Principal Investigator  

Dr. Lumeng completed medical school and a pediatrics residency at the University of Michigan, and a developmental and behavioral pediatrics fellowship at the Boston University School of Medicine. She joined the University of Michigan as faculty in 2003, and her research lab started studying children in the community shortly after. Her research focus is on the biology underlying maternal feeding practices, the development of eating behaviors in infancy and early childhood, and their influence on healthy growth. Her goal is to contribute to the understanding of these behaviors, which will then help support the emotional and physical well being of children and their parents. She currently holds appointments at the University of Michigan as the Associate Dean for Clinical Research for the Medical School, Associate Vice President for Research-Clinical and Human Subjects Research, and Executive Director of the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research. She also is the Thomas P. Borders Family Research Professor of Child Behavior and Development, in addition to a Professor of Pediatrics in the Medical School, and a Professor of Nutritional Sciences in the School of Public Health. Through these positions she aids in developing and facilitating clinical and translational investigations across the research spectrum.

Project Manager

Alex received her MPH in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. She has served as the Lumeng Lab manager since the fall of 2019. In her role she plans, directs, and oversees all research, administrative, and operational matters for the lab. 

Research Technician Associate

Claire Dennis graduated from the University of Michigan in 2023 with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. During undergraduate, she worked in a pediatric cardiology lab and as a research assistant in FAST Lab, studying food addiction. She is interested in studying forensic psychology and criminal justice in youth populations in the future. Claire is currently working on the ABC Growing Kids Study and the Mother Baby Study.

Research Technician Associate 

Misha Asim completed her Bachelor of Science in Public Health Honors at Wayne State University in 2022. Previously, she completed research at the C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth and Development involving physiological science to determine the effects of HOCl-mediated heme destruction in iNOS through melatonin. Her areas of research currently lies in Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at the University of Michigan. As a Research Technician Associate, she contributes to studying the relationship between eating behaviors and early childhood development as it relates to dietary quality and patterns and works on the ABC Growing Kids Study and the Mother Baby Study.

Research Technician Associate

Summer Eubank graduated from the University of Michigan in 2021 with her Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience. She has experience working as an undergraduate research assistant at the Child Health Evaluation and Research (CHEAR) Center focusing on improving patient outcomes for patients and families affected by Differences of Sex Disorder (DSD). In addition, she has worked at a local non-profit, Community Action Network of Ann Arbor, as an After-School Program Assistant aiding their youth educational and enrichment programs. She is interested in evolutionary psychology/anthropology, specifically allomaternal care & reproductive strategies within various non-human primate species. Currently, she is working as a Research Technician Associate on the Mother Baby Study within the Lumeng Lab.