Current Students
WYNTA ALEXANDER (SHE/HER)
Clinical Program | entered 2023
Wynta obtained her master’s degree in general psychology from the City College of New York, CUNY, where she volunteered as a research assistant in the Applied Research in the Health and Adaptation of Minority Populations (ARHAMP) lab under Dr. Adriana Espinosa. Additionally, Wynta completed her thesis on the moderating role of sex in the association between adverse childhood experiences and depressive symptoms among Black populations using a life course of health theoretical framework. After graduation, Wynta was granted a three - year research fellowship funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in Translational Research Training in Addictions for Racial/Ethnic Minorities, whereby she is developing a pilot proposal investigating the differential impact of parental tobacco prompting on tobacco use outcomes and addiction among Black emerging adults. Presently, Wynta is also working as a research assistant under Dr. Lesia Ruglass at The City College of New York, CUNY on a qualitative study in partnership with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, exploring barriers for seeking lung cancer screening among screening eligible Black people. At the Graduate Center, Wynta is dedicated to advancing her understanding of salient risk and protective factors for health risk behaviors among racial/ethnic minoritized populations to increase awareness and inform preventive and control strategies.
Primary advisor: Adriana Espinosa
LUCY LIOTTA (SHE/HER)
Clinical Program | entered 2023
Lucy graduated from St. Francis College in 2020 with a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Applied Behavioral Psychology. She spent the next three years as a research assistant for the HIV Center at the New York State Psychiatric Institute, contributing to a longitudinal study investigating the psychosocial and behavioral health trajectories of racial and ethnic minority youth living with HIV. Currently, Lucy is interested in investigating cognitive risk and protective factors for suicidality among marginalized adolescent populations, including youth of color and LGBTQ+ youth, to inform suicide screening, prevention, and intervention.
Primary advisor: Regina Miranda
LUKONDE MULENGA (SHE/HER)
Clinical Program | entered 2023
Lukonde is a two-time graduate of the University of Michigan, receiving her B.A. in Biopsychology, Cognition, & Neuroscience in 2016 and her Master of Public Health (MPH) in Health Behavior and Health Education, along with a Graduate Certificate in Global Health, in 2018. Afterwards, Lukonde joined the Program for Research on Women’s Health and Disability (PROWHD), part of the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation of Michigan Medicine. As a member of PROWHD, she contributed to research on reproductive health, sexual wellness, and disability stigma. In her doctoral studies, Lukonde is interested in studying the sexual attitudes of Black and African women – both in the United States and Zambia – and examining how these attitudes impact current and future sexual health behaviors and relationships.
Primary advisor: Adriana Espinosa
GILBERTO PEREZ (HE/SHE)
Health Psychology Program | entered 2023
Summary to come...
Primary advisor: Julia Lechuga
FELIX YIRDONG (HE/HIM)
Clinical Program | entered 2023
Felix is a Fulbright scholar and holds a BS.c. (Psychology) degree and a double master’s degree in Clinical Health Psychology (M.Phil) and Psychology (M.A.) from the University of Cape Coast, Ghana and The New School, New York, respectively. His research focus is to examine the circumstances under which a desire for death emerges and the culturally specific factors that convey risk for suicide ideations versus attempts among youth from ethnoracially minoritized backgrounds. He is also interested in the nexus between childhood adversities and emotional regulation in elevating risk for suicidal behaviors.
Primary advisor: Regina Miranda
Stephen Bosco
Clinical Program | entered 2016
Stephen graduated from Pace University with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. As an undergraduate he was a research assistant for the Center for Urban Health and Educational Research group and conducted observational research in mental health facilities exploring the ways in which art installations may enhance an individual’s cognition as well as conducted quantitative studies investigating the effect of masculine perceptions among men who have sex with men (MSM). After graduation he began working at the Center for HIV Educational Studies & Training (CHEST) as a research assistant, where his work has focused on intimate MSM dyadic relationships and communication patterns around substance abuse and sexual agreements. He aims to help develop interventions that will increase the quality and effectiveness of communication around HIV prevention and relationship/sexual satisfaction.
