understanding of how chemicals impact embryonic development. Her team has pioneered the use of zebrafish in predictive toxicology, developing automated high-throughput instrumentation, protocols, and software tools that expedite phenotype discovery. Her talented group has assessed the bioactivity of thousands of chemicals and mixtures, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), TCDD, ethanol, flame retardants, nicotine, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, nanomaterials, and complex environmental mixtures. Utilizing a variety of techniques—such as systems biology, imaging, molecular biology, genetics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and bioinformatics—Dr. Tanguay aims to elucidate toxicity mechanisms and inform the development of safer chemicals and nanoparticles.

Dr. Tanguay has mentored dozens of PhD and postdoctoral scholars, helping them launch successful careers.

With over 300 co-authored manuscripts and book chapters across diverse disciplines, Dr. Tanguay serves on various federal and commercial advisory boards and is an editor for several scientific journals. She also directs the NIEHS-supported Oregon State University Superfund Research Center and the Sinnhuber Aquatic Research Laboratory.

Dr. Tanguay has been an SOT member since 2000 and has made extensive contributions to the Society over the years. She served as a Councilor from 2021 to 2024 and as Chair of the Membership Committee from 2011 to 2012. Her service spans multiple Committees and groups, including the Board of Publications, Committee on Diversity Initiatives, Long Range Planning Committee, and several Specialty Sections such as Nanoscience and Advanced Materials, Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology, and Neurotoxicology. She held multiple officer roles within the Pacific Northwest Regional Chapter, including President, and has been actively involved in Special Interest Groups such as Out Toxicologists and Allies and Women in Toxicology. Dr. Tanguay’s long-standing leadership reflects her deep commitment to fostering excellence and inclusion across the SOT community.

Participation:

Barbara L. F. Kaplan

Vice President-Elect (2026–2027)

Mississippi State University

Dr. Kaplan earned her BS in environmental toxicology from the University of California Davis and her PhD in pharmacology and toxicology from Michigan State University. After conducting postdoctoral research in tumor immunology at the University of Chicago, she returned to Michigan State University as a Research Assistant Professor. She is now a Professor in the Center for Environmental Health Sciences and Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences at Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Her research focuses on the effects and mechanisms by which drugs and chemicals alter immunity, with particular emphasis on aryl hydrocarbon receptor ligands and cannabinoid compounds.

Dr. Kaplan has been a member of SOT since 1997 and previously served as Councilor from 2018 to 2021. Her service to the Society has included leadership and participation across a wide range of groups and initiatives, including the Board of Publications, Education Committee, Career Resource and Development Committee, Undergraduate Consortium Task Force, Future Strategy for SOT Meetings and Continuing Education, and the SOT FDA Colloquium. She also has been active in the South Central Regional Chapter and the Immunotoxicology Specialty Section.

In addition to her Society service, Dr. Kaplan teaches immunology to veterinary students and pharmacology and toxicology to undergraduate and graduate students at Mississippi State University. She has been active in mentoring PhD students, DVM/PhD students, and undergraduate students, and she serves as Director of the NIH-funded Summer Research Experience program for veterinary students at Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She also has pursued science communication training and engagement, including attending the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science Boot Camp in 2017 and chairing or co-chairing several SOT Annual Meeting sessions on science communication topics.

Dr. Kaplan is also active in the Scientific Liaison Coalition and has contributed to major toxicology reference works, including multiple editions of Casarett and Doull’s Toxicology, Patty’s Toxicology, and Comprehensive Toxicology. Through the Scientific Liaison Coalition, she has participated in working groups focused on animal use and alternative models, as well as psychedelics and cannabis.

Participation:

Dana C. Dolinoy

Secretary (2026–2028)

University of Michigan School of Public Health

Dr. Dolinoy is the NSF International Chair of Environmental Health Sciences and Professor of Environmental Health Sciences and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Director of the Michigan Lifestage Environmental Exposures and Disease (M-LEEaD) Center. Dr. Dolinoy has 15 years of continuous support from the National Institutes of Health for her research investigating how nutritional and environmental factors interact with epigenetic gene regulation to shape health and disease. She is a recipient of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Revolutionizing Innovative, Visionary Environmental Health Research (RIVER) Award and a prior recipient of the NIEHS Outstanding New Environmental Scientist Award.

