817-257-7848 | naomi.ekas@tcu.edu
Professor and Chair
Undergraduate Institution: University of California, Davis
Graduate/PhD Institution: University of Notre Dame
Postdoctoral Institution: University of Miami
My research interests in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and early development began during my undergraduate years. I volunteered as a research assistant at the MIND Institute and met a little boy on the autism spectrum whose word of the week was the number seven (the following week it was the number eight). I immediately began to question "why" and decided to abandon my ambitions of becoming a medical doctor and pursue a PhD in developmental psychology. Since that time my research interests have taken many twists and turns, which is all part of the fun of being a researcher!
I was born and raised in chilly Winnipeg, Canada and abandoned my homeland for sunny California! A bit of a nomad and wanderlust, I have worked my way around the USA and settled in Texas in 2011. My husband and I have one fur baby (a Giant Schnauzer). My hobbies include reading, learning French, and traveling. I've currently visited 50 states, 100 countries, and 6 continents.
Abbie is a second-year doctoral student. She received her B.A. in Psychology from Oklahoma State University. Her research interests include parenting, children’s emotions, and family dynamics.
Sarah is a fifth-year doctoral student. Her research interests include differences between mothers and fathers in perception of their child and family, parents' couple relationships, and parents' well-being.
Whitney is a second-year doctoral student. She received her M.A. in Psychology from Pepperdine University and her B.S. in Psychology from Texas Christian University. Her research interests include associations between marital quality and parent mental health, parent concordance, and overall family functioning.
Adalia is a Junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Criminology. Her research interests include decision-making, atypical behavior patterns, emotional dysregulation, and parental influence. Her career goal is to become a forensic psychologist.
Addison is a Junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Business. Her research interests in the FACES Lab include working with children and their emotions. She hopes to obtain her Master's degree in Clinical Psychology to pursue a career in adolescent counseling.
Bailey is a Junior majoring in Psychology with minors in Child Development and Social Work. In the future, she wants to become a clinical psychologist working with children with ACEs. She saw the FACES lab as the perfect opportunity to get hands-on experience working with children.
Brooke is a Sophomore majoring in Psychology with a minor in Social Work. Her research interest includes investigating the interactions between children and their parents. Her career goal is to become a clinical psychologist.
Carson is a Senior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Movement Science. In the FACES lab, he enjoys doing physiological analysis and working with children. His career goal is to have his own sport psychology practice working with professional athletes to improve performance.
Emily is a Sophomore majoring in Psychology with minors in Child Development and Entrepreneurship. Her research interests include emotion and sensory regulation with autistic children. In the future, she aspires to become a pediatric occupational therapist.
Grace is a Junior double majoring in Psychology and Child Development. She feels that the FACES lab has been such a rewarding experience that has helped shape her future aspirations significantly. She has hopes of becoming a child psychologist working with autistic children.
Jacqueline is a Senior majoring in Psychology with minors in Child Development and General Business. Her research interests include the overall mental health and well-being of students with learning and developmental differences. She hopes to pursue a career as a school psychologist.
Justine is a Senior double majoring in Psychology and English. Her research interests include the association between autistic characteristics and parental well being. In the future, she hopes to pursue a PhD in Developmental Psychology in order to work in public policy or academia.
Madison is a Senior double majoring in Psychology and Writing. Her research interests include differences in reports of marital conflict within the mother-father-child triad, as well as child mental health outcomes and well-being. She hopes to pursue a career as a clinical psychologist.
Mallory is a Junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Child Development. Her research interests include children and their emotional regulation, as well as their learning styles. After graduation, she hopes to get a PhD in School or Developmental Psychology to research early childhood and education.
Maria is a Sophomore double majoring in Psychology and Child Development. Her interest in the FACES lab comes from previous work with autistic children and wanting to learn more about them. She hopes to pursue a career as a child clinical psychologist.
Mary is a Junior Psychology major with a minor in Biology. Her research interests include neurodevelopment and behavior in autistic children. In the future, she hopes to obtain a PhD in Clinical Neuropsychology.
Paige is a Senior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Child Development. Her primary research interest involves communication patterns between families. She plans to pursue a Master's degree in Counseling following graduation.
Peyton is a Junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Business. Her research interests include anything related to children's development, particularly the nature versus nurture debate. She hopes to work with children in the future as a child psychiatrist.
Rachel is a Senior double majoring in Psychology and Education. Her research interests include child emotions and autism assessments. Following graduation, her career goal is to get her PhD in School Psychology.
Sarah is a Junior Psychology major with a Biology minor who is hoping to graduate this Spring. She was interested in the FACES lab because she has always loved working with kids and autistic individuals. In the future, she hopes to have a career as a physician assistant.
Taylor is a Junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Sociology. She was interested in the FACES lab because she grew up with a twin brother on the autism spectrum. She has always been curious on his thoughts and reaction to certain situations. After graduation, she plans to go into clinical psychology.
