
School of Social and Family Dynamics Graduate Student Association (GSA)
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The School of Social and Family Dynamics Graduate Association serves as the graduate student voice for our department. The Officers and Committee Chairs work together throughout the year to organize events, such as happy hours and socials, brownbag talks, and recruitment. Meetings are held monthly.
Officers
2021-2022 Academic Year Officers
President
Stacey Flores, stacey.flores@asu.edu
Vice President
Ronae Matriano, ronae.matriano@asu.edu
Administrator
Abby Saavedra, abbysaavedra@asu.edu
Treasurer
Paul Espinoza, paul.espinoza@asu.edu
GPSA Liaison
Claudia Vega, cavega3@asu.edu
Sociology Representative
Kyle Gresenz, kgresenz@asu.edu
Family and Human Development
Clarissa Abidog
Email:cabidog@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2017
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.S. Psychology with a minor in Family Studies, Boise State University, Boise, ID
Hometown: Stockton, CA
Interests: Multiracial and Black/African American identity development; racial socialization in minority families; psychological well-being and academic achievement outcomes.
Advisor: Eleanor Seaton
Brittany Alexander
Email:Brittany.L.Alexander@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2016
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.S. in Family and Human Development, Arizona State University; B.A. Psychology Minor and Honors in Educational Studies, Rhodes College, Memphis, TN
Hometown: Brentwood, Tennessee, USA
Interests: Brittany's research focuses on promoting educational equity through social and emotional development. Specifically, Brittany focuses on the development of anti-racist compassion and hope. She is currently working on a course to promote the development of compassion, a pilot study exploring hope in the educational context and how it relates to academic and health outcomes, and a study investigating prosocial behavior in preschool children.
Advisor: Richard Fabes
McKay Boyack
Email: mboyack@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2020
Progress: Pre-Master's
Degrees: B.S. in Family Studies from Brigham Young University
Hometown: Tucson, AZ
Research Interests: the effects of peer relationships on social and academic development in childhood and adolescence; gender development and education
Karina Cahill
Email:karina.cahill@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2016
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.S. and B.S. Family and Human Development, Arizona State University
Hometown: Yuma, AZ
Interests: Contextual factors; positive development for Latino youth; academic outcomes and achievement.
Advisor: Kimberly Updegraff
Jenny Chang Zhao
Email:czhao60@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.A. Psychology & B.A. Labor and Employment Relations, Pennsylvania State University
Hometown: Shanghai, China
Interests: How youth is influenced by the contexts in which they are embedded, particularly focusing on how family, neighborhood, and cultural factors might shape Latino adolescent's emotional, psycho-social and behavioral well-being.
Advisor: Rebecca M.B. White
Brandon Neil Clifford
Email:bncliffo@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: B.S. Human Development; B.A. Linguistics; M.S. Human Development, Brigham Young Univeristy
Hometown: Logandale, Nevada
Interests: Children's social and communicative competence; social development; conceptualizations of social withdrawal
Advisor: Natalie Wilkens
Khaerannisa Cortes
Email:khaerannisa.cortes@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2011
Progress: Passed comprehensive exams
Degrees: M.S. Family Human Development, Arizona State University; B.S. Family & Human Development & B.S. Psychology, Arizona State University
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Interests: Peer relationships, specifically how teachers and children respond to and cope with bullying incidences
Advisor: Becky Ladd & Gary Ladd
Paul Espinoza
Email: paul.espinoza@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2021
Abigail Gabriel
Email:akgabril1@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2017
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.S. Psychology, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Hometown: Santa Clara, CA, USA
Areas of Interest: Multiracial and Asian-American identity development; identity integration theory; ethnic/racial socialization; risk and resilience factors in minority populations; critical race and intersectional perspectives
Advisor: Brandon Yoo
Annie Gallagher
Email:Annabella.Gallagher@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2014
Progress: ABD
Degrees: M.S. Family and Human Development, ASU, Tempe; B.S. Human Development and Family Studies, PSU, State College
Hometown: Wallingford, PA
Research Interests: Adolescent Development; Sibling Relationships and Family Processes; Etiology of Aggression; Measurement and Statistical Analyses; Applied Research.