Dr. Dolinoy has published over 160 peer-reviewed manuscripts and is the Volume Editor of “Developmental Toxicology” within the 3rd and 4th editions of Comprehensive Toxicology. She has served as Associate Editor of Environmental Health Perspectives and Environmental Epigenetics and as elected Chair of the 2015 Gordon Research Conference in Cellular & Molecular Mechanisms of Toxicity. In 2015, Dr. Dolinoy received the NIH Director’s Transformative Award to develop piRNA epigenetic editing technologies and has recently co-edited the book ToxicoEpigenetics: Core Principles and Applications.

Dr. Dolinoy has been an engaged member of SOT for 19 years, first joining as a graduate student member in 2005. Dr. Dolinoy has served in the Presidential Chain of the SOT Molecular Systems Biology Specialty Section (2017–2021) and as a member of the Board of Publications (2015–2019) and currently serves as Associate Editor of Toxicological Sciences (2014–present) and on the Finance Committee (2022–present). In 2016, she co-chaired a SOT Contemporary Concepts in Toxicology (CCT) meeting, “ToxicoEpigenetics: The Interface of Epigenetics and Risk Assessment.” Dr. Dolinoy has been recognized by SOT with the Women in Toxicology Investigator Award in 2017, the SOT Achievement Award in 2018, and the SOT Leading Edge in Basic Science Award in 2021.

Participation:

Rebecca C. Fry

Treasurer (2025–2027)

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Dr. Fry is the Carol Remmer Angle Distinguished Professor at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-Chapel Hill). She is the Acting Chair of the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering. She is also the Director of UNC-Chapel Hill’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)–funded Superfund Research Program and the Founding Director of the Institute for Environmental Health Solutions at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Dr. Fry’s laboratory focuses on understanding the mechanisms that link prenatal exposure to toxic substances with adverse health outcomes in the mother or child with a focus on the epigenetic basis of disease. She has an outstanding publication and mentoring record in the field of toxicology and environmental sciences.

Dr. Fry has the experience that is necessary to serve as a strong and effective SOT Treasurer, including managing multi-million dollar budgets within the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, the UNC-Chapel Hill Superfund Research Program, and the Institute for Environmental Health Solutions. In her leadership roles at UNC-Chapel Hill, she manages budgeting processes, which involve developing and maintaining budgets, monitoring expenses, and ensuring that the groups operate within their financial limits. Additionally, she is responsible for preparing annual reports detailing fiscal spending in these areas. In each of these roles, she has shown her dedication to being an effective collaborator, integrating voices across disciplines and working with diverse groups. She is committed to fostering transparent and productive work environments.

She has been committed to SOT since joining in 2010. She received the Society’s Translational Impact Award in 2021 and has served as a member of the Society’s Awards Committee. She also served as the Secretary/Treasurer of the SOT Metals Specialty Section (MSS) prior to serving as the MSS President and as a Councilor for the Stem Cells Specialty Section.

Participation:

Gary D. Minsavage

Treasurer-Elect (2026–2027)

ExxonMobil Biomedical Sciences, Inc.

Dr. Minsavage has been an active member of SOT since 2001. His contributions to the Society include serving in leadership roles within the Risk Assessment Specialty Section, including as President, and currently as a member of the SOT Finance Committee. He also has been involved in Regional Chapters, multiple Specialty Sections, and the Alternative Revenue Sources Task Force.

Dr. Minsavage earned his PhD in toxicology from the University of Rochester, an Executive MBA from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and a BS in biology from King’s College. He completed postdoctoral training as a US National Research Council Fellow at the US Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense and is board-certified as a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology.

Currently, Dr. Minsavage serves as President of ExxonMobil Biomedical Sciences Inc. (EMBSI), where he has held multiple leadership roles, including Toxicology Section Head, Epidemiology Section Head, and Global Product Stewardship Services Division Manager. Before becoming President of EMBSI, he served as Senior Corporate Environmental Health Advisor for ExxonMobil, providing strategic guidance on global environmental health challenges and opportunities.

Dr. Minsavage also brings international experience from a multi-year assignment in Brussels, Belgium, where he served as Science Executive for Health Programs at CONCAWE, the European refining industry’s technical association. He led the EU REACH registration effort for petroleum substances in 2010 and coordinated research in product toxicology, exposure science, air pollution health impacts, and occupational epidemiology. He has authored 35 peer-reviewed publications, reports, and conference papers.

Beyond SOT, Dr. Minsavage has served as a liaison to the National Academy of Sciences Environmental Health Matters Initiative and as Past President of the Board of the Health and Environmental Sciences Institute and Past President of the Board of the Toxicology Forum.

