Rising Stars Driven by Collaboration & Community

Crystal M. Glover, PhD, and Ryan Gibney, MD, were honored at a May 13 luncheon as recipients of the Spring 2026 Rising Stars award, in recognition of their impactful collaborations to advance high-quality care.

“What began as a simple idea — recognizing junior faculty who are shaping the future of our academic health system — has become one of our most meaningful bi-annual traditions,” said Michael J. Stamos, MD, welcoming attendees to the May 13 Rising Stars awards luncheon. Stamos, dean of the UC Irvine School of Medicine, was excited to introduce the first Rising Stars awardees of 2026:

• Crystal M. Glover, PhD, associate professor of neurology and
• Ryan Gibney, MD, assistant professor of emergency medicine.

Launched in 2019 by the School of Medicine and UCI Health, the Rising Stars program recognizes early-career faculty making significant contributions to research, clinical care and community engagement — faculty with extraordinary achievements, like Glover and Gibney.

From helping people live longer and healthier lives to ensuring the best possible care outcomes for emergency room patients, Glover’s and Gibney’s work exemplifies the impact of leadership rooted in collaboration and community.

Crystal M. Glover: Collaborations for Optimal Aging

“Who I Am,” read the opening slide of Glover’s Rising Stars presentation, “Reflections on My UCI Journey, Achievements, and Aims.” Glover is someone working tirelessly to facilitate optimal outcomes in aging for all. Her path to UC Irvine started in Louisiana and wound through El Paso, Texas; Howard University in Washington, D.C.; the University of Colorado, Boulder; and Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

“What led me to UC Irvine in January 2025 was the promise of collaboration,” she said, outlining previous work with UC Irvine faculty, including Joshua D. Grill, PhD; Claire Henchcliffe, MD, DPhil; and Frank LaFerla, PhD. Their partnership and support drew Glover to the UC Irvine School of Medicine’s Department of Neurology as well as the UC Irvine Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders (UCI MIND), where she now leads the Outreach, Recruitment and Engagement Core for its Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC).

Since joining UC Irvine, Glover has had a banner first year, being awarded two R01-level grants funded through the National Institutes of Health. The first, an $18 million five-year grant, establishes the nation’s first trial-ready cohort for limbic predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy (TRC LATE). The study on LATE, a type of dementia that can mimic Alzheimer’s disease, is in collaboration with researchers from UC Irvine, UC San Diego, USC, Oregon Health and Science University, and the University of Washington.

The second grant, Rainbows of Alzheimer’s Research Readiness (ROARR), is a collaboration with researchers from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas; the University of Kentucky; and Vibrent Health. It aims to increase clinical trial readiness and participation among underserved sexual and gender minority groups at increased risk of being affected by Alzheimer’s disease.

Glover also spoke about how she relishes her roles as editor-in-chief of Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Behavior & Socioeconomics of Aging, a scientific journal hosted by the Alzheimer’s Association, and as a board member of the association’s Orange County chapter, which gives her the opportunity to engage with local people living with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. She has provided seven community-based talks and activities in her first year, and she is excited for more collaborations — locally, nationally and internationally.

“I look forward to building upon this solid foundation and leading aging and dementia science into new learnings and advancements,” Glover says. “Words do not adequately capture how honored and grateful I am to be recognized and celebrated with this award. I am excited to continue and expand my efforts at UC Irvine.”

Ryan Gibney: High-Quality Emergency Care

Gibney, who now serves as medical director for the UCI Health – Irvine Emergency Department, started his presentation with an admission: he felt “out of his element” when first tasked with standardizing the discharge process as a bed czar (otherwise known as a “bed management coordinator”) for the UCI Health – Orange Emergency Department. Collaborating with a dedicated team, he crafted a color-coded reference that improved daily operations and increased efficiency.

“Every discharge means another open bed to improve the quality and experience of what I do clinically,” Gibney explained.

He also worked to expand care-at-home partnerships for UCI Health and, more recently, helped launch the Emergency Department at the new UCI Health – Irvine hospital. Gibney studied best practices from emergency departments around the country and set audacious goals for efficiency, quality and satisfaction.

“We delivered,” he reported, noting a door-to-doctor metric of six minutes, and a door-to-decision median rate of 172 minutes, well under the national average of 4 hours. Yet the most interesting part of Gibney’s presentation was the story behind the accolades.

“Two weeks after getting married, I told my wife, ‘I think I’m quitting my job to become a doctor,’” he recalled. “Sounds good,” she responded, “but I’m not leaving Orange County!”

Thus began his journey from managing a restaurant in Newport Beach to studying for his MD at the UC Irvine School of Medicine, with a new appreciation for the listening skills honed during his years in the service industry and working as a musician.

“Take the time to listen and understand others,” he advised, recounting an experience of listening to a lonely patron in a bar who later gave him a $1,000 tip. “Oftentimes, that person may be the key to opening a door or making a connection that will fundamentally change your life.” Chris Fox, MD, chair of the UC Irvine Department of Emergency Medicine, was one of many people Gibney went on to credit with clearing a path for his success.

Gibney further recounted one of his favorite memories, when his toddler daughter read “U-C-I” from the envelope announcing his residency during the School of Medicine’s Match Day in 2018.

He followed up that joyous occasion by sharing a more painful memory from October 2025, when Gibney learned that his wife’s biopsy was positive for breast cancer.

“Time stopped, followed by the longest 48 hours we’ve ever had together,” he said. But that’s when his UC Irvine community came together to offer support.

“As I have come to know in my career here at UCI Health, everyone showed up … the lab techs, nurses, my ER family,” he says. And six months to the day later, they all came together again to celebrate that Melissa Gibney is now cancer-free.

“The honor of standing here today is not mine,” concluded Gibney. “It’s the sum of years of dedication, support, family, mentors, friends, colleagues and strangers that allow great things to happen. … Thank you to all of you for having the faith and confidence in me to show up and give my very best, to make UCI Health the very best!”

Learn more about the Rising Stars program and see previous award recipients.

— Shani Murray