Cintia Alaniz

Mentor: Enrique Galindo

Cintia Alaniz (she/her/ella) is a doctoral student in the Counseling Psychology Program at Indiana University Bloomington. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Her research focuses on mentoring relationships, substance use, familismo, and sense of belonging. Cintia is passionate about identifying mechanisms that contribute to the success of first-generation Latine students and is dedicated to collaborating with underserved communities to improve access to mental health resources. She is particularly interested in providing counseling services in Spanish to undocumented and immigrant communities.

Jac'lyn Bera

Mentor: Dave Shriberg

Jac'lyn is a doctoral student at Indiana University Bloomington. Her field of study is School Psychology with a minor in Counseling Psychology. Jac'lyn previously attended Utah State University for her bachelor's and master's degrees in Psychology and worked with rural communities. There she provided school based cognitive behavioral therapy and social emotional learning in classrooms. As a first-generation student from a rural area, Jac'lyn strives to return to rural communities in the Rocky Mountain West and Southwest regions of the United States. Her goal is to provide mental health and neurodevelopmental diagnostic services to underserved communities. Currently, her research focuses on the intersectionality of rurality, marginalization, and access to mental health and diagnostic services.

Alexis Briggins

Mentor: Vivek Vellanki

Alexis Briggins (she/her) is a current doctoral student and Ronald E. McNair fellow in the Counseling Psychology Program at Indiana University Bloomington. Her minor is in Human Sexuality. Alexis earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a mental health concentration and a cultural competency certificate from Central Michigan University.

Alexis is deeply committed to serving underserved communities, specifically focusing on the Black community. She is dedicated to making a positive impact both in the counseling room and through her research endeavors. Alexis is privileged to work under the mentorship of Dr. James Brooks within the Race and Relationships lab, where her research centers around understanding the influence of sex on mental health.

Presently, Alexis serves as the mental health graduate assistant for the Groups Scholars program, where she directly engages with the students. Additionally, she actively contributes to the campus community through her involvement with the Neal-Marshall Black Cultural Center and as a representative on the Mental Health Student Advisory Council. She also actively engages in service through her membership of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated. Alexis is committed to driving positive change and advancing mental health awareness, particularly within marginalized communities.

Karina Mojica

Mentor: Sylvia Martinez

Karina Mojica (she/her) is a first-generation fourth-year doctoral candidate in the School Psychology program at Indiana University. She previously attended St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, where she majored in Psychology and Spanish. Before pursuing graduate school, she worked as a research assistant and lab manager in Dr. Susan Levine’s Cognitive Development lab at the University of Chicago. Her research interests include mental health, specifically about minoritized youth. She would like to continue looking at how access to resources and supports helps students. Additionally, Karina is interested in learning new ways to uplift the voices of youth to get a better sense of what they believe is needed in their schools and communities. Furthermore, she hopes to one day be able to help provide more resources in the Spanish language and create more awareness for Spanish-speaking individuals and their families. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, she hopes to return to work with Latinx communities in schools and their neighborhoods to support the implementation of mental health interventions and other resources. In her free time, she enjoys reading, writing short stories, watching movies, and trying new foods.

Taiwo Ogundapo

Mentor: Molly Stewart

Taiwo Ogundapo is a phenomenal second-year doctoral student at Indiana University Bloomington, where she majors in science education. Her research interests are professional development, instructional technologies, and learning communities. She is also very passionate about students' and teachers' self-perception and identities. Last summer, she interned with the Girls Inc. of Monroe county, and in her previous role before joining IU, she worked as the unit head for a financial technology company in Nigeria and spent her weekends volunteering with an Ed-tech company. Taiwo enjoys reading biographies and memoirs, seeing movies, or spending time with friends enjoying nature. Taiwo looks forwards to becoming a renowned researcher in the field of science education.

