Our UAMS Pediatric Resident Recruitment Committee looks forward to meeting you. Our Resident Recruitment Committee, representing the more than 260 faculty members of the UAMS Department of Pediatrics working on the Arkansas Children’s campus, have provided brief bios below so that you can learn about them prior to your interview.
Committee Members
Section: Clinical Informatics, Adolescent Medicine Medical School: UAMS Residency: UAMS Dr. Antipolo, a Little Rock native, lives with her husband (her high school sweetheart) and their 3 sons. She loves working in the service of the children or her home city and state. She is a Clinical Informaticist and works for Arkansas Children’s as an Associate Medical Information Officer where she helps her colleagues optimize their own patient care practices and assists in health IT & EHR development and improvement. Clinically, Dr. Antipolo is the medical director of the Adolescent Clinic where she cares for her teen patients. She is passionate about both her clinical and administrative work and enjoys sharing her knowledge in both areas with her resident and student learners.
Section: Neonatology/Newborn Hospitalist Medical School: UAMS Residency: UAMS Dr. Jared Beavers is a general pediatrician who serves in the division of Neonatology as a Newborn Hospitalist. He formerly served as Chief Resident for the ACH Pediatric Residency before staying on as faculty. Although he has always considered Arkansas home, Dr. Beavers has, like so many Arkansans, always maintained a special place in his heart for Arkansas Children's Hospital. The ability to serve the underserved, to serve without considering cost of care, and to be a part of a world class training center all drew Dr. Beavers into continuing his career at ACH. His passion for education, both for students and residents, and his love of integrating technology, data, and education have all contributed to his appointments as an Associate Director of the Housestaff and as a Medical Informatics Officer. When he isn't in his office or on the wards, Dr. Beavers can be found spending time with his amazing wife, Blair, who is also a Newborn Hospitalist, and his daughters, Emerson and Bennett. He can also be found in his shop tinkering, making, exploring, destructing, and otherwise up to mischief.
Assistant Professor, Neonatology
Professor, Nephrology
Dr. Blaszak received his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of Medicine followed by a pediatric residency at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso, Texas. Before joining the medical staff of Arkansas Children’s Hospital in 1999, he completed a fellowship in Pediatric Nephrology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. He currently serves as the Division Chief for Pediatric Nephrology. Dr. Blaszak enjoys teaching and mentoring residents and junior faculty and currently oversees the Pediatric Resident Advisor and Faculty Interviewer Programs. He has four children and four beautiful grandchildren. When not at work he enjoys traveling, off-grid camping, and maintaining a 17-acre homestead.
Section: Pediatric Hospital Medicine and Pharmacology/Toxicology
Medical School: UAMS
Residency: UAMS
Dr. Latch is currently serving as the Vice Chair of Education in the Department of Pediatrics. Having spent her entire career at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, she has enjoyed watching this facility and program grow and change over the past twenty years and relishes the opportunity to take part in those changes. Dr. Latch’s academic interests include promoting compassionate family-centered care, championing diversity, equity and inclusion at UAMS and ACH and building evidence-based practice within her section and the department. She serves as the facilitator for Pediatric Grand Rounds and the physician leader for Schwartz Rounds at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. As a native Arkansan, Dr. Latch and her family enjoy all the outdoor activities the Natural State has to offer. They currently are progressing toward their goal of having visited all 52 Arkansas State Parks. They love to hike, swim and fish…. Well, honestly, she loves to read a book while her husband and sons catch the fish.
Section: Hospital Medicine Medical School: Tulane University School of Medicine Residency: Tulane University School of Medicine Fellowship: University of Alabama at Birmingham/Children’s of Alabama Dr. Cantu received her medical degree from Tulane University School of Medicine, then remained at Tulane for her pediatrics residency and a chief resident year. She completed a fellowship in pediatric hospital medicine at UAB. She is a pediatric hospitalist at ACH. She enjoys working with residents on teaching teams and her favorite topics of discussion are evidence-based & high-value care, demystifying clinical research, and breastfeeding. She is the program director of ACH’s new pediatric hospital medicine fellowship. She loves reading, knitting, and spending time with her two sons. Her favorite thing about Little Rock is the many options for outdoor activities.
Section: General Pediatrics and Hospital Medicine Medical School: UAMS Residency: UAMS/ACH Dr. Smith received her medical degree from UAMS before completing her pediatric residency at UAMS and ACH. After completing her residency she joined the Department of Pediatrics as faculty in the sections of Hospital Medicine and General Pediatrics. She enjoys the clinical variety and teaching opportunities of both outpatient primary care and tertiary inpatient care. Emily grew up in Little Rock and is happy to contribute to the investment of ACH and UAMS in the state by working to improve the way we deliver care to the children in Arkansas as well as training the next generation of pediatricians. She loves spending down time with friends, family and her two dogs. She loves fiction (movies, TV, or books), board games, coffee, candles, and music.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics - Genetics Section: Genetics and Metabolism Medical School: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Residency: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital for Medical Sciences Fellowship: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital for Medical Sciences I am Section Chief of Genetics and Metabolism at Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH). I wear many hats as the medical director of the INSTEP clinic for children with differences in sexual differentiation and development. I am also the co-medical director for the Neurofibromatosis clinic and co-director of the UAMS Genetic Counseling program. I am the medical director of the Arkansas Reproductive Health Monitoring System for birth defect tracking in Arkansas. I am from Little Rock originally but received a B.S. in Biology from Davidson College in North Carolina in 2002 and earned my medical degree from UAMS in 2007. I completed a combined residency in pediatrics and genetics from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in 2012. I am dual board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and The American Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics. I have been practicing at ACH for 9 years. I returned here after fellowship. For fun, I enjoy cooking, trying the many local Little Rock restaurants, traveling (in non-COVID times), and watching many different sports.
- Hometown: North Little Rock, Ark.
- Undergrad: University of Arkansas, Biology
- Medical School: UAMS
- Residency Program: UAMS
- Work Interests: I simply enjoy patient care and working with learners, residents and medical students.
- Life: I love spending time with my husband and four daughters. We enjoy family walks and other outdoor adventures. We also love a good movie and pizza night.
- Pets: Black Lab – Sandy. Two kittens – French Fry and Moonlight
- Little Rock favorites: River trail, great restaurants, close to hiking, fishing, boating, and outdoorsy things, availability of arts like orchestra and plays.
