Jason White
Professor and Director of the 3+2 Engineering Program
I joined the faculty of Simmons University in 2019, arriving from the Department of Radiology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) and Harvard Medical School (HMS). I was a doctoral student, a post-doctoral fellow, and then faculty member at the Focused Ultrasound Lab (BWH/HMS), where I helped develop a novel way of performing noninvasive brain surgery with ultrasound. I now leverage my training as a physicist, together with the 20+ years of research on focused ultrasound, to teach and work with my students in the exploration of new techniques for using ultrasound as a tool for neurosurgery, neurology, and neuroscience.
I maintain an active clinical schedule with the BWH Departments of Radiology and Neurosurgery, where I use MR-guided focused ultrasound to treat patients with essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease. I am also involved in an early-stage clinical trial to investigate the use of transcranial ultrasound neuromodulation for treating epilepsy.
Formerly, I had been a classically trained musician (Peabody Conservatory, Johns Hopkins University), and had spent eight seasons as artist-faculty at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. I had performed and recorded in several local venues, including the Berklee College of Music, WGBH, and Boston’s Symphony Hall. Beyond New England, I had performed in several cities throughout North America, including New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington D.C., Chicago, Toronto, and Los Angeles.
Courses
- CHEM-390-01 - Chemistry Seminar
- PHYS-114-01 - Funds of Physics I
- PHYS-114-LC - Funds of Physics I
- PHYS-114/MATH121 – LCIS - 01
- PHYS-114G-01 - Funds of Physics I GIL
- PHYS-114L-LC - Fund. Physics Lab
- PHYS-355-02 - Independent Study with Thesis
- PHYS-390-01 - Physics Seminar
- CHEM-390-01 - Chemistry Seminar
- PHYS-233-01 - Introduction to Medical Imaging
- PHYS-300-01 - Mechanics
- PHYS-333-01 - Biomedical Ultrasound Physics
Jason White in the News
Simmons Creates Paths to Engineering
Simmons University is officially partnered with Washington University in St. Louis in the Engineering 3+2 program, in addition to Columbia University. As part of this program, students complete three years of course work at Simmons, followed by two additional years at a partner institution, earning both a Bachelor of Science in Engineering and a Bachelor of Science from Simmons.
Shout-outs from Students and Alums
Chemistry/Physics Student Accepted into Research Experience at UPenn
Annabelle Hannah ’25, a double-major in Chemistry and Physics, was accepted into the 2024 summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program at the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn). The 10-week program is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).
For the Shattuck Family, a Simmons Tradition Spans Four Generations
When she matriculated to Simmons in the 1940s, Jane Bergwall Shattuck did not realize that she initiated a multi-generational presence at the University.
Geraldina Cruz '23 Presents Research at Brigham and Women's Radiology Research Symposium
Physics major Geraldina Cruz '23 recently participated in the annual Radiology Research Symposium at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) on May 25. Cruz was one of just two undergraduates who presented research alongside seasoned researchers at BWH. They spoke with...
Undergraduate Recipients of 2023 Senior Scholar Award
Six seniors across the University have been selected as recipients of the 2023 Senior Scholar Award, in recognition of outstanding scholarship and contribution to a field of study.
STEM Student Attends Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics
CJ ’24 (Chloie Johnson) attended the American Physical Society’s Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) at Boston University in January 2023. They spoke with us about their experience at the conference and their love for science. Tell us about...
Dan Nguyen ’23 Receives Robert Y. Young Award
Physics major Dan Nguyen has received a prestigious award from the Acoustical Society of America (ASA). Nguyen began her research as a SURPASs (Summer Undergraduate Research Program at Simmons) scholar and is now testing her theories at the new science building. She spoke with us about her project, what drew her to Simmons, and her future plans.
Pre-Med Student Beyza Erdem ’22 Experiments in Gene Therapy and Focused Ultrasound
How did you become interested in working with focused ultrasound? I was in Dr. Phillip White's physics class and he would talk about the projects he was working on using focused ultrasound. It interested me into looking into the concept...
Simmons Students Experiment with Focused Ultrasound
"I like to connect physics to healthcare, to give my students context," says Associate Professor of Physics Phillip Jason White. "I’ve worked in health care for over 20 years — in radiology, transplantation, cardiology, neurology — and I use all...