Four leaders at Duke University School of Medicine were inducted April 22 into the inaugural class of Fellows of the Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS).
Duke Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) leaders Stephanie A. Freel, PhD, PMP; Rishi Kamaleswaran, PhD; and Christopher Lindsell, PhD, as well as CTSI collaborator Rachele Hendricks‑Sturrup, DHSc, MSc, MA, from the Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy were recognized at an induction celebration at Translational Science 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They were among 36 fellows selected nationwide from over 6,000 members of the ACTS.
The Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS) is a non-profit membership association of translational scientists from the nation’s leading academic medical centers. Their new fellows program recognizes individuals who have made substantial contributions to and service within the clinical and translational science field and who are an essential part of the clinical and translational community.
“This extraordinary representation from Duke in the inaugural Fellows of ACTS cycle is a powerful testament to the university’s leading-edge role in advancing clinical and translational science,” said Susanna Naggie, MD, MHS, FIDSA, director of CTSI and vice dean for clinical and translational research at the school of medicine.
Read more about the awardees below:
Transforming the clinical research workforce — starting early
Freel is nationally recognized for redefining how individuals enter and thrive in clinical research careers. As the Director of Clinical Research Operations and Education in DOCR and CTSI, Freel has championed workforce engagement, resilience, and access across the translational ecosystem. Among her most paradigm‑shifting contributions is her leadership in designing and launching the nation’s first direct-to-hire, high‑school–based clinical research career pathway and apprenticeship program at the Durham Early College of Health Sciences (DECHS). By creating an early, approachable, and community‑grounded entry point into clinical research, her work holds promise not only for building a strong, diverse, and resilient workforce, but also for fostering medical trust among students and families partnering with DECHS.
Why this Fellowship matters to me: “As one of the few staff to be chosen as a Fellow of ACTS, I am thrilled to be able to represent operational leaders from across the national research enterprise—this amazing community of leaders who provide critical insights and deep expertise from process development to team science to innovate the way research is done and advance healthcare behind the scenes. Achieving excellence and making a lasting change in the world requires bringing everyone to the table, and this Fellowship brings recognition and motivation to continue to move forward in this meaningful way.”
Harnessing data science and AI to advance precision and resilience in care
A computer scientist and translational researcher, Kamaleswaran is a national leader in applying machine learning and artificial intelligence to complex clinical and biomedical data. At Duke, he directs the CTSI Data Science & Informatics efforts and leads interdisciplinary research that leverages electronic health records, physiologic waveforms, and multimodal data to improve outcomes in critical illness, cystic fibrosis, and neurologic disease. His work is distinguished by its deep translational impact in bridging algorithm development, clinical validation, and real‑world implementation. By integrating longitudinal data to understand patient resilience and recovery, Kamaleswaran’s research advances precision medicine while expanding access to data‑driven healthcare solutions.
Why this Fellowship matters to me: “It is deeply humbling to be recognized in this inaugural cohort alongside my distinguished colleagues from Duke and across the country. This Fellowship will provide further impetus for our team's core mission to translate complex, multi-modal AI into intelligent clinical systems that democratize optimal care, anywhere, and move us closer toward making precision medicine accessible and actionable at every bedside”
Modernizing how clinical evidence is generated and used
With more than three decades of impact across biostatistics, informatics, and clinical trials, Lindsell is an architect of clinical evidence ecosystems. He has shaped multi‑center, FDA‑regulated trials, large‑scale observational studies, and learning health systems that span laboratory, bedside, and community settings. His innovations in risk stratification and prognosis, including patented algorithms and national data coordination leadership, have had lasting influence on how research is designed, governed, and translated into practice. As lead of CTSI’s Biomedical Informatics and Data Science pillar, his passion for modernizing clinical evidence generation continues to drive rigorous, inclusive, and actionable science.
Why this Fellowship matters to me: “My career has focused on making it easy, fun, and rewarding for researchers to answer impactful questions. ACTS is the premier organization dedicated to accelerating the impact of science on human health and vitality, and it is humbling to be recognized among the giants that have toiled tirelessly to improve the lives of everyone.”
Advancing trust, transparency, and ethics at the frontiers of biomedical innovation
Hendricks‑Sturrup brings a vital, and increasingly central, dimension to translational science: the ethical, legal, and social foundations of biomedical innovation. As Research Director of Real‑World Evidence (RWE) at the Duke‑Margolis Institute for Health Policy, she leads nationally and internationally recognized work within biomedical innovation as it intersects with critical areas of regulatory science, health policy, data governance, and engagement. A highly cited scholar and trusted policy voice, Hendricks‑Sturrup has shaped best practices and evidence-based standards for RWE development and implementation, championed lived experience-based approaches to innovation, and elevated research and key use cases that center trustworthiness in and open access to translational research. Her leadership exemplifies how policy and ethics are essential to both the mission and practice of translational science.
Why this Fellowship matters to me: “My career mission is to ensure that every person receives the range of benefits that biomedical innovation has to offer, especially in precision medicine. For years, I have witnessed how ACTS supports, cultivates, and grows communities holding that same mission overall and to a very high standard. Therefore, I am humbled and honored to be chosen as one of its inaugural fellows who can steady that mission in a forward and meaningful direction.”