Meet The Team
A Lively Learning Experience
Although Dr. Kelley’s research lab is located at Old Dominion University, her research team expands across the country to include many outside universities. Her diverse group of students include veterans, graduate students from clinical and health psychology programs, undergraduate students, and faculty members and researchers from other universities. Take a look below to find more information about Dr. Kelley’s current students.
Current Lab Members
Rachel Davies
Doctoral Student in Clinical Psychology
Rachel joined the research lab in Fall 2018. Rachel is interested in studying veterans in regards to moral injury, reintegration, military sexual trauma, and military identity. Rachel is currently on internship for her final year of the doctoral program at the Cheyenne VA Medical Center.
Contact: rdavi022@odu.edu
Lee Golembiewski
Doctoral Student in Health Psychology
Lee Golembiewski is a third-year doctoral student in the Health Psychology PhD program at Old Dominion University. He is an instructor of Introduction to Psychology, Lifespan Development, and additional undergraduate psychology courses. Lee’s research interests include sexual minority mental health, specifically focusing on the influence of social support and endorsement of intersectional stigma among LGBTQ college students.
Contact: lgole001@odu.edu
Alicia Milam
Doctoral Student in Clinical Psychology
Alicia is a third-year doctoral student in the Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology. She received her BA in Psychology and BS in Biology with a Neurobiology concentration from the University of Texas at San Antonio. She then worked with individuals with PTSD and affective disorders as a Research Assistant at the South Texas VA and in a clinical environment as an EEG and TMS Technician. Her current research interests broadly encompass cognitive-affective processing with an emphasis on emotional regulation and threat responses in individuals with anxiety and trauma.
Contact: akruz001@odu.edu
Kenneth Ayers
Doctoral Student in Clinical Psychology
Kenneth is a fourth-year doctoral student in the Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology. He received his BS in Biology with a minor in Chemistry from Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL, and his MA in Psychology Clinical Counseling from The Citadel, Charleston, SC. He has worked for the W.J.B. Dorn Veteran Medical Center in cardiology research, the Department of Defense as a Clinical Coordinator in Adenovirus research, and the Medical University of South Carolina and the Ralph H. Johnson Veteran Medical Center with individuals with PTSD, chronic pain, substance use disorder, relationship dysfunction, and with various brain stimulation modalities (e.g., tDCS, TMS). Clinically, Kenneth utilizes an eclectic approach with expertise in CBT, Humanistic Approaches, PE, CPT, TF-CBT, and PCIT. He has worked with individuals across generations including school-aged children, college students, caregivers, veterans, and military families. Kenneth’s research interests focus on the impact of discrimination, trauma, and psychosocial stressors on the functioning, well-being, and interpersonal relationships of minoritized and military/veteran populations. Additionally, his research seeks to investigate how different dimensions of attachment and identity development (e.g., cultural, ethnic-racial, bicultural, etc.) impact romantic, familial, and other interpersonal relationships of these special populations.
Contact: kayer003@odu.edu
Brooke Puharic
Doctoral Student in Clinical Psychology
Brooke Puharic is a third-year doctoral student in the Virginia Consortium Program for Clinical Psychology. She received her B.S. in Psychology and Criminal Justice at Old Dominion University in May 2019. She has worked in the research lab since 2017. Brooke’s research has focused on the effects of childhood maltreatment and ineffective parenting practices/parenting styles on coping styles in adulthood, intimate partner violence, and non-partner violence. Currently, Brooke’s research focuses on the factors that influence bystander intentions in intimate partner violence between same-sex and opposite-sex couples.
Contact: bpuha001@odu.edu
Megan Strowger
Doctoral Student in Health Psychology
Megan is a third-year Ph.D. student in the Health Psychology program. In 2014, she graduated from Drexel University with a B.S. in Psychology and a minor in Arabic language. Megan then pursued her M.S in Health Psychology from the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, which she graduated from in 2016. After graduating, Megan worked as a research coordinator for an NIH grant examining stress management interventions for managing blood pressure for three years at Kent State University. Her research interests focus on how social influences, specifically peers and social media, affect health behavior engagement, with an emphasis on alcohol consumption.
Contact: mstro006@odu.edu
Sean Cox
Research Assistant
Sean received his B.S. in Psychology and Human Services from Old Dominion University in December 2021. He joined the lab in 2019 to pursue his research interests in addiction among service members.
Contact: scox008@odu.edu
Hanna Zakharenko
Undergraduate at University of Maryland
Hanna is an undergraduate at UMD pursuing a double major in Information Science and Journalism. She joined the lab in 2021 as part of the Interdisciplinary Research Experience in Behavioral Sciences of Transportation Issues at ODU, supported by the NSF. She is currently working on a project that’s exploring risky driving behavior in college students. She is interested in human-computer interaction and transportation issues.
Contact: hzakhare@odu.edu
Ian Rivera
Undergraduate at Old Dominion University
Ian is a third-year student at Old Dominion University majoring in Psychology with a minor in Human Services. He currently serves in the Marine Corps Reserve within Naval Aviation. His research interests include identity development and stress management as they pertain to populations with traumatic experiences and obsessive-compulsive disorders. He plans to graduate in Spring 2023 and pursue a Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program.
Contact: irive002@odu.edu
Jeff Gabelmann
Undergraduate at Old Dominion University
Jeff is a senior Psychology major and U.S. Navy veteran and serves as an undergraduate teaching assistant for various courses within the Psychology Department. His research interests include military, veterans, moral injury, mindfulness, and other service-related health issues. He plans to continue his studies beyond an undergraduate degree with the intention of obtaining a Ph.D. in Health Psychology.
Contact: jgabe002@odu.edu
Evan McLaren
Undergraduate at Old Dominion University
Evan is a senior Psychology major and U.S. Army veteran. His research interests include suicide prevention, and the use of technology, both as a research tool, and as an extension of our lives. He plans to graduate in Spring 2023, and pursue a graduate program that combines his interest in technology and psychology.
Contact: emcla008@odu.edu
Eden Conroy
Undergraduate at University of Iowa
Eden is a fourth-year student at the University of Iowa doing a double major in Psychology and Education Studies and Human Relations with a Minor in Music and a Certificate in Resilience and Trauma Informed Perspectives. She is joining the lab through the Research Experiences for Undergraduate (REU) program with the Interdisciplinary Research in Behavioral Sciences of Transportation Issues. She is interested in adverse childhood experiences and its impact throughout adulthood.
Contact: eden-conroy@uiowa.edu
Lab Social
From Left to Right-Alicia Milam, Brooke Puharic, Kenny Ayers, Rachel Davies, Lee Golembiewski, Dr. Michelle Kelley, John Chae
May 2022 Lab Social
From left-to-right: Jeff (Dr. Kelley’s husband), Dr. Michelle Kelley, Ian Rivera, Jeff Gabelmann, Brooke Puharic, Alicia Milam, Megan Strowger, Jamie (Megan’s significant other in back row)