Current TIPPS Fellows and Research Assistants

Ashanti J. Brown is a first-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. Her research interests include reducing mental health disparities and improving culturally-tailored interventions for racial/ethnic minorities. Specifically, I focus on risk and resiliency for Black youth, the impact of racial discrimination and socialization, and the influence of oppression and intergenerational trauma on Black mental health outcomes.

Yu Hsing Chang (Cindy), M.A. is a first-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. Her research interest lies in child anxiety and functional outcomes, with an emphasis in the interplay of biopsychosocial factors of paediatric chronic pain and pain management. I’m also interested in the promoting psychoeducation, and dissemination and implementation of evidence-based treatment in underrepresented communities.

Arden Cooper, B.S. is a third-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. She was also a TIPPS Research Assistant for the previous two years. Arden is interested in understanding how children’s emotion regulation and interactions with parents are associated with their development of internalizing problems. 

Andrew Gradone, M.A. is a fifth-year student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program. His research interests focus on better understanding the positive (e.g., exercise, diet) and negative (e.g., depression) modifiers of brain health in older adults. I am interested in delivering culturally-sensitive, easily accessible (e.g., telehealth) interventions to target age-related mood and cognitive disorders, especially in racially diverse populations.

Martha N. Ishiekwene, M.A. is a fourth-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. This is her second years as a TIPPS fellow. Her interests and passions are broadly in international, as well as, child, adolescent, and family psychology from a multicultural perspective and topics like trauma and resiliency. I am particularly interested in research, clinical practices, and interventions in collaboration with and service to underserved, and marginalized communities (especially African and African diaspora). 

 

Jacob Julian, B.A. is a third-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. He was also a TIPPS Research Assistant last year. His research focuses on trauma treatment within marginalized groups. 

 

Sae-Jin Kim, M.A. is a fifth year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. This is his second year as a TIPPS fellow. His research focuses on the intersection of family processing variables (e.g., attachment and parenting) and psychopathology in underserved populations, including those affected by HIV and child neglect. 

Daniel J. Lanni is a third-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. His research aims 1) to better understand the relationship between substance use, emotion regulation, and negative attitudes towards women and how these three variables may interact to predict sexual violence perpetration in adolescent men 2) evaluate the adverse outcomes associated with victimization of sexual violence in adolescence and how to enhance victim’s care post-assault.

Jena Michel is a fourth-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. This is her second years as a TIPPS fellow and she was also a TIPPS Research Assistant for the previous two years. Her research aims to understand factors that protect against the development of internalizing symptoms from childhood to emerging adulthood, with a sensitivity to relationships (e.g., parent-child, peer) and culture/context. 

Sarah Moran is a third-year student in the Clinical-Community PhD program. This is her second year as a TIPPS fellow. Sarah‘s research interests are primarily centered around anxiety disorders in underserved and at-risk youth and families and the role of psychological flexibility, gratitude, and resilience as protective factors for mental health concerns. Additionally, Sarah is passionate about disseminating acceptance- and mindfulness-based interventions to community settings.

 

 

Omorewo Oshe is a first-year student in the Clinical-Community PhD program. Their research interests include exploring the relationships between chronic pain and psychological health. They are also interested in exploring frameworks for understanding the norms and social processes that contribute to systems of oppression within medical systems. Lastly, they hope to explore the various factors and contexts that promote resiliency in these populations.

Anna Peddle, B.A. is a second-year student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program. Anna is interested in researching interventions to reduce rates of alcohol-facilitated interpersonal violence and improve mental health in survivors of abuse. Additionally, she is interested in how experiences of violence or dehumanization impact sexual agency, risk behavior, and substance use.

Abigail Robbertz, M.A. is a fourth-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. This is her second years as a TIPPS fellow. Her research interests include examining the biopsychosocial impact of chronic illness on children and their families. 

Brennah Ross is a second-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. Brennah is broadly interested in secondary prevention for sexual violence, and improving access to evidence-based treatment for related psychological sequelae such as substance use.

Ifrah S. Sheikh, M.S. (TIPPS) is a third-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. This is her second years as a TIPPS fellow. Her research focuses on the relationship between racial oppression and trauma psychopathology, and how identity factors may be protective within that relationship. I am interested in translating such research into the development of evidence-based, culturally-centered interventions for migrant, indigenous, and racially marginalized communities.

 

Caitlin Shneider, M.A. (TIPPS) is a fourth-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. This is her second years as a TIPPS fellow. Caitlin is interested in identifying modifiable child and family factors that promote positive adjustment and resilience in the context of pediatric chronic diseases. 

 

Aisha Walker, M.A. (TIPPS) is a fourth-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. This is her second years as a TIPPS fellow. Her research focuses on the impact of racial discrimination on Black emerging adults and how culturally-grounded protective factors, including ethnic-racial socialization, support outcomes of normative development despite adverse experiences. 

 

Desmond Warren, M.A. (TIPPS) is a first-year student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program. He is interested in how adverse experiences intersect with race-related neuropsychological outcomes, to better comprehend how diversity of social experiences relate to paths of recovery. His research interests include cognitive aging, vascular depression, neurodegenerative diseases (i.e., Alzheimer’s, dementia), white matter hyperintensities (WMH), and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) among racially disadvantaged populations, specifically within Black communities. Also, I would like to utilize neuroimaging techniques to enhance my understanding of these neurologic conditions and create relevant treatment modalities via cognitive remediation and lifestyle changes (e.g., exercise), that will reduce and ultimately prevent cognitive decline.

