Past Members

Amy Xu

Class of 2022

Majors: Computer Science & Psychology

Hometown: Shanghai, China

Pronouns: she/her

Amy is interested in the cognitive science aspect of Psychology and its intersections with Computer Science. In her spare time, Amy enjoys watching theater/musical performances, walking/jogging, and volunteers. 

Johanna Caskey

Class of 2022

Major: Psychology

Minors: Spanish & Data Science

Hometown: Duluth, MN

Pronouns: she/her

Johanna is interested in the clinical applications of cognition and how various brain mechanisms contribute to the leading of a full life. She is currently employed with Fraser, a center for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other developmental differences, and plans to continue this kind of work in pursuing her PhD in Child Clinical Psychology.

Em Hayward

Class of 2021

Major: Psychology

Hometown: Portland, Oregon 

Pronouns: She/her and they/them

Em is interested in the ways that cognitive research can be used in the criminal justice system to alter the way the system currently operates.  In their free time, Em enjoys spending time with friends, doing crossword puzzles, rock climbing, and hanging out with animals.

Amber Stuedell

Class of 2022

Majors: Psychology, Sociology, English 

Hometown: Chicago, Illinois

She currently works at Radias, helping people with severe and persistent mental illnesses continue to build toward and maintain their best possible lives. The intersections between homelessness, racism, poverty and mental health rest heavy on her mind. After Macalester, she will travel and explore until she is ready to commit several years to getting her PhD. 

Avik Bosshardt

Class of 2021

Major: Computer Science

Hometown: Boca Raton, Florida

Avik majored in computer science with a minor in psychology and a concentration in cognitive science. He now works as a software developer at Epic in Madison, Wisconsin. In his free time, Avik enjoys hiking, playing clarinet, and listening to music.

Stephanie Konadu-Acheampong

Class of 2021

Majors: Linguistics and Psychology

Hometown: Aurora, CO

Stephanie is interested in the intersections between developmental psychology, linguistics, and cognitive science. In her spare time, she loves to sing, play piano, read, and spend time with friends and family. Stephanie is considering a career in Speech Language Pathology or pursuing graduate school. 

Lydia Yoder

Class of 2021

Majors: Psychology and Applied Mathematics and Statistics

Hometown: Concord, MA

In addition to working in the ilab, Lydia was a captain of the Macalester Swim and Dive Team and enjoys hiking, reading, and knitting. Lydia graduated Macalester with a degree in Psychology and Applied Mathematics and Statistics in 2021. She's currently a research assistant at the University of Maryland's Child Development Lab where she conducts research in developmental cognitive neuroscience using neuroimaging techniques like EEG.

Abby Dillon

Class of 2021

Majors: Psychology and Neuroscience

Hometown: Milwaukee, WI

Abby is interested in developmental psychology and how it can be used in clinical settings. She plans to attend medical school after graduation to pursue an M.D./PhD as a pediatric surgeon-scientist. In her free time, Abby enjoys spending time with friends, reading and knitting/crocheting.

Garrett Salzman

Class of: 2019

Major: Neuroscience

Concentration: Legal Studies

Hometown: Washington, D.C.

Garrett is interested in the interaction between neuroscience, psychology, and the criminal legal system. After graduating from Mac, she spent two years working in a lab at Columbia studying schizophrenia. She now works as an investigator at a public defender's office in NYC. In her free time she enjoys playing soccer, cooking, and reading.

Emma Breslow

Class of 2019

Major: Linguistics

Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts

Emma is interested in endangered language preservation, psycholinguistics, phonetics, and the connection between synesthesia and language. She plans to pursue a PhD in linguistics and become a professor/researcher. In her free time, she enjoys all sorts of arts and identifying plants.

Rachel Gehman

Class of: 2019

Major: Psychology   

Hometown: Missoula, MT

Rachel is currently a graduate student in the University of Vermont clinical psychology PhD program. In the program she sees psychotherapy clients, takes courses, does research, and serves as a teaching assistant for a statistics course. Her research concerns the social psychological processes underlying offender outcomes in restorative justice. In her free time she enjoys jogging by lake Champlain and walking with friends.  

Olivia Shaffer 

Class of: 2019

Major: Psychology

Hometown: Saint Paul, MN

Olivia Shaffer is currently a doctoral student in the clinical psychology program at the University of Louisville. Originally from the Twin Cities, she graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from Macalester College in 2019. Following graduation, she worked as a researcher and study coordinator in the Kalin Lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she managed two studies investigating the early life factors that contribute to the development of childhood anxiety disorders. 

Eva Harmon

Class of: 2018

Major: Psychology 

Hometown: Oakland, CA

Eva is interested in the application of cognitive psychology to consumer behavior and, particularly, the science of information processing and decision making. In her free time, Eva enjoys hiking, reading, and spending time with family.  

Natalie "Gig" Spanos 

Class of: 2018

Major: Psychology

Hometown: Ridgefield, CT

Natalie is interested in most fields of psychology but especially clinical psychology. She is currently working in mental health and pursuing a masters degree in social work. Natalie also enjoys poetry, people watching, and playing with animals.

