Meet Our Team

Dr. Horbinski hails from Buffalo, NY, where he completed his combined M.D., Ph.D. training at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He then did an Anatomic Pathology residency and a Neuropathology fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh. His first academic appointment was at the University of Kentucky, where he founded and directed the Solid Tumor Molecular Diagnostics laboratory and was Director of the Markey Cancer Center Biospecimen and Tissue Procurement Shared Resource Facility. In 2015, Dr. Horbinski moved to Northwestern University, where he directs the Neuropathology Division, the Nervous System Tumor Bank, and the Mouse Histology and Phenotyping Laboratory. To date, Dr. Horbinski has authored over 140 peer-reviewed publications, and has obtained extramural research support from multiple sources, including the NIH and ABTA. He has delivered over 60 invited talks and platform presentations on gliomas in a variety of national and international settings, has mentored over a dozen clinical and research trainees on scientific projects, and has trained over 30 clinical residents and fellows. Dr. Horbinski is an Associate Editor of Neuro Oncology and Neuro Oncology Advances, and is on the editorial board of the top three neuropathology journals (Acta Neuropathologica, Brain Pathology, Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology) and reviews for over 20 journals, including Neuro-Oncology, Oncotarget, Lancet Oncology, Cancer Research, and Clinical Cancer Research.

Katy McCortney earned her bachelor degree in psychology from Illinois Wesleyan University. She conducted novel research at Illinois Wesleyan before joining the Social Neuroscience Lab at The University of Chicago. She joined the team at Northwestern University in 2015 where her role as Lab Manager includes coordinating research specimen requests, overseeing the administrative work, and working with the biobank team to process, collect and distribute brain and spinal cord tumor specimens for banking and research. Katy also earned a Masters of Science in Health Communication from Northwestern University in 2019. In her free time she trains for and races in triathlons.

Mariah Flowers earned her bachelor’s degree in biological sciences at DePaul University. During her time at DePaul, she volunteered in the Emergency Department at Northwestern Memorial Hospital where she assisted with transporting patients and provided food or blankets to those in the waiting room. She also held various leadership positions in her sorority and was selected to serve on multiple committees. She then earned her master’s degree in medical physiology at Case Western Reserve University where she worked on clinical research under the cardiothoracic surgery department at the University Hospitals network. In the future, she plans to continue her education and will be applying to medical school.

Alicia Steffens earned her bachelor degree in biological sciences from Illinois State University before continuing on to complete IUPUI's Histotechnology program in 2015. Her career began in a clinical setting with a strong focus on embedding and microtomy skill. She then moved to a research setting, which includes her role in the Nervous System Tumor Bank where she is the principal histotechnologist. In her role here, her skills include special staining and immunohistochemistry.

Jordain Walshon earned her bachelor degree in biomedical science with minors in chemistry and psychology from Western Michigan University. During her time at Western, Jordain skated on the Synchronized Skating team. In the future she would like to continue education for Pathologists' Assistant or work related to Neuropathology.