Lab Members

Meet Our Team!

We have a growing lab of fantastic Amherst College undergraduate students and University of Massachusetts clinical psychology graduate students. For information on joining our research team, please contact Dr. McQuade.

Julia D. McQuade, Principal Investigator

Dr. McQuade is a Clinical Psychologist and an Associate Professor of Psychology at Amherst College. She joined the Amherst College faculty in 2012 and has loved mentoring undergraduate students who have worked in the lab. Dr. McQuade has been a New Englander her entire life, growing up outside of Boston, attending Bates College (in Maine) as an undergradaute and the University of Vermont for her Ph.D. Her prior clinical training focused on children and adolescents with ADHD and associated behavior problems. When not in the lab or teaching in the classroom, you may find her running (after her kids, with her dog, or on the bike trail), cooking something in the kitchen, or spending time with family.

Sarah Marrison-Buhl, Research Coordinator

Sarah is the research coordinator for Amherst College in the Peer Relationships and Child Learning and Development labs. She is responsible for community outreach and family recruitment. A Midwesterner at heart, she lived in Madison, Wisconsin before earning a BA at Carroll College. She went on to complete an MA.Ed from the College of William and Mary. In addition to working in the labs, Sarah teaches in the Amherst-Pelham Regional school district.

Current Research Assistants

Kimi Reddy '25E is a Psychology major on the Pre-Med track from Southern California. She enjoys working with children and wrote her senior thesis on childhood rejection experiences, rejection sensitivity, and adolescent borderline personality features. Outside of the lab, she is a member of the school’s Wellness Team and likes to play in Club Tennis matches.

Carina Nanan '25 is a Psychology and Black Studies double major. As a Caribbean American from Brooklyn, NY, she is interested in investigating the intersections between identity and psychology. She aspires to pursue a graduate degree in medical humanities research and establish a career that encompasses her interdisciplinary interests.

Maya Cwalina '25 is a Psychology and Studio Art major on the Pre-Health track from Queens, New York City. She hopes to pursue a masters or doctorate in occupational therapy after graduating Amherst. Outside of the lab, she is a member of the Women’s Basketball Team and a volunteer at ABC Tutoring. In her free time, Maya enjoys watching movies, trying new foods, and making art for loved ones.

Mel Arthur '25 is an English and Psychology major from Virginia. When not in the lab, they are involved in different aspects around campus from being President of The Poetry Club to being an assistant in the Music Department Concert Office. They hope to pursue an MSW after graduating from Amherst with the hopes of working with kids in the future. They also enjoy crocheting, cupcakes, and watching tv with friends!

Gina Durazo '26 is a Neuroscience major on the Pre-Med track from Tucson, Arizona. On campus, she spends her time tutoring highschoolers for a club called A Better Chance and being a Community Advisor in the dorms. She loves working with people and was a CNA for two summers before starting research. After graduating, she hopes to use these experiences to become a doctor, though she is unsure as to which kind yet.

Vy Doan '26 is pursuing double majors in Psychology and Statistics. Outside of her classes and the lab, she serves as the co-chair of the Southeast Asian Student Association and contributes to the Student Team at the Learning and Teaching Center. Vy enjoys working with children, and she hopes to integrate her majors into a future career focused on child-related fields.

Peer Relationships Lab Alumni

Ellie DeCarlo '24

Reina Corcoran '23

Daylin Delgado '22, Clinical Research Coordinator, UNC School of Medicine; doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology, University of Georgia

Ivieosa Aimufua '21

Maggie Azu '21, Clinical Research Fellow, Autism Spectrum Disorder at the Yale Child Study Center; doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology, University of Buffalo

Yaqui Montes de Oca '21, masters in social work candidate

Arianna Mordy '20, clinical research assistant; doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology, UCLA

Daria Taubin '20, clinical research assistant, Massachusetts General Hospital; doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park

Andrew Floersheimer '20, Clinical Coordinator, Child Mind Institute; PsyD candidate, Yeshiva University

Silvana Romero, mental health specialist

Renai Foster, teacher

Julia Gajewski-Nemes, clinical research assistant, Brown University; doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology, University of Pittsburgh

Hope Kim, clinical research assistant; medical student

Nicholas Marsh clinical research assistant, Cincinnati Children's Hospital; clinical research assistant, Brown University; doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park