Simona Mackovichova

Class of: 2018

Major: Psychology 

Minor: Statistics

Hometown: Bratislava, Slovakia

After graduating from Augsburg University in 2018, Simona moved to Ottawa, Canada to pursue her graduate studies in forensic psychology at Carleton University. Her primary research interest focuses on how mistaken eyewitness identifications contribute to the wrongful conviction of innocent individuals. In her free time, Simona enjoys listening to podcasts, cooking, and exploring local coffee shops.

Mira Leese

Class of: 2018

Major: Psychology with a Neuroscience Emphasis

Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 

Mira is currently a first-year Clinical Psychology PhD student on the neuropsychology track at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science.

Danny "Peanut Butter"

Class of: 2018   

Hometown: Miami, FL

Danny Ochoa was one of the best poker players Macalester has ever seen and even earned the nickname of "Three Sparrows." A website guru, Danny pursued computer science and math and is now working as a software engineer in San Francisco. In his freetime, Danny enjoys spending time with his friends, rock climbing, and falling off his surfboard

Emily Sanford

Previous iLab Manager

Class of: 2017

Major: Psychology

Minor: Mathematics

Hometown: Seattle, WA

Emily is finishing up her PhD, working with Justin Halberda at Johns Hopkins University. Her thesis investigates the limits of human perception with a particular focus on the perception of approximate number, including work to dispel the commonly-held notion of the "Just-Noticeable Difference," or that some differences are too small to tell apart. Influenced by her experience as a student at Macalester, Emily is committed to teaching as a strong component of her professional career. In addition to winning the Teaching Award from the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences for her past work as a TA and intersession (J-Term) instructor, she also won a university-wide Dean's Teaching Fellowship to teach her own full course during her final year of graduate school.

Ziv Ben-Shahar

Class of: 2017

Major: Psychology

Minor: Philosophy

Ziv grew up in Tel-Aviv, Israel, then moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan when he was 4, then moved to Chicago when he was 13, and then finally came to Mac. He spent two years with the iLab working on cognitive language processing research. Ziv's interest in language processing led him to pursue a law degree at University of Michigan Law School, and then to work in a law firm in Chicago.

Sarah Wheaton

Class of: 2021

Hometown: St. Paul, MN

Sarah, a senior at nearby high school St. Paul Academy, is interested in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. In her spare time, she enjoys competitive debate, playing flute, and following local sports teams.

Jacob Kraft

Previous iLab Manager

Class of: 2016

Major: clinical Psychology

Hometown: Lakeville, MN

Jake is a sixth-year graduate student in the clinical psychology doctoral program at Oklahoma State University and completing his internship at the Lieutenant Colonel Charles S. Kettles VA Medical Center. His research interests include documenting the maintenance of anxiety disorders and their symptomology. More specifically, he is interested in using psychophysiology (EEG, ERP, ECG, GSR) to understand the mechanisms of anxiety disorders and how these mechanisms change throughout treatment. Jake can be reached at jake.kraft@okstate.edu

Nandita Elijah

Class of: 2016

Major: Psychology and Economics

Hometown: Mumbai, India

Nandita loves all things psychology but has a special interest in consumer behavior and Behavioral economics. In her spare time, she enjoys teaching step aerobics, watching soccer (and TV in general) and napping!

Katherine "The Great" Muschler

Class of: 2016

Majors: Psychology, Linguistics   

Minor: Data Science

Hometown: St. Charles, MN

Katherine is interested in psycholinguistics, specifically linguistic relativity, as well as clinical and cognitive psychology. Katherine also enjoys reading, spending time with her family, listening to podcasts, and sleeping.

Ochoa Minah Kim

Class of: 2016

Major: Psychology   

Minor: Environmental Studies

Hometown: Yongin, South Korea

Minah (she/her/hers) graduated from Macalester in 2016 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Environmental Studies. She worked as a research fellow for three years at the Yale Child Study Center and Seattle Children's Research Institute, where she used eye-tracking, fNIRS and mobile apps to study social behavior in children on the Autism spectrum. She is currently a graduate student at University of Virginia studying individual differences in social cognition using fMRI and epigenetic markers (specifically, DNA methylation of the oxytocin receptor gene). For fun she likes to do karaoke, practice martial arts, read newsletters, and stay in touch with her Mac friends and professors! She welcomes questions anyone might have about research position jobs, grad school, and navigating the US job/academic world as an international student. Contact: mk7kc@virginia.edu 

"Dennis" Wilson Merrell

Class of: 2016

Majors: Psychology and Economics

Minor: Applied Mathematics

Hometown: Poughkeepsie, NY

Wilson is a PhD candidate at the University of Michigan in Social Psychology working with Josh Ackerman and Arnold Ho. His research focuses on social judgments and behaviors in response to evolutionarily-relevant threats and opportunities.

