Dr. Hanna B.

Dr. Butler-Struben’s interest in research began as an undergraduate at UC Davis, where she studied pharmaceutical effects on behavior in mouse models of autism spectrum disorder. Later, at San Francisco State University, she conducted comparative pain physiology research using cephalopods in the Crook Lab. Along with her internship at the San Francisco Zoo and further neuroscience research at the University of California, San Francisco, she began to study the psychology and cognition of animal welfare in captive animals. As a policy fellow with the California Initiative to Advance Precision Medicine within the California Health and Human Services, she worked with researchers and legislators across the US to organize funding for research projects targeting specific underrepresented California populations.

Throughout her education, Dr. Butler-Struben has worked extensively with undergraduate students as a Lead Graduate Student Mentor at UC Davis and San Francisco State University, and as a teaching assistant, teaching courses ranging from biology to psychology and animal science. Near the end of her graduate program, she became the lead for a journal club for aspiring neuroscience students in the Educational Enrichment and Outreach Program. She has held leadership roles in her local science communication club, Science Says, and has been active in SACNAS (Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science). After completing her Master’s degree, Butler-Struben worked as Laboratory Manager at the UCSF Department of Otolaryngology. 

Across her research career, Dr. Butler-Struben has explored questions at the intersection of neuroscience, animal behavior, physiology, cognition, and welfare. She has contributed to work appearing in journals including Neuropsychopharmacology, Animal Behaviour, and Invertebrate Neuroscience. Her research experience is complemented by a strong background in science communication, allowing her to translate complex scientific concepts for students, collaborators, and broader audiences. 

Dr. Butler-Struben is a motivational mentor who has helped dozens of students reach their goals, from developing research proposals and presentations to attending the graduate school of their dreams. Students she has mentored have gone on to institutions including UC Davis, UCSF, UCLA, UC Berkeley, Stanford University, Columbia University, and the University of Southern California. Her past mentees have presented their work at venues including the Society for Neuroscience Conference, the UC Davis Undergraduate Research Conference, and the Society for Integrative Biology Conference. They have also had their work published in journals such as Neuropsychopharmacology, Animal Behaviour, and Invertebrate Neuroscience.

As an experienced mentor, Dr. Butler-Struben draws on an eclectic background of experiences to guide students. She brings varied interests that all connect through a love of learning, and she tailors her mentoring to fit each individual student, getting to know their strengths and helping them leverage them to achieve their goals. She likes to view each student holistically, getting to know them on a deep and personal level to better support their growth both academically and personally.