Dr. Ethan Mereish is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Studies at American University. He received his PhD in Counseling Psychology from Boston College. He completed a clinical psycho…
Son Taylor (They/Them) is the Research Coordinator for the Lavender Lab in the Department of Health Studies. They received their B.S. in Psychology from Towson University in Spring 2019. Their researc…
Diana Cox is currently a 1st year Master’s student in Psychology. She received her BS in Psychology from the College of William & Mary in 2018. Her undergraduate research focused on the effects of stereotypes, prejudice, and implicit bias, as well as stress in at-risk youth. Her current research interests include understanding the effects of stress mindsets and discrimination on long-term physical and mental health outcomes, especially in minority populations.
Julia is currently a master’s student American University (General Psychology). Her research interests include the etiology of addiction and to generate clinical interventions for substance users, specifically in adolescent minority populations. She is interested in further investigating the potential value of mindful-based clinical interventions on stress and its role on urge, mood, and craving in substance users.
Mikela Sheskier is a first year Clinical Psychology PhD student studying the effects of minority stress on substance use behavior within the LGBTQ+ community. Prior to her time at AU, Mikela researched the biological bases of drug use and pharmacological interventions for alcohol use disorder at the NIAAA. Currently, her research interests center around substance use disorders with focuses on health disparities, drug policy, and harm reduction.
Quinn is currently a Junior at American University (Public Health/Biology). Her research interests include the effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on health outcomes in adolescent minority populations, in addition to resilience to minority stressors among marginalized communities. Quinn hopes to pursue a graduate degree in psychology or epidemiology in the future.
Farshad is a freshman at American University. He is a three year public health scholar with a pre medical track. Farshad joined the Lavender Lab to gain more research experience in the field of social psychology. The Lavender Lab allows me to participate in psychological experiments on sexual minority groups by assisting with conducting research and analyzing data.
Eli is a senior at American University majoring in biological sciences. Eli is excited for work in the Lavender lab as his interest in both social and biological sciences will be complimented as he looks at the effects of alcohol consumption history on physiological stress response. Eli plans on attending medical school and using his degree to continue social science research in relation to population health.
Adam is currently a Junior studying International Studies and Public Health. His research interests include the effects of stress on health outcomes in adolescents, and education as a tool for International Development. He joined the lab to learn more quantitative analysis skills and expand his knowledge on minority stress for young people. Adam hopes to pursue a graduate degree in International Development with a focus in Child and Family Health.
Shannon is a sophomore at American University (Public Health/Sociology). She is interested in analyzing the social determinants of health, and how everyday experiences and lifestyles affect health. She joined the lab to work on projects that allow her to connect ideas from both of her majors, and to gain more experience in conducting research. Outside of the lab, Shannon spends her time performing on the AU Dance Team. In the future, she hopes to stay in DC and continue to pursue research in the public health field.