Meet the Fellows 2024-2025

Blake Beehler, MD – Movement Disorders

Blake grew up in Naperville, IL, a southwest suburb of Chicago. He obtained his bachelor's degree in biology at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, IL, where he was a member of the men's soccer team. He then moved to Chicago, IL to obtain his medical doctorate from Rush Medical College and stayed on to complete his neurology residency at Rush University Medical Center. Blake is excited to join the University of Colorado for his movement disorders fellowship and fully experience a state other than Illinois. In his free time, he enjoys running, hiking, skiing, soccer, checking out local breweries, and he is an amateur ceramic artist.

Colby Cevering, DO – Neuro-Oncology

Born and raised in Ogden, Utah, I'm no stranger to the mountains. I studied music in the foothills of the Rockies before changing course and graduating with a degree in psychology from Southern Utah University, where I could rappel over waterfalls and explore the slot canyons of Zion National Park in my spare time. My natural curiosity for the brain and its functions made neurology an obvious choice going into medical school. I graduated from Kansas City University and completed residency at Loma Linda University in southern California, and now I look forward to conquering the famous Colorado 14ers while finishing my training.

Michael Seidman, MD – Behavioral Neurology & Neuropsychiatry

Mike hails from Oak Park, IL, a suburb of Chicago. He went to college at Clark University in Worcester, MA where he double majored in Psychology and Studio Art. Following a four-year stint teaching English in Japan with the JET Program, he pursued a pre-med post-bac program at Mills College in Oakland, CA. He earned his medical degree from Rush University in Chicago, IL and most recently completed Psychiatry residency training at MUSC in Charleston, SC. Aside from the brain's fascinating behavioral outputs, he is interested in home coffee roasting, sourdough bread-making, cephalopods, scuba diving, and snowboarding. He’s excited to join the CU Neurology community and hopes to contribute to the department enthusiastically! 

Vinaykumar Tallavajhala, MD – Movement Disorders [information to come]

Justin Murphy, MD - Behavioral Neurology & Neuropsychiatry

Justin Murphy is a Cognitive-Behavioral Neurology & Neuropsychiatry Fellow. He grew up in Vienna, Virginia but moved to Colorado to complete his Residency Training in Adult Neurology. Prior to starting medical school, he worked for the Henry Jackson Foundation at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Outside of work, he enjoys finding new hiking trails, supporting the sports teams of "the DMV" (D.C, Maryland, and Virginia), and spending time with his wife, family, and dog, Zuma.

David VO, MD - Headache Medicine

David is from Washington State, and completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Washington in International Studies with an emphasis on Global Health. He obtained his medical degree from Tulane University in New Orleans, and recently finished his adult neurology residency at the University of California San Diego. He is excited to continue his training in headache medicine here, while enjoying the outdoor activities that Colorado has to offer with his wife and two kids.

Tess Schultz, DO - Pediatrics Headache Medicine

Tess grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado, and studied Microbiology and Immunology at Colorado State University. She earned her medical degree from Rocky Vista University and completed pediatric residency at Children’s Mercy in Kansas City. Currently, she is completing a pediatric headache medicine fellowship, with plans to combine primary care and headache medicine. Outside of work, she enjoys skiing, baking, playing pickleball, and spending time with her husband and young daughter.

Margaret “Meggie” Upchurch, MD – Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis

Margaret (Meggie) Upchurch is a fellow in neuroimmunology/MS at the University of Colorado. She grew up in Austin, Texas and completed her undergraduate degree in neuroscience at UT Austin. She completed medical school at UT Health San Antonio before moving to Denver where she completed her neurology residency at the University of Colorado and served as chief resident in her final year. Her clinical interests include MS and pregnancy, patient education, and working with underserved patient populations. Her interests outside of work include hiking and camping with her dog and husband, gardening, and enjoying live music.