Primary advisor: Tyrel Starks
Beverlin Rosario-Williams
Clinical Program | entered 2017
Beverlin received her B.S. in Psychology at Xavier University of Louisiana. As a MARC and Ronald E. McNair scholar, she conducted research investigating attitudes toward and perceptions of skin bleaching. Her research interests include examining how cognitive-emotional strategies reduce or prevent future self-harm and suicide attempts; developing effective assessment tools that identify youth at risk of self-harm and suicide attempts; and identifying cognitive-emotional factors that promote resilience in youths with suicidal ideation and a history of self-harm.
Primary advisor: Regina Miranda
Jonathan Lopez Matos (he/him/his)
Health Psychology Program | entered 2017
Jonathan completed a B.A. in Psychology at the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez and a M.A. in General Psychology at Hunter College. He has worked in various not-for-profit organizations in Puerto Rico and the United States, focusing on HIV prevention in sexual and racial minority populations. He has worked at the GAMMA Project of the UPR-Medical Sciences Campus and at the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies of the New York Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University. Jonathan also served as a Health Educator at the Latino Pride Center in New York City. Recently, he has focused his work on minority stress, intersectionality and sexual risk-taking among gay and bisexual men and transgender women at CHEST and has also volunteered to work with the LGBTQ Latino and undocumented immigrant communities. His research interests include racial, sexual orientation and gender intersectionality; minority stress and its impact on sexual decision making and general well-being. He is interested in developing interventions that can increase positive mental and sexual health.
Primary advisor: Jon Rendina
Caroline Faye Zimmermann (she/her/hers)
Health Psychology Program | entered 2017
Caroline earned her B.S. in Psychology from Fordham University in 2014. She went on to receive her M.S. in Clinical Psychology from Loyola University Maryland. She has worked as a Research Assistant at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health on community-based intervention studies for patients with hypertension and chronic kidney disease. Her research interests include stress, coping, and resilience in chronic disease self-management. She aims to translate findings and interventions to patients with various medical illnesses.
Primary advisor: Tracey Revenson
Laurel Weaver
Clinical Program | entered 2017
Laurel graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas with a B.A. in Psychology in 2011 and earned her M.A. in Psychology from New York University in 2013. As a student, she cultivated a passion for exploring the intersection between physical and mental health by focusing her studies on biopsychology-related coursework and by assisting with HIV-related research activities at NYU’s Center for Health, Identity, Behavior, and Prevention Studies. After graduating, she moved on to a grant-funded research position evaluating the healthcare behaviors and experiences of people living with HIV/AIDS who also exhibit problem substance use. Her primary research interests focus on the physical, mental, and sexual health of HIV+ individuals who experience issues with drugs and alcohol. She aims to help develop substance use treatment interventions that promote mental health and antiretroviral medication adherence.
Primary advisor: Jon Rendina
Kara Buda (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2018
Kara received her B.S. in Psychology from Juniata College in 2012. She went on to receive her M.A. at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she specialized in Research Methods and Underserved Populations. She has worked as a Research Project Coordinator at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where she was responsible for the management of multiple research studies across a variety of cancer types and patient populations. Her research interests include exploring adverse health outcomes associated with chronic stress and complex disease management/ transition to palliative care in both patients and their informal caregivers.
Primary advisor: Evelyn Behar
Joseph Carter (he/him/his)
Clinical Program | entered 2018
Joseph graduated from CUNY Hunter College, with a Masters in Psychology. His research interests focus on the intersections of race and sexual orientation that contribute to psychological and sexual health disparities among sexual minority populations. He has worked at the Center for HIV Educational Studies and Training for three years, as both a research assistant and a project coordinator. He ultimately hopes that his career in research and clinical sciences directly informs behavior intervention and prevention measures that mitigate health inequities among vulnerable populations, and improve the quality of life for sexual minority populations as a whole.
