Graduate Students
Fall 2026 Cohort
Sarah Isenhour
- Problematic smartphone/problematic social media use (PSMU) and internet addiction
- Social/environmental factors that impact the development of PSMU
- Fear of missing out, anxiety
Kaylee Mercer
- Problematic social media use and associations with mental health
- Internet addictions
- The role of social comparison in problematic social media use
Enny Ogunyemi
- The relationship between inner monologue and emotion regulation in adults
- Relationship between different inner experiences and emotion regulation strategies
Abby Regal
- Socioenvironmental influences underlying disordered eating, such as food insecurity
- Eating behaviors in women and perinatal populations
- Community-engaged research and ambulatory assessment methods
Sarah Yoon
- Risk and Resilience factors for child internalizing disorders
- Parent-child interaction and intergenerational transmission of disorders
- Culturally diverse population and health equity among minorities
Fall 2025 Cohort
Angel Ciccarelli
- Risk and protective factors for child/adolescent mental health disorders
- Prevention, coping, and regulation strategies
- Influence of parent and social relationships
Yu-Jin Eun
- Cognitive and affective factors underlying anxiety and depression
-
Treatment outcomes and enhancements for anxiety and depression
Caley Lane
- Cognitive and affective risk factors for youth anxiety
- Factors within the parent-child relationship
- Prevention and treatment of youth anxiety disorders
Caroline Martin
- Eating disorders and body image concerns among adolescents and underrepresented populations
- Sociocultural and socioenvironmental influences underlying eating disorder development
- Improving eating disorder treatment outcomes
Fall 2024 Cohort
Aryana Alavinikoo
- Internet addiction, problematic social media use, problematic smartphone use
- Emotion regulation, executive functions
-
Fear of missing out (FoMO)
Emma Church
Area Clinical
Office UH 5040B
Email emma.church2@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.A., Psychology, Cleveland State University, 2021
M.A., Clinical Psychology, Cleveland State University, 2024
Advisor Peter Mezo, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Self-management, emotion regulation, and internalizing behaviors in adolescence
- Self-regulated learning, youth, and adolescent outcomes
- Early prevention of and interventions for serious mental illness
Kim Görner
Area Clinical
Office UH 1062
Email kim.gorner@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.A., Psychology, Minor in Counseling, University of Toledo, 2023
Advisor Gregory Meyer, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Psychosis: early identification and intervention opportunities; development of screening/assessment tools; implementation of screening programs
- Multimethod psychological assessment
- Severe mental illness among homeless, incarcerated, and formerly incarcerated populations: development and implementation of screening and intervention programs; prevention of recidivism and homelessness
Courtney Kenworthy
Area Clinical
Office UH 5070D
Email courtney.kenworthy@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.S., Psychology, University of Mount Union, 2024
Advisor Sarah Francis, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Risk and protective factors for child/adolescent anxiety disorders
- Prevention and treatment strategies for child/adolescent anxiety
- Familial factors (parent/sibling attachment)
Fall 2023 Cohort
Jake Avendano
Area Clinical
Office UH 5020B
Email jacob.avendano@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.S., Psychology (Minor in Finance), University of Dayton, 2021
M.A., Clinical Neuropsychology, University of Texas at Tyler, 2023
Advisor Peter Mezo, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Emotional flexibility, specifically context sensitivity and ER strategy repertoire
- Emotion (dys)regulation, as measured by ecological momentary assessments
Caroline Born
Area Clinical
Office UH 5020D
Email caroline.born@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.A., Bowling Green State University, 2021
M.A., University of Dayton, 2023
Advisor Peter Mezo, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Adaptive regulation/coping skills in populations with severe mental illness
- Crisis-related interventions
- Suicidality
- Third-wave CBT modalities
Vasavi Shanthi
Area Clinical
Email vasavi.shanthi@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education M.Sc., Psychology, Eastern Michigan University, 2023
Advisor Jon Elhai, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Problematic smartphone use, problematic social media use, internet addictions
- Body image and eating disorders in adolescence
Fall 2022 Cohort
Samantha Mayer
Area Clinical
Email samantha.mayer2@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.S., Fordham University, 2017
Advisor Sarah Francis, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Trauma in the context of authority figures
- Trauma and health behavior
Katherine Sheehan
Area Clinical
Office UH 5280
Email katherine.sheehan@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.S., Psychology (Minor in Latin American and Latino Studies), Fordham University,
2020
Advisor Gregory Meyer, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Comorbid emotional dysregulation, especially suicidality/ self-injury, and anxiety disorders/ OCD
- Transdiagnostic symptom presentations
- Improving treatment outcomes in cases with comorbidities
- Stigmatization of mental illness
Alexa Skolnik
Area Clinical
Office UH 5280
Email alexa.skolnik@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.A., Psychology and Gender and Sexuality Studies, University of Miami, 2020
Advisor Jason Rose, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Person-specific mechanisms that drive the etiology, maintenance, and treatment of traumatic stress disorders
Avleen Walia
Area Clinical
Email avleen.walia@rockets.utoledo.edu
Education B.S., Clinical Psychology (Minor in Education Studies), University of California at
San Diego, 2020
Advisor Sarah Francis, Ph.D.
Research Interests
- Risk and resilience factors for child anxiety, rumination, and obsessive thinking
- Specific parenting behaviors influencing child anxiety and emotion regulation abilities
- Prevention of child anxiety and emotion dysregulation
- South Asian populations