Lydia Craig

Class of: 2016

Major: Neuroscience with a Psychology Focus

Hometown: Suttons Bay, MI

Lydia Craig received her PhD in Industrial-Organizational Psychology in 2021 from George Mason University. Her research focused on (1) employee well-being and the work-nonwork interface and (2) quantitative methods. Her dissertation examined predictors of men's utilization of paid parental leave. Lydia currently works for Heidrick & Struggles, an executive search firm, where she supports the development of new assessment tools for succession planning. She plans to continue to teach undergraduate and graduate courses and enjoys connecting with students (especially Macalester students!). Outside of work, Lydia spends her time volunteering with Citizens Climate Lobby, taking yoga and Jazzercise classes, and hanging out with her two cats.

Scholar: ‪Lydia Craig‬ - ‪Google Scholar‬

LinkedIn: Lydia Craig, Ph.D. | LinkedIn

Thea Galli

Class of: 2016

Majors: Linguistics and Educational Studies

Hometown: Durham, NC

Thea's interests include psycholinguistics and its relation to multilingual instruction. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, swimming, and stargazing.

 Alena Hejl

Class of: 2016

Major: Cognitive Linguistics

Hometown: Lincoln, NE

During her time at Macalester, Alena's primary interest was in psycholinguistics. After graduating, Alena has applied the skills she acquired in the iLab to her work, first in the Twin Cities and later as a teacher of English abroad. She is currently pursuing a master's degree in Prague, Czech Republic.

Mihaela Barokova

Class of: 2015 

Major: Psychology

Hometown: Sofia, Bulgaria

Mihaela's research interests focus on language and communication of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, specifically traditionally under-represented populations such as minimally to low-verbal adolescents and non-Western, non-English speaking preschoolers with autism. She also investigates the role of verbal parental input in children's language development. After majoring in psychology at Mac, Mihaela got her MA and PhD in Developmental Science at Boston University. She is currently an assistant professor at the New Bulgarian University, Sofia, Bulgaria. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, reading, and traveling by train.  

  Rachel Perry

Class of: 2015

Major: Linguistics

Hometown: Crystal Lake, IL

Rachel is interested in psycholinguistics, or how language is produced/perceived/processed in the brain from the perspective of cognitive science, and hopes to study it in graduate school.  She is a member Highland Camerata (choir), as well as several student orgs at Macalester including Mac Players (theatre), Flying Fingers (folk music), The Watchtower (comics/graphic novels), and Medicinal Melodies (music performance/volunteering), the latter two of which she is a leader.

Agnes Biswalo

Class of: 2015 

Major: Psychology, Community &Global Health Concentration

Hometown: Dares-salaam, Tanzania

Agnes is interested in cognitive and clinical psychology. After Macalester, she is hoping to study either public health or (neuro) Pharmacology. In her spare time, Agnes likes reading science fiction, romance, and/or suspense novels, dancing, watching shows like Breaking Bad, and playing pool with friends. She also really loves going to the beach despite not having mastered the art of swimming.

Joey "Spring Break" Portanova

Class of: 2015 

Majors: Psychology and Studio Art 

Hometown: Niles, IL

Joey's interests include cognitive psychology, the relationship between creativity and psychopathology, and the intersections between psychology and art.  In his free time, he enjoys painting and drawing.

Paul "Boss Man" Rebman

(Previous Lab Manager)

Class of: 2014

Major(s): Psychology

Minor(s)/Concentrations: Human Rights and 

Humanitarianism

Hometown: Wheaton, IL

Paul is currently a Research Associate in the Department of International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He currently works on a number of projects focused on implementation science and economic evaluation in global health. He lives in Baltimore with his partner Maria and their dog, Kivu. 

Augusta "National" Funk

Class of: 2014

Major: Cognitive Linguistics

Minors: French and English 

Hometown: Hudson, OH

Augusta hails from the 'burbs of Cleveland, although most of her heart lies in Montana. Always fascinated by the power of the mind, she aspires to teaching one fine day. She really enjoys practicing Vinyasa yoga, making art, and her two dachshunds.

Katie "Chihuahua" Cicolello

Class of: 2014

Major(s): Biology

Minor(s)/Concentrations: Psychology and Community and Global Health 

Hometown: Rockford, IL

Katie is a biology major from the class of 2014.  She has the future goals of going to medical school, becoming a psychiatrist or oncologist, and working on health care internationally.  In her free time, she enjoys sampling ice cream shops around the twin cities and riding horses.

Hannah "VDB" Van Den Brandt

Class of: 2013

Major: Psychology

Minor: Hispanic Studies, Educational Studies

Hometown: Madison, WI

Hannah's interests in psychology are wide-ranging, but she aims to pursue a career in clinical, counseling, or health psychology.  After graduating from Macalester, she hopes to live in a Spanish-speaking country before beginning graduate school.  In addition to speaking Spanish, Hannah enjoys folk music, coffee shops, and running.

Shaina "Punim" Davis

Class of: 2013

Major: Psychology

Minor: Hispanic Studies

Hometown: Palo Alto, CA

Shaina is interested in cognitive psychology, linguistics, and education; her plans for after college are still mostly undefined.  In her spare time, she enjoys reading, singing, and wasting time on the internet.