Advisor: Kimberly Updegraff
Aubrey Hoffer
Email:alhoffer@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.A. Political Science with a minor in Family and Human Development, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
Hometown: Chandler, AZ
Interests: Adolescent Self-Esteem; Self-Esteem Developing; Body Image
Advisor: Dawn Delay
Jayley Janssen
Email:jajanss2@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2017
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.S. Human Development and Family Science, University of Missouri, Columbia
Hometown: Quincy, IL
Interests: Teacher-child relationships; racial and gender inequalities in education; academic engagement; program & curriculum development
Advisor: Eleanor Seaton, Tracy Spinrad, and Richard Fabes
Diana L. Jenkins
Email: dljenki1@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Post-Masters
Degrees: M.S. in Psychology, Arizona State University
Hometown: Mostly Phoenix, AZ
Research Interests: Gender attitudes and behaviors, sexism and masculinity, personal relationships
Advisor: Carol Martin
Juyoung Kim
Email: jkim@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2019
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.A. in Child Development, Ewha Womans University; B.S. in Psychology, University of Georgia
Hometown: Seoul, Korea
Interests: children's cognitive development in social context; executive function; theory of mind; memory; peer relationship; cultural effects
Advisor: Monica Tsethlikai
Yen-Lin Lee
Email:ylee217@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: MS, University of Georgia, GA; Med. National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan
Hometown: Taiwan
Interests: Friendship, peer relationship, and social-emotional development in early childhood; measurement and statistical analysis
Advisor: Dawn DeLay and Richard Fabes
Longfeng Li
Email:longfen1@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.S. Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; B.S. Psychology, Beijing Normal University
Hometown: Chongqing, China
Interests: Child development, parenting and child social-emotional adjustment, temperament, sleep, measurement and statistical analyse
Advisor: Carlos Valiente
Jamie Theresa Lopez
Email:jamietheresa.lopez@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2016
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: BA Education University of Arizona Tucson, AZ MA Education Arizona State University Tempe, AZ
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Interests: early childhood, parenting, temperament, self-regulation and language
Advisor: Dr. Tracy Spinrad
Laura Means Malouf
Email: lmalouf@asu.edu
Degrees: M.S. Psychology
Interests: Asian American racial identity, racism, interracial solidarity, critical consciousness
Advisor: Laura D. Hanish, PhD
Ronae Matriano
Email: rmatrian@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2019
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.S. in Biological Sciences (Genetics, Cell & Developmental Biology), B.A. in Asian Pacific American Studies, and Minor in Communication
Hometown: Avondale, AZ
Interests: Asian American racial identity, racism, interracial solidarity, critical consciousness
Advisor: Brandon Yoo
Ana Maria Melenez Guevara
Email:amelend9@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: MS in Social Work, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma; BA in Psychology, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Research Interests: Child and family development in context of risk and adversity within ethnic minorities and historically marginalized communities, micro and macro mechanism of resilience, mental health, community based interventions and cultural processes.
Advisors: Dr. Sarah Lindstrom Johnson
Kamryn Morris
Email: ksmorr10@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Master of Science Completed, Comprehensive Examinations Completed
Degree: B.S. in Child and Family Development with a Minor in Honors Interdisciplinary Studies, M.S. in Family and Human Development
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Interests: Black adolescents; racial discrimination stress; the school as a context; culturally competent interventions.
Advisors: Dr. Eleanor Seaton & Dr. Sarah Lindstrom Johnson
Sarah Parks
Email: sarah.parks@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.C. in Counseling & B.S. in Family and Human Development from Arizona Staet University
Hometown: Farmington Hills, MI
Interests: Whiteness, White racial Identiy, White fragility, anti-racist identity
Advisor: Brandon Yoo
Rachael Perez
Email: rkperez1@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2021
Ariana Ruof
Email: akruof@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.S. in Psychology, B.S. in Family and Human Development
Hometown: Queen Creek, AZ
Interests: Genetic and environmental contributions to children's development of self-regulation
Advisor: Carlos Valiente
Jean Abigail (Abby) Saavedra
Email: abbysaavedra@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2020
Progress: Post-Master's
Degrees: B.S. in Psychology (Biology emphasis) and Human Development from the University of California, Davis; M.S. in Clinical Psychology from the California State University, Fullerton
Hometown: Tracy, California
Research Interests: Critical consicousness and psychological well-being; Asian American racial identity development; social justice education (e.g., ethnic studies and anti-racist, anti-bias education)
Stephan Scrofani
Email: sscrofan@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Comps completed, working on dissertation
Degrees: MA Psychology, BA Psychology
Interests: I'm interested in how gender stereotypes predict our interest in subject domains, and motivation to pursue academic and career interests. Also, I study how parent-child communication predicts secure attachment and positive self-concept among transgender youth.
Advisor: Dr. Carol Martin
Daye Son
Email:dson9@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2018
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: MS, Marriage, Family, and Human Development, Brigham Young University; BS, Sociology, Brigham Young University
Hometown: Seoul, South Korea
Program: Family and Human Development
Areas of Interest: Parent-child relationships during adolescence and transition to adulthood; Adolescent autonomy development
Advisor: Dr. Kimberly Updegraff
Stephanie Thibault
Email: sthibaul@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2019
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: B.A. in Psychology from Framingham State University & M.S. in Psychology from Arizona State University
Hometown: Natick, MA
Interests: Peer relationships, peer victimization, & bully perpetration
Advisor: Becky Ladd
Claudia Vega
Email: cavega3@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2019
Progress: Pre-Masters
Degrees: B.A. in Psychology and Sociology (Certificate: Women's and Gender Studies), Florida International University
Hometown: Miami, FL
Research Interests: Family and social context; well-being of Latino/a/x youth and families; intersections of cultural stressors, strengths, adolescent development, and family dynamics on adjustment.
Advisor: Rebecca White
Bobbi Woods
Email:Bobbi.Woods@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2016
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.S. in Family and Human Development and B.S. in Psychology, Arizona State University
Hometown: Chandler, AZ
Interests: Predictors of interest and success in engineering in elementary school students; implementation/evaluation of engineering-based interventions that aim to increase STEM interst and success in a diverse population of students.