Primary advisor: Jon Rendina
Kendell Doyle (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2018
Kendell earned a BA in Psychology from CUNY Hunter in 2016. She has since been working at the Center for HIV Educational Studies and Training (CHEST) as a Project Coordinator. Her current research interests include coping processes among patients diagnosed with a chronic illness and their families. More specifically, she is interested in how maladaptive forms of coping and other health risk behaviors impact disease trajectory and overall health outcomes. In addition, she is interested in how interpersonal relationships impact coping processes and health behavior. Through research, she aims to promote healthy coping strategies for individuals and family members affected by chronic illness to diminish health risk behavior that negatively impacts disease trajectory.
Primary advisor: Tyrel Starks
Chris Liong
Clinical Program | entered 2018
Chris graduated from Wesleyan University with a B.A. in Neuroscience, English, and Psychology. After graduating he served as a research coordinator at Yale University, working on clinical trials aimed at patients with co-occurring chronic pain and opiate dependence. He then worked at Columbia University Medical Center as a coordinator examining risk factors of Parkinson’s disease through biomarkers and genetics. He seeks to explore the intersection of neuroscience and psychology by developing and using biological models to examine clinical questions in psychology.
Primary advisor: Deborah Walder
Barbara Storch (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2018
Barbara graduated from Tufts University in 2016, double majoring in Cognitive & Brain Sciences and Child Study & Human Development (focus: Child and Family Health). Since then, she has worked as a Research Coordinator in the Pediatric Psychopharmacology & Adult ADHD Clinical and Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, primarily coordinating a laboratory classroom study for children with ADHD. Her research interests include the psychological outcomes and comorbidities of having a chronic illness in childhood, and the current interventions and interactions that can be used to ameliorate these disease trajectories.
Primary advisor: Laura Reigada
Jennifer de Rutte (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2019
Jennifer received her B.A. in psychology from Loyola Marymount University in 2018. As an undergraduate, she was a research assistant in the Emotion and Social Relationships Lab and conducted a research project studying how social relationships influence the relationship between emotion regulation and depression. Upon graduation, she began work as a research assistant in the HeadsUP lab at LMU conducting research on web-based intervention strategies for college student drinking. Jennifer’s current research interests include using technology-based interventions to affect positive change through cognitive and emotional mechanisms of anxiety and mood disorders.
Primary advisor: Tracy Dennis
Danielle Hazeltine (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2019
Danielle graduated from New York University with a BA in Psychology with honors where she contributed to work on the effects of stress and increased cortisol on cognition and decision making. After graduating, she worked as an associate researcher at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital and has authored publications examining the effects of prenatal stress on children’s brain health and wellbeing. She has also contributed to work on posttraumatic stress and the long-term health effects it has on World Trade Center first responders. Currently, Danielle is interested in examining the relationships between anxiety, diet, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and the immune system.
Primary advisor: Laura Reigada
Madalyn Liautaud (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2019
Madalyn graduated from Northwestern University in 2015 with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a minor in Gender & Sexuality Studies. She then spent several years at the University of Southern California’s Health, Addiction, and Emotion Lab, where she served as a Project Coordinator for a study investigating the bio-behavioral effects of estrogen and progesterone on smoking. Most recently, she worked as a Behavioral Research Associate within the Gender Development Program at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, where she managed clinical intake data provided by gender-expansive youth and their families. She is interested in researching biopsychosocial, stress-related mechanisms that drive health disparities within the sexual and gender minority community. Specifically, she aims to identify risk and protective factors that influence sensitivity to minority stress and evaluate how subjective expressions of minority stress map onto objective biomarkers and indices of stress.
Primary advisor: Danielle Berke
David Yap (he/him/his)
Clinical Program | entered 2019
After earning a B.A. in Anthropology from McGill University, David taught English in Japan, edited college biology textbooks, worked in education reform, co-founded an activist printing cooperative, and taught science aboard a vintage city bus converted into a laboratory. He eventually went on to earn an M.A. in Psychology from Hunter College while studying anxiety-related patterns of attention. During his time there, David worked as a Research Coordinator on a study investigating the emergence of anxiety in teenagers as reflected in the brain. Currently, David is interested in mood disorders as they relate to health factors such as diet and sleep, and aims to improve interventions for anxiety and depression.