Participation:

Cynthia V. Rider

Past President (2026–2027)

Durham, NC

Dr. Cynthia Rider is a toxicologist with the National Toxicology Program (NTP), National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), where she serves as project leader for a diverse portfolio of testing programs including polycyclic aromatic compounds, botanical dietary supplements, and industrial chemicals. As a study scientist, she designs, evaluates, and communicates results from in vitro and in vivo toxicological studies of chemicals selected for investigation by the NTP. Dr. Rider’s research interests are in evaluating and refining methods to predict mixture toxicity based on data from components or whole reference mixtures. She has established several collaborations with industry, government, and academic scientists to advance the field of mixtures toxicology. Her overarching goal, through her research efforts at NTP and collaborative partnerships, is to generate robust toxicological data to inform risk assessment of mixtures, including chemical and nonchemical stressors. She received her BS from Tulane University in Environmental Studies and Biology and her PhD from North Carolina State University in Environmental Toxicology. She completed postdoctoral training in the Reproductive Toxicology Branch of the National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, US Environmental Protection Agency and the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University. She became a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology in 2011.

Participation:

Corie A. Ellison

Councilor (2025–2028)

Procter & Gamble Company

Dr. Ellison is a Principal Scientist at the Procter & Gamble Company. He has published over 30 articles and book chapters in toxicology and risk assessment. His current research efforts are in the areas of pharmacokinetics (absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion) and new approach methods, particularly in addressing how findings in these fields can improve human health risk assessment for chemicals.  

Dr. Ellison is currently a committee member for the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology (BEST), as well as the NASSEM Scientific Advisory Committee on Alternative Toxicological Methods (SACATM). Dr. Ellison also was on the NASEM committee on Variability and Relevance of Current Laboratory Mammalian Toxicity Tests and Expectations for New Approach Methods (NAMs) for Use in Human Health Risk Assessment. He also contributed to the OECD 231 Guidance document on the characterization, validation, and reporting of physiologically based kinetic (PBK) models for regulatory purposes. 

Dr. Ellison has been an active member of multiple international research programs, including The Cosmetics Europe Long Range Science Strategy program and the International Committee on Cosmetic Safety program. He also contributed to the development of training materials for the Animal Free Safety Assessment Collaboration, a multi-sector partnership to advance the acceptance of animal-free safety science. 

Dr. Ellison has been a member of SOT since 2008 and has served in several leadership and committee roles. Dr. Ellison has served as the Co-Chair and Chair for the former SOT Committee on Diversity Initiatives.  

He has chaired the Inclusion, Diversity, and Engagement Committee (IDEC) (formerly the Committee on Diversity Initiatives. He has also received the SOT Perry J. Gehring Risk Assessment Student Award and the Regulatory and Safety Evaluation Student Travel Award. Dr. Ellison’s service to the Society reflects his long-standing commitment to inclusion, mentoring, and the advancement of public health. 

Participation:

Joshua P. Gray

Councilor (2025–2028)

New Haven, CT

Dr. Gray is Professor and Head of the Department of Chemical & Environmental Sciences at the United States Coast Guard Academy. He primarily teaches toxicology, microbiology, chemistry, and biochemistry undergraduate courses to students majoring in marine and environmental sciences, the second-ever ABET-accredited undergraduate program in natural sciences. 

Dr. Gray is passionate about toxicology education and has been continuously involved in education-focused SOT activities since 2008. He led the Undergraduate Education Subcommittee 2014–2015 and served in its successor, the Faculty United for Toxicology Undergraduate Recruitment and Education (FUTURE) Committee. He chaired the Learning Objectives Work Group to create the Undergraduate Toxicology Learning Framework, a tool that helps faculty build undergraduate toxicology courses by providing learning goals aligned with AAAS’s Vision and Change framework. In 2020, SOT appointed Dr. Gray as the Co-Editor of Toxicology for the pedagogical journal CourseSource, which produces teaching modules for use in the undergraduate science classroom. Dr. Gray champions evidence-based practices and has volunteered with the Inclusion, Diversity, and Engagement Committee (formerly Committee for Diversity Initiatives) since 2008. Following the educational venture between SOT and the nationwide ToxMSDT mentoring program, Dr. Gray joined the oversight team for module development. For this effort, he has recruited authors and edited online modules to introduce undergraduate students to toxicology, including a new iteration of ToxTutor. His efforts to promote undergraduate education extend to the regional level, where he co-led the development of an undergraduate breakout session in NESOT and inspired the creation of a regional chapter grant program. Dr. Gray’s dedication to undergraduate education was honored with the SOT Undergraduate Educator Award in 2018. He is currently the Past President of SOT Northeast Regional Chapter and served as Chair of the SOT Awards Committee 2022–2023. 

