2020 Cohort

Emelyn Auad
Clinical Psychology
Parent Emotional Reactions to Adolescent Suicide Ideation and Attempts: Implications for Future Adolescent Suicidal Thoughts and Behavior

Emelyn Auad’s research goals revolve around suicidal behaviors in racial/ethnic minority adolescents. Her previous research examined the effects of impulsivity and parental emotional reactions on suicide ideation and attempts.

Emelyn intends to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology. Her career goal is to work as a clinical psychologist and further her research in adolescent suicide.

Honors and Awards

• Member of Psi Chi Honors Society

Conference Presentations

• “Relationship between Impulsivity, Non-Suicidal Self-Injury and Suicide Ideation in Adolescent Racial and Ethnic Minorities,” Oral Presentation, Hunter College 48th Annual Psychology Convention, May 2020
• “Relationship between Impulsivity, Non-Suicidal Self-Injury and Suicide Ideation in Adolescent Racial and Ethnic Minorities,” Oral Presentation, McNair Heartland Conference, September 2020
• “Does Social Media Use Confer Suicide Risk? A Systematic Review of the Evidence,” Poster Presentation, Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), November 2020
• “Parent Emotional Reactions to Adolescent Suicide Ideation and Attempts: Implications for Future Adolescent Suicidal Thoughts and Behavior,” Poster Presentation of Thesis, Hunter College 49th Annual Psychology Convention, May 2021

Ishaq Chowdry
Cognitive Psychology
Analyzing Verb Tense Fluency in Second Language Production of Recent Spanish-Speaking Immigrants

Ishaq Chowdry’s research goals revolve around improving the implementation of technology into learning environments to better facilitate how students learn.

Ishaq intends to pursue a PhD in educational psychology and has been admitted into the Teachers College of Columbia for cognitive science in education. His career goal is to become a professor to teach and conduct research to develop accessible educational technology.

Mentor

• Dr. Virginia Valian, Psychology, Hunter College

Honors and Awards

• Hunter College Athena Honors Scholar
• Ronald E. McNair Scholar
• Psi Chi International Psychology Honors Scholar

Conference Presentations

• Detecting Subject-Verb Number Agreement Errors: Effects of Distance and Interference from Number-Mismatched Distractors (Oral Presentation), University of Maryland McNair National Conference, March 2021
• Detecting Subject-Verb Number Agreement Errors: Effects of Distance and Interference from Number-Mismatched Distractors (Poster Presentation), Hunter College Psychology Convention, May 2021

Brittney Greene
Psychology
Psychological Distress, Obsessive-Compulsive Thoughts About Drinking and Alcohol Consumption in Young Adult Drinkers

Brittney’s research goals revolve around working with trauma, resilience, substance use, personality, as well as minority populations and the interactions between all of these interests. She performed research at Hunter College under Dr. Joel Erblich lab looking at Psychological Distress, Obsessive-Compulsive Thoughts About Drinking and Alcohol Consumption in Young Adult Drinkers. She also took part of the Summer Cancer Research Institute (SCRI) program at Fox Chase Cancer Center and Temple University, in the African Caribbean Consortium Lab under Dr. Camille Ragin, on a project centered around various cancer types and focuses on black cancer populations and their relevant cause of death.

She intends to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology and her career goal is to become a clinical psychologist in either a research, academic or clinical setting.

Mentors

• Dr. Joel Erblich, Psychology, Hunter College
• Dr. Camille Ragin, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA

Honors and Awards

• Special Honors Curriculum

Conference Presentations

• Psychological Distress, Obsessive Compulsive Thoughts about Drinking and Alcohol Consumption In Young Adult Drinkers, ABCT, November 2020
• Psychological Distress, Obsessive Compulsive Thoughts about Drinking and Alcohol Consumption In Young Adult Drinkers, Hunter’s Honors Conference, December 2020
• Psychological Distress, Obsessive Compulsive Thoughts about Drinking and Alcohol Consumption In Young Adult Drinkers, University of Maryland McNair Conference, March 2021

Vicki Li
Linguistics and Rhetoric
The Race Talk on Reddit: “China Virus” and its effect on Asian-Americans

Following a wave of panic from beginning cases of COVID-19 in the U.S., sourcing of the disease in Wuhan and labels of the “China Virus” or the “Wuhan Virus” prompted a separate xenophobia crisis. Discriminatory fear and violence against Asian-Americans then spiked exponentially with President Trump’s “China Virus” tweets that established a clear distinction between the “we” of Americans and the Chinese. Vicki Li’s research reviews past patterns of xenophobic behavior stemming from the naming of pandemics, such as the Spanish Flu and SARS, and investigates how language incriminates certain ethnic groups, specifically the generalized Asian population during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vicki’s research goals revolve around Asian American Variants of English and how they influence perceptions of Asian Americans and their experiences in education. She is pursuing a PhD in linguistics and her career goal is to spread a larger understanding and acceptance of natural variations in English, especially in higher education. In the summer of 2020, Vicki completed the Moore Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program (MURAP) from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Mentors

