Megan MassaAssistant Teaching Professor

Megan Massa joined Emory NBB as an assistant teaching professor in the Fall of 2023. Most of their academic journey has focused on the study of neuroendocrinology, and they are particularly interested in the effects of estrogens and androgens (e.g., estradiol and testosterone, respectively) on behavior and disease. As an undergraduate, Dr. Massa investigated rapid, non-genomic effects of testosterone on goldfish mating behavior. Following graduation, she conducted research on the differential effects of androgen treatment on inflammation and neurodegeneration in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis while on a Fulbright Study/Research Grant to Germany. Dr. Massa then transitioned (aromatized?!) to estrogens for their graduate work, studying how metabolic and reproductive cues from the ovaries integrate to alter feeding behavior. In addition to this, Dr. Massa engages queer and feminist theories alongside scholarship from science and technology studies to interrogate how social frameworks contribute to the neuroscientific study of sexed physiologies.

As an instructor, Dr. Massa practices student-centered, feedback-driven critical pedagogy grounded in compassion and accessibility. Her current teaching research and innovations include the development of student-driven course design and assessment strategies.

Education

• B.A., Neuroscience (English minor), Bowdoin College, 2014
• Ph.D., Neuroscience (Graduate Certificate in Writing Pedagogy), UCLA, 2022

Teaching

• NBB 190 - Political (Neuro)Science
• NBB 401W - Perspectives in Neuroscience and Behavior [fall semesters]
• Upper-level - Feminist Neuroscience (in development)