If you’re interested in joining the lab as a graduate student, please visit the Join Us section to learn more!
Kelsie Allison (She/Her/Hers)
Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University
Kelsie is a fourth-year graduate student in the Health Psychology PhD program at Old Dominion University. She earned her BA in Psychology from Christopher Newport University in 2018. Her research interests include promoting positive identity development for various populations (e.g., racial minorities, first-generation college students, college athletes) by examining identity processes and individual and contextual assets and how they relate to various outcomes such as mental health, academic achievement, and overall well-being. To this end, she has been active in working with nonprofits and organizations in the community.
Erika Esposito, M.A. (She/Her/Hers)
Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology, University of Rochester
Erika is a sixth-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at the University of Rochester. Her primary research interests focus on unpacking the complex etiology of suicidal behaviors, specifically by further investigating the mechanisms catalyzing the transition from suicidal thoughts to actions among adolescents. Additionally, she is interested in improving objective measures of risk assessment and evidence-based treatments for high-risk adolescents. She is currently completing her clinical internship at Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
Nathan Hager, M.A. (He/Him/His)
Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University
Nathan is a sixth-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Old Dominion University (Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology). After receiving a BA in Psychology from Wake Forest University, he worked in addiction neuroimaging research at the University of Pennsylvania for four years and then earned an MS in Experimental Psychology at ODU. His research focuses on using psychophysiological methods to explore cognitive and reward-related function in anxiety and depression. His other current work includes tracking and evaluating the implementation and impact of a campus-wide suicide prevention program at ODU. He is currently completing his clinical internship at Stony Brook University’s Medical Center.
Taylor Kalgren (She/Her/Hers)
Master’s Student, Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University
Taylor is a second-year graduate student in the Psychology MS program at Old Dominion University. She also completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology at Old Dominion. Her current research interests include how to achieve resiliency in children who have experienced trauma or mental illness. Her interests were solidified while completing a practicum placement at a domestic violence shelter. Her plans are to use her MS degree to gain research experience and prepare her for a PhD program in Clinical Psychology.
Raksha Kandlur, M.A. (She/Her/Hers)
Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University
SREB-State Doctoral Scholars Program Fellowship Awardee
Raksha is a third-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Old Dominion University (Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology). Her research interests focus on the interplay of stressful life events, and (mal)adaptive coping related to short-term suicide risk. She is also interested in utilizing multi-modal approaches to gain a comprehensive understanding of suicidal thoughts and behaviors, treatment engagement, and mental health disparities among underserved populations in the US and globally.
Kinjal Patel (She/Her/Hers)
Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University
Kinjal is a second-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Old Dominion University (Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology). She earned her B.S. in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. As a graduate student, Kinjal is interested in examining the interactions between interpersonal stressors, biological processes, and cognitive-emotional mechanisms during adolescence to predict suicidal behavior. In addition, she hopes to study youth suicide risk among diverse populations to better understand and decrease mental health disparities.