Jai Raccioppi, a Ph.D. student in the J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Florida, has been selected as a Fellow in the highly competitive ABCD START Program.
The START Program prepares early-career researchers to work with two landmark, longitudinal research platforms that examine brain development and health from childhood through adulthood. As part of the 2026 cohort, Raccioppi will gain access to large-scale national datasets to support research on long-term brain development and adolescent health outcomes.
Only 19 fellows are selected nationwide for the program. Participation includes in-person conferences, monthly virtual sessions, and mentored research engagement throughout the year.
Raccioppi is a McKnight Doctoral Fellow and a member of the TM3 – Tissue Mechanics, Microstructure, and Modeling Laboratory, led by Dr. Lakiesha Williams. His research investigates how inflammation associated with nutritional patterns influences white matter microstructure and emotional regulation during adolescence, a critical period of neurodevelopment.