 

Olivia Westemeier (TIPPS) is a first-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. She received her Bachelors of Science in Psychology and a minor in Rhetoric from the University of Iowa in 2021. Her primary research interests revolve around how event-level (e.g., alcohol consumption) and psychological mechanisms contribute to sexually aggressive behavior. She utilizes various theories and methods within clinical, social, and cognitive psychology. Her goal is to bridge basic-and applied-level acquaintance-initiated sexual assault work in order to create effective prevention programming.

Former TIPPS Fellows and Research Assistants

Alejandra Arce, M.A., is a student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program and is currently completing her internship at UCSF/ZSFG Child & Adolescent Services, Immigrant Mental Health San Francisco, CA. Her broad interests include immigrant youth development and well-being. Specifically, she is interested in multi-level contributors to resilience and positive developmental outcomes among immigrant youth of color.

Hannah Bogoian, M.A. is a fifth-year student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program. She was a TIPPS fellow last year and is currently an EPIC-CARES fellow. Hannah is interested in addressing racial health disparities in aging through the use of telehealth, tele-assessment, and other strategies to reach rural populations and those with barriers to receiving care (e.g., transportation access or mobility concerns). I am particularly interested in studying exercise and other health interventions for older Black adults with vascular depression. 

Claudia A. Delbasso, M.A. is a fifth-year student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program. She was a TIPPS fellow for the previous two years. She is now an EPIC-CARES fellow. Her research focuses on individual and contextual factors that influence positive youth development and resilience among immigrants of color, with an emphasis on Latinx immigrant populations. 

Amanda Draheim, M.A., Ph.D. is a former student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program and completed her internship at MCG/Norwood VA Med Center, Augusta, GA Psychology of Women Track. Her program of research emphasizes mechanisms of the development, maintenance, and treatment of anxiety and depression.

Donovan Ellis, M.A. is a fifth-year student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program. He was a TIPPS fellow for the previous two years. He is currently an EPIC-CARES fellow. His research interests can be found at the intersection of anxiety pathology/treatment efficacy, multicultural competencies, and the integration of novel digital technologies for improving treatment access for diverse and underrepresented communities. 

Hannah Joseph, M.A. is a student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program and is currently completing her internship at MCG/Norwood VAMC Child/Family Track, Augusta, GA. Hannah’s research interests include positive youth development, adolescent mental health, and violence prevention. 

Ciera Lewis, M.A. was a TIPPS fellow for the previous two years. She is currently an EPIC-CARES fellow. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a Bachelors in Psychology and a minor in Childhood and Adolescent Studies. Ciera’s research explores the utility of culturally specific constructs like Black racial identity and racial socialization as resilience factors in promoting psychological well-being among African American emerging adults. She is interested in improving recruitment, engagement, and retention of African Americans in research and mental health services. Ciera is also an evaluation strategist committed to disrupting systemic oppression through program evaluation, facilitation, and education. During her free time, Ciera enjoys yoga, meditation, hiking, napping, and creating art.

Jessica Miller, M.A. is a student in the Clinical-Community Psychology PhD program and is currently completing her internship at DC VAMC; Washington, DC. Her research is in the area of refugee and immigrant health. She primarily uses qualitative methods to explore how sociocultural context influences health outcomes. For example, she recently explored the role of community resilience in Iraqi refugee adaptation, the effect of intersecting contextual factors on the sexual health of refugee youth, and the impact of immigration policy changes on Latinx families’ well-being.

Tony Molloy, M.A. is a student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program and is currently completing his internship at UAB/BVAMC Consortium, Birmingham, AL. His central research interest is to improve the design and implementation of technology-based mental health services delivered via internet and smartphone.  I hope to conduct research on community interest in these programs and factors that influence uptake, attrition, and engagement with them.  I am also interested in cognitive mechanisms of anxiety disorders and using fMRI to examine motivational processing in anxiety disorders.

Isabella M. Palumbo, M.A. is a fifth-year student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program. She was a TIPPS fellow last year and is currently an EPIC-CARES fellow. Her research takes a process approach and has two primary goals, focusing on development and individual differences: (1) to use a trait dimensional approach to more fully understand the unified, joint structural model of personality, personality disorders, and clinical disorders;​ (2) to characterize transdiagnostic neurobehavioral mechanisms underlying personality and broad dimensions of psychopathology (e.g., Research Domain Criteria; RDoC) in the context of empirically-derived, dimensional models (e.g., the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology; HiTOP). Of particular interest are neurobehavioral mechanisms of social affiliation & communication, cognitive control, and approach/avoidance. 

Michelle Rattinger, M.A. is a student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program and is currently completing her internship at James A. Haley VAMC, Tampa FL. She is broadly interested in cognitive and social elements that contribute to differential experiences of anxiety. Recently, her work has explored the ways in which additional facial features, such as race signifiers, may interact with emotional expression to convey threat in those with varying levels of intergroup anxiety.

Eric Semmel, M.A. is a sixth-year student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology PhD program. He was a TIPPS fellow last year and is currently an EPIC-CARES fellow. Eric is interested in long-term neuropsychological outcomes for children with acquired neurological injuries or illnesses. Currently, my research focuses on cognitive outcomes in pediatric brain tumor survivors and corresponding functional brain network characteristics. 

Zinat Taiwo, M.A., Ph.D. is a former student in the Clinical-Neuropsychology Psychology PhD program and completed her internship at Houston VAMC, Houston, TX Neuropsychology.

Rachel Weinstock, M.A., Ph.D. is a former student in the Clinical-General Psychology PhD program and completed her internship at Kennedy Krieger/Hopkins; Baltimore, MD BEH Management/Child Family Therapy. Her research focuses on parenting factors associated with the development of anxiety in children. She is also interested in stigma related to children’s mental health problems and their treatment.