• Dr. Angela Reyes, English, Hunter College
• Dr. Paul McPherron, English, Hunter College

Honors and Awards

• Ronald E. McNair Scholar, 2019-2021
• Hunter College Athena Honors Scholar, 2017-2021
• Sigma Tau Delta Honor Society, Inducted Spring 2020
• Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society, Inducted Winter, 2019

Conference Presentations

• “The Race Talk on Reddit: ‘China Virus’ and its Effect on Asian Americans,” Hunter College Lecture (ASIAN 210: Asians in the U.S.), October 2020
• Zoom Panel, Hunter College AANAPISI Project (HCAP), October 2020
• “The Race Talk on Reddit: ‘China Virus’ and its Effect on Asian Americans,” McNair TRIO Heartland Conference, September 2020
• “The Race Talk on Reddit: ‘China Virus’ and its Effect on Asian Americans,” MURAP 26th Annual Conference, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, July 2020

Jose Menjivar
Clinical Psychology, Sociology and Public Policy
Mental Health Disparities

Jose Menjivar’s research goals revolve around addressing mental health disparities among minority groups and underserved communities. He intends to pursue a degree PhD in clinical psychology. His career goal is to work in either a research lab or in a nonprofit setting conducting research to address mental health disparities and advocating for policy reform.

Theses Projects

• Psychology Thesis: Social Integration and Mental Health Outcomes Among At-Risk Adolescents
• Sociology Thesis: Conceptualization of Mental Illness Across Faculty at CUNY Campuses
• Public Policy Thesis: Addressing Mental Health Disparities for Black and Hispanic Communities in New York City: Social Determinants of Health as a Way Forward

Mentors

• Dr. Regina Miranda, Psychology, Hunter College
• Dr. Howard Lune, Sociology, Hunter College
• Dr. Erica Chito-Childs, Sociology, Hunter College

Honors and Awards

• Suzanne Keller Award, Sociology Honors
• Distinction in Psychology
• Livingston-Welch Award for Service
• Livingston-Welch Award for Scholarship
• Livingston Welch Award for Research
• Summa Cum Laude

Conference Presentations

• “Social Integration and Mental Health Outcomes Among At-Risk Adolescents,” Hunter College 49th Annual Psychology Convention, May 2021
• “Social Integration and Mental Health Outcomes Among At-Risk Adolescents,” Heartland McNair Research Conference, September 2020
• “Does Social Media Use Confer Suicide Risk? A Systematic Review of the Evidence,” ABCT 54th Annual Convention, November 2020
• “Addressing Mental Health Disparities for Black and Hispanic Communities in New York City: Social Determinants of Health as a Way Forward,” Spring 2021 Public Policy Program Capstone Presentations, May 2021

Kassidy Mieses
Developmental Psychology
The Relationship Between Maternal Health and Child Well-Being Outcomes Amongst Pre-Adolescent Black and Hispanic Youth

Kassidy Mieses’s research goals revolve around child development in the context of families from underprivileged communities and ethnic minorities. She intends to pursue a PhD degree in human development with a concentration in child and adolescent development at Virginia Tech. Her career goal is to use her knowledge in research in an applied field.

In the summer of 2020, Kassidy completed the Multicultural Academic Opportunities Program at Virginia Tech.

Mentor

• Dr. Roseanne Flores, Psychology, Hunter College

Honors and Awards

• Psi Chi: International Honor Society in Psychology
• Thomas Hunter Honors Program
• Gerry Turkewitz Memorial Award

Conference Presentation

• Examining the Relationship between Maternal Health and Black and Hispanic Youth’s Well-Being, Eastern Psychological Association Conference, March 2021

Favour Ononogbu
Psychology
Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Survivors’ Perceptions of Follow-Up Medical Care

Favour Ononogbu’s research goals revolve around psycho-oncology and medical care. He performed research under Dr. Jennifer Ford examining Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Survivors’ Perceptions of Follow-Up Medical Care. He intends to pursue an MD-PhD at SUNY Downstate through the EME Program. His career goal is to become a physician and serve to advance health equity and access in his community.

Mentor

• Dr. Jennifer Ford, Psychology, Hunter College

Honors and Awards

• Dean’s List
• Departmental Honors

Conference Presentation

• The Role of Nkx2.7 in Cranial-pharyngeal Development, University of Maryland McNair Scholars Conference, March 2021