Dr. Gray is the Principal Investigator of a National Science Foundation IUSE grant involving six SOT members to develop a C. elegans–based Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) to expose more students to undergraduate toxicology research. His research interests include exploring the mechanisms of microplastic and oxidative stress toxicity in C. elegans and developing microbial biofuels for fuels. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Gray led the scientific component of the US Coast Guard’s surveillance testing program, establishing wastewater testing at four training locations. He also integrated SARS-CoV-2 into his biochemistry laboratory curriculum. For these efforts, he was honored with the Coast Guard Academy’s Civilian Employee of the Year Award and the Meritorious Team Commendation Award. 

Participation:

Darryl B. Hood

Councilor (2024–2027)

Ohio State University, College of Public Health

Dr. Hood’s passion regarding the importance of teaching, mentoring graduate students, postdocs, and junior faculty in the academy and toxicological research enterprise continues to be undergirded by the declining statistics documenting that less than 0.21% of persons holding PhD degrees in the sciences are from individuals that look like him. During the 32 years of his training at both an underrepresented minority academic health science center and research-intensive R01 institutions, he has grown to have a strong affinity for both learning environments. Making the transition from the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine-Meharry Medical College Alliance to the Ohio State University College of Public Health over that time period has allowed Dr. Hood the opportunity to significantly enhance his academic research and professional and collaborative leadership skill sets toward being an effective SOT Councilor.

Currently, Dr. Hood is a tenured Full Professor with a robust research portfolio and national reputation as a scholarly environmental public health neurotoxicologist. He also holds the administrative position of Deans’ Fellow for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusive Excellence in the College of Public Health at Ohio State University. Dr. Hood serves in leadership roles at the university, regional, state, and national levels. He is a member of the National Advisory Environmental Health Sciences Council at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. He also serves as a member of the Children’s Environmental Health Committee and the Standing Committee on Emerging Science for Environmental Health Decisions and most recently as a member on the Public Health Research and Surveillance Priorities from the East Palestine, Ohio, Train Derailment at the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.

The combination of Dr. Hood’s broad academic, research, service, and diverse work experiences in different settings has allowed him to identify and form connections between and among various people, professions, and organizations. His approach as an academic leader and manager includes joining, assembling, and interacting with functional collaborative and cooperative groups. He refers to himself as an active partner relying on more than delegation to initiate and complete various tasks and projects. He has a passion for generating and catalyzing ideas from others to create, develop, strategize, prioritize, implement, and achieve the stated goals. In all his work, Dr. Hood has been able to build consensus enthusiastically and politely in a very deliberate and organized manner which will serve him well in the role of Councilor.

Dr. Hood has been an SOT member since 2000. He has previously served as the Chair of the SOT Education and Career Development Committee and President of the SOT Toxicologists of African Origin Special Interest Group.

Participation:

Natalie M. Johnson

Councilor (2026–2029)

Texas A&M University

Dr. Johnson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental & Occupational Health and Chair of the Interdisciplinary Toxicology Program at Texas A&M University. Her research focuses on air pollution exposure and its effects on maternal and infant respiratory dysfunction. She earned her PhD in toxicology from Texas A&M University, with an emphasis on exposure biomarkers and translational toxicology, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins University focused on molecular toxicology and mechanisms of chemoprevention.

Currently, Dr. Johnson helps lead the Texas A&M T32 training grant in regulatory science and environmental health as Deputy Director and serves as Director of the Translational Research Support Core within the Texas A&M Center for Environmental Health Research. She teaches graduate courses in environmental health and toxicology, actively mentors graduate students and postdocs, and has published more than 50 journal articles and book chapters. She was the recipient of an Outstanding New Environmental Scientist (ONES) Award from NIEHS, has received funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and is currently leading a project within the Texas A&M University Superfund Research Center.

Dr. Johnson has been a member of SOT since 2007 and currently serves on the Membership Committee, including as Co-Chair and currently as Chair. Her service to the Society has also included roles with the Education and Career Development Committee, Regional Chapter Collaboration and Communication Committee, and Committee on Diversity Initiatives. She has been especially active in the Lone Star Regional Chapter, where she has served in several leadership roles, and in Specialty Sections, including Inhalation and Respiratory, Occupational and Public Health, Immunotoxicology, and Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology.

