Howdy Ya'll!
Welcome! We are Leslie Beltrán, Mariana Carretero-Murillo, and Prescott Cheong, and it is our pleasure to introduce ourselves as the Chief Residents of the Pediatric Neurology Residency Program. We are excited that you are considering our program and grateful for the opportunity to share what makes our training experience so special. Our program offers several pathways to fit a variety of career goals, including Categorical Child Neurology, Foundational Child Neurology, Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (NDD), and Basic Neuroscience Research (BNS). We would love to share a little about what drew each of us to this program and, more importantly, what we have come to love about it.
Training in the Heart of Houston
Our residency is based in the diverse, vibrant, and ever-growing city of Houston, Texas, with our primary training site at Texas Children’s Hospital, one of the nation’s premier children’s hospitals. Texas Children’s is nationally recognized for excellence across 11 pediatric specialties, including Neurology and Neurosurgery, which are ranked #1 nationally by U.S. News & World Report! As a resident, you will have the opportunity to train at one of the best children’s hospitals in the country while caring for a remarkably diverse and medically complex patient population. The breadth of pathology and clinical experiences you encounter here provides an outstanding foundation for becoming a well-rounded pediatric neurologist.
Our adult neurology training is equally diverse. Throughout our adult neurology year, we rotate through multiple clinical sites, including Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, and Ben Taub Hospital. Each site offers a unique patient population, clinical environment, and breadth of pathology, giving residents exposure to a wide range of neurological disease and allowing us to learn from different approaches to patient care. Needless to say, you will receive excellent clinical training, particularly because of the volume and complexity of patients you will see across both your adult and pediatric neurology years. This clinical experience is complemented by formal didactics throughout your residency, creating a synergistic learning environment that prepares you for the challenges and rewards of a career in child neurology.
A Community That Feels Like Home
One of the greatest strengths of our program is the sense of community among both residents and faculty. The atmosphere is friendly, supportive, and casual, creating an easygoing environment where everyone genuinely wants to see one another succeed. We work hard, but we also make time to enjoy life together. Residents frequently get together for happy hours, dinners, and other activities outside of the hospital, including painting, dancing, and hiking. These relationships have become an important part of our residency experience and are some of the memories we value most.
Houston itself also has something for everyone. It is an incredibly family-friendly city with countless activities for residents and their families, including the Houston Zoo, Downtown Aquarium, museums, parks, and even safari experiences. Whether you are looking for great food, outdoor adventures, cultural experiences, or activities to enjoy with your kids, Houston offers plenty to explore both inside and outside the hospital.
If you’re willing to embrace Texas, you might leave residency knowing how to two-step—and perhaps even find yourself with a country song written about you! We can’t promise the songwriting, but we can promise plenty of dad jokes from our attendings along the way.
Faculty Who Invest in You
Another defining strength of our program is our faculty and program leadership. Our Program Directors, Dr. Timothy Lotze and Dr. Sarah Risen, along with our Associate Program Directors, Dr. Nikita Shukla, Dr. Kristen Fisher, Dr. Steven Lazar, Dr. Andres Gomez-Jimenez, Dr. Tuan Chao, and Dr. Daniel Davila-Williams, are all incredibly approachable and invested in our development, and they work hard to ensure that each resident has the support and resources needed to succeed as a pediatric neurologist.
Our faculty bring an incredible diversity of clinical experiences and subspecialty expertise to the program. They are experts and leaders in their respective fields, yet remain remarkably approachable and enthusiastic about teaching. Whether you are interested in a particular subspecialty, research, education, advocacy, or simply becoming a better clinician, our faculty are eager to mentor and support you throughout your residency. Their willingness to invest in us—not only as physicians, but also as people—is truly one of the things that makes this program special.
Come See What Makes Us Special!
Thank you again for taking the time to learn more about our program and for considering us as you embark on this exciting next chapter of your career! We hope that we've given you a glimpse into what makes our program such a wonderful place to train. Choosing a residency program is a big decision, and we would be thrilled to have the opportunity to get to know you and share more about our experience.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We are happy to chat about anything—from the training experience and our favorite rotations to life in Houston and where to find the best BBQ in town!
We hope to see you in Houston soon as part of our in-person Applicant Second Look at Texas Children’s Hospital in January 2027! Come on down and see for yourself what makes Texas Children’s Hospital and our Pediatric Neurology family so special. Y’all are always welcome here!
Sincerely,
Leslie Beltrán, M.D., Mariana Carretero-Murillo, M.D., and Prescott Cheong, M.D.
Chief Residents, 2026-2027
Baylor College of Medicine Child Neurology and NDD Programs