Ja'Toria Palmer

Mentor: Hannah Schertz

Ja'Toria Palmer is a doctoral student in the School Psychology program at IU. She is a Virginia native but has lived in the Midwest for about seven years. She earned her bachelor's at IUPUI where she majored in Psychology and minored in Forensic & Investigative Science. At Ball State University she received a master's in Educational Psychology with an emphasis in Applied Behavior Analysis. Prior to this program, she worked as a Behavior Therapist in an all women owned clinic working collaboratively with families that had children with Autism and various other diagnoses developing goals, implementing, and creating plans to help learners develop a range of functional skills (independence, academic, speech, etc.).

Tyus Roanhorse

Mentor: Jessica Lester

Tyus Roanhorse is a current doctoral student studying School Psychology at Indiana University – Bloomington. He is originally from Chinle, Arizona, which is located on the Navajo Nation, and received his bachelor’s in psychology from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado in 2019. His primary research and professional interest are in autism spectrum disorder and other neurodevelopmental disabilities, culturally-responsive assessments, and providing psychoeducational services to culturally and linguistically minoritized populations.

Jazlyn Rowan

Mentor: Dubravka Svetina

Jazlyn Rowan is a second-year School Psychology graduate student with a minor in Counseling. She received her undergraduate degree from Indiana State University with a B.S. in Psychology and focus on political science and civic leadership. She has accumulated experience with Indiana’s Children Policy and Law Initiative and is involved in research representing her interest areas of social justice advocacy, the school-to-prison pipeline, and policies, practices, and procedures impacting life trajectories of Black and Brown students. She is currently in accordance with American Psychological Association’s Global Learning Leadership Institute, in which three of the United Nation's sustainable development goals (climate change, reducing racial inequality, and health and wellness) will be dissected to create a plan for change throughout 2025. She looks forward to growing professionally and acquiring the knowledge and skills needed to continue to work towards her life purpose with guidance and leadership from her amazing mentors.

Carissa Serratos

Mentor: Katie Cierniak

Carissa Serratos was born in Chicago, IL but was raised in Hammond, IN, and identifies as a Mexican Latina. At Purdue University, she majored in Psychological Sciences and minored in Human Development and Family Studies, and had involvement in numerous research labs such as the Developmental Studies Lab. Since beginning her college career, she has had several working experiences with children and adolescents, such as being a student worker at the university daycare and a Youth Development Worker at a residential facility for adolescents. Following graduation, she worked as a Registered Behavior Technician where she provided Applied Behavior Analysis therapy services for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. She also attended Valparaiso University, earning a graduate certificate in Trauma-Informed Care. Currently, she is a second-year Ph.D. student in the School Psychology program. Her research involvements include Dr. Lisa Aguilar’s Collective Research for Indigenizing School Psychology (CRISP) Research Team and Dr. David Shriberg’s Social Justice Research Lab.

Swasti Singh

Mentor: Peg Sutton

Swasti Singh is an international student from India. She attended Indiana University Bloomington for her undergraduate in Psychology with a minor in English and graduated in 2020. She also obtained a Master's of Education in International and Comparative Education, as well as a Certificate in Education Law from the IU School of Education in the spring of 2022.

She was born in India and came to the US when she was 8 years old. Since then, she has lived in Wisconsin and California. She has been in Bloomington since 2013. Aside from her professional and academic interests above, she enjoys hiking, reading, baking and gardening. She has two cats named Ralfie and Roo, and a puppy named Otis.

Karen Smith

Mentor: Rob Kunzman

Karen Smith is a doctoral student in Instructional Systems Technology and enjoys education, technology, and research. She is an educator and has experience teaching in K-12, post-secondary, and workplace settings. Before becoming an educator, Karen worked in Marketing Research and absorbed what it means to delight the consumer. She took this understanding of delighting the consumer into teaching and grew her ability to meet the needs of diverse learners.

As an advocate for learners and high-quality instruction, Karen is passionate about helping learners reach academic success. She enjoys creating and implementing alternative ways of teaching. Everyone deserves a high-quality education is a mantra Karen uses in her work as an educator. It is a beacon that guides her instruction, creation of instructional products, and research that further enhances education across many contexts.