Advisor: Cindy Miller
Kenton Woods
Email:kbwoods@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2016
Progress: Working on dissertation
Degrees: Family and Human Development (BS), Arizona State University. Psychology (BA), Arizona State University
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Interests: Academic tracking and how it impacts student academic outcomes and peer relationships in middle and high school.
Advisor: Dr. Laura Hanish
Jingyi Xu
Email:jingyixu@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2016
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.A. Developmental Psychology, Columbia University, NY; B.A. Chinese Language and Literature, Nanjing
Hometown: China
Interests: Parenting and children's social emotional development; cross-cultural comparisons
Advisor: Natalie Wilkens
Xiaoye Xu
Email:xiaoyex1@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2017
Progress: Passed comprehensive exams
Degrees: M.A. Social Psychology, San Francisco State University, CA; B.A. Psychology, Smith College, MA
Hometown: Beijing, China
Interests: Parent-child interaction, Parents' genetic influence on parental behavior, Children's emotion regulation and prosocial behavior; Cultural influence on children's socioemotional development
Advisor: Tracy Spinrad
Sociology
Kyle Gresenz
Email: kyle.e.gresenz@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2020
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: Bachelor of Arts (Human Communication) from Arizona State University; Master of Public Health from the University of Arizona
Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona
Research Interests: Systems of oppression and their influence on LGBTQ+ health, community-based participatory research, and translational science
Annie Heuscher
Email: aheusche@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2020
Progress: Post-Master's
Degrees: BA, Environmental Planning & Policy, Western Washington University (2005); MA, Sustainable Agriculture & MCRP, Community & Regional Planning, Iowa State University (2012)
Hometown: Bozeman, MT
Research Interests: Critical race studies, critical whiteness theory, anti-racism, social psychology
Angelica Lopez
Email: alope277@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2021
Daniel Tei
Email: dtei1@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2021
Stacey M. Flores
Email:Stacey.Flores@asu.edu
Cohort Year: 2020
Progress: Post-Masters
Degrees: M.Ed. Counseling, Northern Arizona University, AZ; M.Ed. Higher and Postsecondary Education, Arizona State University, AZ; B.A. English, minor Journalism, Delta State University, MS
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Research Interests: Intersection of sport and race; athlete experience; sport psychology; sport sociology; girls and women in sports.
Advisor: Dr. Scott Brooks
Previous Students
2021 Graduates
Stefanie Fuentes, Advisor: Adriana Umana-Taylor
Ashley Fraser, Advisor: Tracy Spinrad
Matthew Nielson, Advisor: Carol Martin
2020 Graduates
Annabelle Lin Atkin, Advisor: Brandon Yoo
Rachel Cook, Advisor: Natalie Wilkens
Diana Gal-Szabo, Advisor: Tracy Spinrad
Chanler Hilley, Advisor: Sarah Lindstrom Johnson
Kevin Korous, Advisor: José M. Causadias
Matthew Nielson, Advisor: Carol Martin
Michelle Pasco, Advisor: Rebecca M. B. White
Shannon Rupp, Advisor: Steve Elliott
Sonya Xinyue Xiao, Advisors: Tracy Spinrad, Carol Martin
2019 Graduates
M. Dalal Safa, Advisor: Rebecca M.B. White
Lauren van Huisstede, Advisor: Keith Crnic
Danielle Seay, Advisor: Adriana Umaña-Taylor
Danming An, Advisor: Natalie Wilkens
2018 Graduates
Rebecca Berger, Advisor: Carlos Valiente
Larissa Gaias, Advisor: Sarah Lindstrom Johnson
Ray Reichenberg, Advisor: Roy Levy
2017 Graduates
Casey Sechler, Advisor: Gary Ladd
2016 Graduates
Naomi Andrews, Advisor: Laura Hanish
Diamond Bravo, Advisor: Adriana Umaña-Taylor
Katherine (Kat) Cheng, Advisor: Jenefer Husman
Dawn England, Advisor: Carol Martin
Idean Ettekal, Advisor: Gary Ladd
Flora Farago, Advisor: Beth Swadener
Ryan Field, Advisor:Carol Martin
Kristen Granger, Advisor: Laura Hanish
Amy Pennar, Advisor: Bob Bradley
Franklin Poulsen, Advisor: F. Scott Christopher
Krista Puruhito, Advisor: Jenefer Husman
Adam Rogers, Advisor: Kimberly Updegraff
Samantha Sang, Advisor: Kimberly Updegraff
Linlin Zhang, Advisor: Natalie Wilkens
2015 Graduates
Crystal Bryce, Advisor: Robert Bradley
Laura Clary, Advisor: Becky Ladd
Erin Gaskin, Advisor: Sandra Simpkins
Shawna Petersen, Advisor: Richard Fabes
Chara Price, Advisor: Sandra Simpkins
2014 Graduates
Priscilla M. Goble, Advisors: Laura Hanish and Carol Martin
Elizabeth Harvey-Mendoza, Advisor: Adriana Umaña-Taylor
Danyel Vargas Moosmann, Advisor: Mark Roosa