Participation:

Agnes L. Karmaus

Councilor (2024–2027)

Syngenta Crop Protection, LLC

Passionate about toxicology, Dr. Karmaus has grown into her career through engagement with SOT. Dr. Karmaus is currently a Senior Computational Toxicologist and Human Safety Project Expert at Syngenta Crop Protection LLC, specializing in the integration of in vitro and computational toxicology in risk assessment context. Her expertise lies in high-throughput screening and predictive toxicology, and her work focuses on developing, evaluating the performance, and integrating alternative approaches to animal testing.

Dr. Karmaus has a diverse research background. Having completed a dual PhD degree in biochemistry/molecular biology and environmental/integrative toxicology at Michigan State University in the laboratory of Dr. Tim Zacharewski, her early research included evaluating species-comparative metabolomic and toxicogenomic hepatotoxicity of dioxin both in vivo and in vitro. Meanwhile, her dissertation comprised in vitro assay development, establishing the BLTK1 murine Leydig cell line as an assay system for identifying steroidogenesis-disrupting compounds.

In addition to laboratory-based research, Dr. Karmaus was the recipient of the 2012 SOT Colgate-Palmolive Award for Student Research Training in Alternative Methods as well as the ILSI North America Food and Chemical Safety Summer Fellowship Award, both of which she used to begin her training in computational toxicology by immersing herself in the Tox21 and ToxCast programs, focusing her work on the evaluation of food-use compounds. Subsequently, as a postdoctoral fellow within the US Environmental Protection Agency National Center for Computational Toxicology, Dr. Karmaus formally contributed to the Tox21 and ToxCast high-throughput screening programs. Her work has culminated in 42 peer-reviewed publications as well as two book chapters across multiple disciplines with a broad network of collaborators and research interests.

Dr. Karmaus has been an active member of SOT since joining in 2007 and has attended every Annual Meeting and ToxExpo since the junior year of her undergraduate degree. Dr. Karmaus devotes significant time to volunteering with SOT, serving as Chair of the SOT Education and Career Development Committee and Councilor for the SOT In Vitro and Alternative Methods Specialty Section, and is a strong advocate for the success of SOT programs encouraging diversity and early career scientists. She has participated in several sessions to promote SOT activities, encouraging graduate student membership to pursue internships and fellowships and supporting international members with navigating opportunities offered by SOT.

Participation:

María-Carmen Rubio-Armendáriz

Councilor (2026–2029)

Universidad de La Laguna

Dr. Rubio-Armendáriz is a Professor of toxicology at Universidad de La Laguna, where she also serves as Director of the Master’s Degree in food safety, quality, and sustainability.

A significant portion of Dr. Rubio-Armendáriz’s career has been dedicated to university governance and strategic leadership. From 2015 to 2019, she served as Vice-Rector for Internationalization at Universidad de La Laguna, where she developed and implemented numerous internationalization projects, cooperation agreements, and mentorship programs. She also served on the Executive Committee for CRUE’s Internationalization and Cooperation sector and chaired the Internationalization Working Group, contributing to policy and best practices across Spanish universities.

Dr. Rubio-Armendáriz’s expertise in risk assessment has been recognized by national public health bodies. From 2017 to 2021, she served on the Scientific Committee for the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition, where she coordinated several scientific reports related to food risk assessment. She also has served as an evaluator for international organizations including the Organization of Ibero-American States and the Ibero-American University Postgraduate Association. As a researcher, she is a principal investigator within the Interuniversity Group of Environmental Toxicology and Food and Drug Safety, has participated in 15 research projects, directed or co-directed 18 doctoral theses, holds four consecutive six-year research excellence accreditations, and has published more than 180 scientific articles.

Her leadership within SOT includes service in the Hispanic Organization of Toxicologists Special Interest Group, where she has served as Councilor, Vice President–Elect, Vice President, President, and Past President. She also has been involved in the Women in Toxicology Special Interest Group, the Risk Assessment Specialty Section, and the Food Safety Specialty Section.

Participation:

Tonia M. Masson

Executive Director

Society of Toxicology

Ms. Masson previously served as the SOT Deputy Director and continues to serve SOT Council in shaping the strategy for fostering collaboration opportunities and guiding SOT’s mission.

Ms. Masson has been with AIM, our management company, since 1999 and is a founding managing partner. She served as the Executive Director for the Environmental Mutagenesis and Genomics Society, the Teratology Society, and the Toxicology Forum.

Ms. Masson is a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE).