APA Science Student Council
The nine members of the APA Science Student Council (APASSC) represent the breadth of scientific psychology, including developmental, clinical, neuroscience, cognitive, industrial/organizational, social and quantitative specialties. Listed below are the current members and their areas of research specialization.
Potential SSC applicants may contact current SSC members in their area of interest to discuss the positions and responsibilities, or may contact the APA Science Directorate.
Members
Rachel Manes, Chair (2011-2013), City University of New York
Research Focus: Developmental Research
Rachel is a doctoral student candidate in Developmental Psychology at The Graduate Center, City University of New York. She has served as an educational consultant for advisement of literacy, prosocial, science, math, health and physical education curricula. Her research interests include children's perceptions of a healthy habits lifestyle, implementation of developmentally appropriate practices and programs to reduce the childhood obesity epidemic and the effects of exercise and food preferences on children's cognitive and social development. To learn more, visit Linkedin.
Casey Calhoun (2012-2014), University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Research Focus: Clinical Science
Casey is a fourth-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His research broadly considers the effects of peer relations and social cognition on adjustment in childhood and adolescence. Casey's most recent work examines the effects of negative peer experiences on adolescents' biological stress regulation. He also maintains a continued interest in exploring the conceptual and methodological issues regarding inter-rater discrepancy scores.
Gina Fernandez (2011-2013), George Mason University
Research Focus: Biopsychology
Gina is a doctoral student in the for Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience program at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. She conducts research under the guidance of Dr. Robert Smith, and uses animal models of drug reward to focus on the effects of adolescent nicotine exposure on learning and memory mechanisms. Currently, she is exploring the interaction between molecular markers of learning and drug reward to determine whether addictive behaviors early in life are a result of increased reward susceptibility, stronger drug- cue memory formation or both. Gina also teaches a graduate biopsychology methods lab, as well as an undergraduate physiological psychology lab. To learn more, visit George Mason University.
Jason Fuchs (2012-2014), University of Vermont
Research Focus: Behavioral Neuroscience
Jason is a third-year graduate student in the Biobehavioral Cluster of the General/Experimental Psychology program at the University of Vermont.His research focus is in the neurobiology of learning and memory. Using eyeblink classical conditioning as a model of cerebellum-dependent learning, he is interested in examining the role of voltage-gated ion channels in cerebellum-dependent learning and how their regulation and expression contribute to various aspects of conditioning, such as acquisition and extinction.He is also interested in studying the in vivo electrophysiological consequences of voltage-gated ion channel regulation within the cerebellar circuitry.
Stephen Mistler (2011-2013), Arizona State University
Research Focus: Psychological Methodology
Stephen is a quantitative psychology PhD student at Arizona State University. His research focuses on methods for handling missing data. Specifically, he is investigating methods for applying multiple imputation to multilevel data and to categorical variables. He also works with many other analysis methods as a statistical consultant for graduate students, professors and companies in psychology and other fields of research. To learn more, visit Mistler Statistical Consulting, LLC.
Elizabeth Necka (2012-2014), University of Chicago
Research Focus: Social/Personality
Elizabeth (Liz) is a second-year graduate student in the doctoral program in Social Psychology at the University of Chicago, where she works with Dr. John Cacioppo and Dr. Greg Norman. Liz's research interest is in the relationship between computer-mediated technologies, loneliness and stress. Specifically, she researches how differential behavior on computer-mediated communications, particularly the manner in which one communicates with his or her close others, influences loneliness, relationship satisfaction and the relationship between social support and stress.
Evgeniya Pavlova (2011-2013), University of South Florida
Research Focus: Industrial/Organizational Research
Evgeniya is a graduate student in I/O Psychology at the University of South Florida working with Dr. Michael D. Coovert. Her research interests focus on technology and the various effects technology has on the work place. A line of work that she has pursued explores trust and its development in technology-mediated distributed teams. Additionally, she is interested in the ways people interact and utilize intelligent agents of varying autonomy in order to improve team effectiveness.
Noreen Watson (2012-2014), Texas Tech University
Research Focus: Health Psychology
Noreen is a fourth-year clinical psychology student at Texas Tech University. Broadly speaking, she is interested in psychological factors that play a role in health behaviors. In particular, she is interested in examining social anxiety as a risk factor for various risky health behaviors (e.g., cigarette smoking, alcohol and marijuana use, risky sexual activity and violent/aggressive behaviors). Noreen is currently working on her dissertation, which will investigate the influence of social anxiety and smoking to cope on cigarette craving and subsequent smoking behavior.
The Cognitive Science position is currently vacant and will be filled in the spring of 2013.
Staff Liaison
Nicolle Singer
(202) 336-6000
Additional Information
- APASSC Home
- SSC Articles in PSA
- What it Means to be a Representative
- Testimonials from Representatives
- Student Listserv®
- Get Involved!
- Science Directorate Guide to Funding, Programs and Publications
- Professional Development Resource Guide
- Professional Associations
- Funding & Grants
- Early Graduate Student Researcher Award
- Outside Training