Amy Young, MD – Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis

Amy Young is a fellow in Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology at the University of Colorado. She completed her undergraduate training at the University of Minnesota with a major in Neuroscience and her medical degree at University of Colorado School of Medicine. She also completed her Child Neurology residency at the University of Colorado with a special interest in medical education and neuroimmune disorders. She is excited to continue training at the University of Colorado to gain further expertise in pediatric multiple sclerosis and other neuroimmune disorders. Outside of medicine, she enjoys spending time with her husband, playing volleyball, cycling or indoor rock climbing as well as playing music or painting with friends.

Mary “Maria” Gallanis Benson, MD - Neuro-Infectious Diseases and Autoimmune

Maria grew up in Austin, Texas, and completed her undergraduate degree in Neurobiology at the University of Texas at Austin, along with a certificate in the Business of Healthcare. She earned her medical degree from UT Health Science Center in San Antonio before moving to Denver for neurology residency, where she quickly fell in love with the city and its active lifestyle.

In her free time, she enjoys playing grass league volleyball, running, cooking and spending time outdoors. She has a strong interest in clinical research, particularly in the field of autoimmune neurology, and is passionate about advancing the understanding and treatment of autoimmune and infectious neurological diseases. She is excited to further develop her expertise in these areas during fellowship and to integrate this knowledge into her future clinical and academic work

Hayder AlHashim, MBBCh – Adult Epilepsy

Born and raised in Thi-Qar, Iraq. Finished medical school at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and completed neurology residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Outside of work, I enjoy hiking and the outdoors in general, weightlifting, and playing pool.

Casey Dolen, MD – Adult Epilepsy

Casey hails from his hometown of Woodland Park, CO. He is proud to have completed undergraduate studies, medical school, and residency at the University of Colorado. His passion is in service to diverse and underserved patient populations. Outside of medicine he enjoys bluegrass concerts, travel, and exploring the Rockies with his spouse.

Yuan-Ping “Peter” Li, MD, PhD – Neuromuscular Medicine

Peter is from the metro-Atlanta area in Georgia. He attended Johns Hopkins University, where he studied biomedical engineering, but in the process developed a desire to help patients through both research and clinical care. He enrolled in the MD/PhD program at Drexel University where he developed nanoparticles to induce antigen-specific tolerance in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis. His interest in neurology grew and subsequently completed a residency in neurology at Thomas Jefferson University.  He also inadvertently developed an affinity for all the major Colorado hobbies: skiing, biking, and climbing. He conveniently matched at the University of Colorado, where he is very excited to continue fellowship training in neuromuscular medicine.

Cate Picou, DO – Vascular Neurology

Cate was born and raised in southeast Louisiana and calls New Orleans home. She completed her bachelor's and master's degrees in neuroscience at Tulane University in New Orleans before obtaining her doctorate in osteopathic medicine near Atlanta at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine - Georgia Campus. She then returned home to New Orleans to complete her residency in neurology at Tulane University; in her final year of residency, she served as chief resident and earned the prestigious Leon Weisberg Excellence in Clinical Teaching Award. She is thrilled to be completing her vascular neurology fellowship at the University of Colorado, and she plans on pursuing a career in academic medicine where she can work with and mentor medical students, residents, and fellows. In her free time, she has embraced the Colorado lifestyle and enjoys hiking, live music, trying local breweries, and spending time with her beloved shih-tzu, Chloe.

Alex Verma, MD, PhD – Vascular Neurology

I was born in Berkeley CA but grew up in and around Denver. I studied biochemistry at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO, and then attended the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine, where I finished both medical school and my doctoral dissertation on cancer metabolism and immunology. Following medical school I completed my neurology residency at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. I'm thrilled to be returning home to Denver for my vascular neurology fellowship. In my spare time I enjoy hiking, grilling, beer brewing, and gardening.

Jenna Miller, MD – Neurohospitalist

Jenna Miller is a Neurohospitalist fellow at the University of Colorado. She completed undergraduate studies at Tulane University where she majored in French and Neuroscience. She attended medical school from LSU Health and then moved to Philadelphia to complete Neurology Residency at the University of Pennsylvania where she developed an interest in academic inpatient neurologic care. Her interests include quality improvement and clinic pathway utilization, local and global access and equity, and medical school clinical education.