Primary advisor: Evelyn Behar
Abigail Findley (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2020
Abigail received her B.A. in Psychology and Public Policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After graduating, she worked as a project coordinator at the Medical University of South Carolina and then at UNC Chapel Hill, studying biopsychosocial responses to stress across development. Her broad research interests include studying neurobiological and cognitive risk profiles for depression and suicide in youth and adolescents. She also has an interest in the impact of social media use on mental and physical health among adolescents.
Primary advisor: Tracy Dennis
Zara Khan (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2020
Zara Khan received her B.S. in Behavioral Neuroscience from Quinnipiac University. She has worked as a research coordinator in the Pulmonary Unit at the Yale School of Medicine, where she examined psychological adjustment in adults diagnosed with a rare lung disease. Her research interests include stress and coping, risk and resilience, adjustment to chronic illness, treatment adherence, and the development of holistic interventions.
Primary advisor: Adriana Espinosa
Ash Smith (they/them)
Clinical Program | entered 2020
Ash graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, with a B.Sc. in Psychology. After graduating, they worked as a research coordinator at Boston Medical Center, managing on implementation science and community-centered projects to increase access to and quality of evidence-based interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and examining violence exposure and minority stress in gender minority populations. Ash is currently working in the Gender-Based Violence Lab to build community partnerships and increase engagement with queer and trans people of color in New York City, as well as consult on clinical assessments for PTSD. Their current program of research leverages qualitative and quantitative methods to characterize the role of shame in relationships between minority stress and suicidality. Increasingly, Ash is interested in documenting and disseminating non-exploitative methods of engaging with multiply marginalized communities, upending hierarchal power structures that exist in academic research spaces. Looking forward, they hope to use these methods to develop and adapt interventions that reduce suicide risk and transdiagnostic behavioral health distress in trans and gender diverse communities. As they grow into their roles as researcher, clinician, and activist, Ash aspires to center the voices and needs of queer and trans people of color.
Primary advisor: Danielle Berke
Tanaka Chavanduka
Clinical Program | entered 2021
Tanaka graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 2015 with a B.S in Psychology and a minor in Social Work. As an undergraduate, he conducted research with Dr. Stephen Jefferson on identifying factors that influence persuasiveness. After graduating, he worked as an academic coach with underrepresented college students. He then went on to earn an MPH in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Michigan School of Public Health in 2018. Soon after, Tanaka worked as a research coordinator in the Center for Sexuality and Health Disparities at University of Michigan School of Nursing. Here, he focused on testing the efficacy of a large-scale online HIV intervention for young adults and adolescents, and investigating how dyads, social networks, and community factors shape HIV prevention activities. His current research focuses on the queer migration of power, knowledge, information, and wellness through technology - specifically, how sex, gender, and sexuality are expressed technologically, and the spatial characteristics of place making. He aims to design high quality experiences through sustainable interventions for marginalized communities.
Primary advisor: Christopher Stults
Luke Nicholls (they/them)
Clinical Program | entered 2021
Luke received a BA in History from the University of Melbourne in 2014, as well as a GDip in Psychology from Monash University, before moving from Australia to the U.S. to continue his graduate studies in Psychology. He completed an MA in Psychology at the New School for Social Research, where he also worked for two years as a research assistant in the Todman Psychopathology Lab. His research interests include the mental health impacts of climate change - in particular, the potential for eco-anxiety to exacerbate psychopathology, and the motivating effects of anticipatory climate distress on pro-environmental behaviors. At the Graduate Center, he is a member of the Health, Emotion, and Relationships Lab, where he intends to build upon his prior research by exploring the social dimensions of climate change distress.