Trey is a Sophomore double majoring in Psychology and Child Development. As someone who has helped teach kids with special needs in the past, and grown up as a kid with ASD, he has always had a passion for learning about the best ways to promote healthy development in children. In the future, he hopes to get his PhD in School Psychology.
Yasmin is a Junior double majoring in Psychology and Journalism. Her research interests include children's emotions and their mental health. Her career goal is to use her love of storytelling to share the stories of children in order to raise awareness for their mental health and developmental issues.
Undergraduate students who have worked as research assistants in the TCU FACES lab have gone on to a variety of positions, including PhD programs (clinical and experimental), Masters programs, and industry. Students in the lab are also very successful at receiving Child Life Specialist internships and practicums. Dr. Ekas works closely with undergraduate research assistants to ensure they are maximizing their time at TCU to meet their career goals. We are always sad when one of our students leaves us, but know they are going on to bigger and better things!
Deborah Rafferty – Data Analyst
Megan Quirk (Pruitt) – Private Industry; Texas Christian University (adjunct)
Lisa Timmons – California State University Stanislaus (Assistant Professor of Child Development)
Lauren Tidman – Private Industry
Isabella Ferrara – Clinical Psychology (UT Tyler)
Roxy Odiorne – School Psychology (U of Maryland)
Kate Lindig – Developmental Psychology (U of Georgia)
Allie Benson – Law School (UNC- Chapel Hill)
Maddy Filippi – Industrial/Organizational Psychology (U of Central Florida)
Jenna Futterer – Developmental Psychology (U of Miami)
Abby Hodges – School Psychology (UT Austin)
Julianne Hymel – School Psychology (LSU)
Abbie Johnson – School Psychology (LSU), Masters in ABA (Columbia U)
Jamie Manis – School Psychology (U of Houston)
Erin McKay – Clinical Psychology (Northern Illinois U)
Quynh Nguyen – Cognitive Psychology (Brandeis U)
Molly O’Neill – Developmental Psychology (Notre Dame)
Megan Pruitt – Developmental Psychology (TCU)
Kaitlyn Staffieri – Clinical Psychology (Florida Central)
Justin Wheeler – Law School
Kelcie Willis – Clinical Psychology (Virginia Commonwealth)
Amy Yamashiro – Developmental Psychology (NYU) Now employed at Google
Lauren Ponce De Leon – Occupational Therapy (Galveston)
Rachel Clark – Medical School (UT Dallas)
Dulce Cecenas – Industrial/Organizational (Texas Tech)
Sydney Goodiel – Counseling (SMU)
Alyssa Alanis – Counseling (Cal State)
Jessie Arroyave – BCBA
Kat Baber – Counseling (U Arkansas)
Laine Baizer – Counseling (Vanderbilt)
Heather Brannick – Counseling (UNT)
Katie Dunlap – Rehab counseling (UT SW)
Kristin Faciane – Counseling
Michael Gerardo – Social Work (U Arkansas)
Keana Gonzales – Counseling (Vanderbilt)
Whitney Sullivan – Psychology (Pepperdine)
Alyssa Solis – Counseling (Tarleton State U)
Mackenzie Preston – Social Work (TCU)
Patricia Johnson – School Psychology (UT Austin)
Kylie Leeper – Counseling (LSU)
Valerie Lerma – Counseling (TWU)
Gabby Mandujano – Counseling (TWU)
Ericka Marchbanks – School psychology (Missouri)
Christine Pope – Counseling
Maddie Posz - School Psychology
Madeline Rhoden – Counseling (Vanderbilt)
Katie Rial – Rehab counseling (UT SW)
Alysia Simons – Counseling
Samantha Singer – Developmental Trauma (TCU)
Meg Stutts – Counseling (SMU)
Brooke Williamson – Social Work (TCU)
Camille Eastin – Social Work (UT Austin)
Anastasiia Pavlova – Psychology (Villanova)
Carlos Rebollar – Analytics (NCSU)
Amy Cusimano – Child Life Internship (Cincinnati Children's)
Meghan Decoursey – Child Life Internship (UCLA)
Ana Dedja – Teach for America
Paige Broski – Post Baccalaureate (UT Austin)
Aimee Alameda
Megan Austin
Emma Boren
Tori Brennan
Maggie Carrell
Christy Carson
Annie Diehl
Kate Dotson
Hayley Friend
Maria Galindo
Emi Gomez
Laena Hadeed
Melanie Herron
Alexis Herrscher
Madison Hill
Jill Hoffman
Hannah Jackman
Connie Kao
Abby Mather
Madi McCracken
Ashley Murray
Margaret Oden
Abby Roberts
Maya Saker
Tosca Schofield
Leah Schloemer
Kristina Silva
Hailey Smith
Gianna Tiedemann
Kali Webster
Brooke Weinzriel
Abby Roberts
Carrington Green
Allyson Wilson
Gianna Yokoe
Lauren Kling
Claire Haefner