Primary advisor: Cheryl Carmichael
Sarah Sullivan (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2021
Sarah Sullivan received a BA in history from Fordham University in 2012, as well as a MS in Mental Health Counseling from Fordham University in 2015. After graduating with her MS, she worked for over six years with the Department of Veteran Affairs between the James J. Peters VA in the Bronx and the VA New York Harbor Healthcare System. At the VA, she worked in a suicide prevention lab focused on treatment development with Dr. Marianne Goodman, specifically focusing on suicide-focused dyadic and group interventions. She also previously worked at the Laboratory for Clinical and Developmental Studies with Dr. Christine Cha at Teachers College at Columbia University on projects related toimproving prediction of suicide risk. As a doctoral student in the Health Psychology and Clinical Science (HPCS) Program, she is a member of the Laboratory for the Study of Youth Cognition and Suicide. Her research focuses on the etiology, assessment, and treatment of suicide risk. Specifically, she is interested in using real-time monitoring technologies to distinguish distinct subtypes of suicide ideation in adolescents and emerging adults, as well as understanding suicide-related disclosure.
Primary advisor: Regina Miranda
Megan Wirtz (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2021
Megan graduated with a B.A. in Psychology and Theatre with a minor in Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Studies from the University of Richmond, where her honors thesis examined the mediating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between socioeconomic status and well-being. Upon graduating, she joined the Behavioral Medicine Program at Massachusetts General Hospital as a Clinical Research Coordinator, where she assisted in research on substance use, chronic illness, and sexual and gender minority stigma. Her current research interests surround the impact of cancer diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship on identity development in adolescents and young adults.
Primary advisor: Jennifer Ford
Lexi Karas (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2022
Lexi Karas received her B.A. in English and Psychology from Vassar College and her M.A. in Psychology from the New School for Social Research. While at the New School, she was a member of the Gender and Health Lab, researching decision making and stigma related to infertility and IVF. She has also worked as a study coordinator at Albert Einstein College of Medicine where she facilitated research examining sexual health behavior, substance use, and community-based health interventions. Her research interests include psychosocial adjustment to chronic illness across the lifespan, dyadic coping, and the relationship between chronic illness and identity.
Primary advisor: Tracey Revenson
Clara Law (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2022
Clara received her Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology at Northwestern University in 2020. During her graduate studies, she was involved in several research projects related to obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) such as assessing personality factors in association with OCD remission and examining differences in psychosocial functioning in OCD with and without a comorbid personality disorder. Her research interests are in understanding social and cultural factors that could impact treatment access or efficacy, the development and evaluation of transdiagnostic interventions, and the maintenance of OCD and anxiety disorders.
Primary advisor: Evelyn Behar
Madeleine Miller (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2022
Madeleine worked as a research assistant in the lab of Depression and Anxiety Research at the Penn State University before graduating in 2019 with a B.S. in Psychology. After graduation, she began a job as a research assistant at the National Center for PTSD in the Department of Veterans Affairs located in Menlo Park, California. Her recent research has focused on using digital technology to increase access to evidence-based care. Through her research she hopes to improve the effectiveness and attainability of evidence-based interventions for LGBTQ+ people with PTSD.
Primary advisor: Danielle Berke
Carly Miron (she/her/hers)
Clinical Program | entered 2022
Carly graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2019 with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Consumer Psychology. She spent the following three years as the Program Coordinator for the Anxiety, Stress, & Prolonged Grief Program at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, contributing to research on the psychosocial and contextual factors that influence wellbeing among breast cancer survivors and individuals at high risk for developing pancreatic cancer. In her doctoral research, she is primarily interested in the role of social support in promoting adaptive outcomes to health-related adversity.
Primary advisor: Jennifer Ford
Jamie Taber (they/them)
Clinical Program | entered 2022
Jamie earned their B.S. in Psychology and B.A. in Women’s & Gender Studies from Lafayette College. They went on to obtain their M.P.S. in Clinical Psychological Science from the University of Maryland, College Park. After graduating, they worked at Kean University as an Adjunct Professor in the Psychology Department. They also joined the Sexual and Gender Minority Health Lab at Baruch College, where they have worked on projects related to understanding the experiences of transgender and nonbinary young adults and developing an intervention to prevent intimate partner violence in young sexual minority men. Their research interests include minority stress and mental health in transgender and nonbinary individuals – in particular, they are interested in the effects of interpersonal violence on this population, as well as the stressors unique to nonbinary, as opposed to binary, trans people.
Primary advisor: Christopher Stults
