Josefina Bañales, Ph.D. (she/ella) is an Assistant Professor in the Community and Applied Developmental Psychology (C&ADP) Area at the University of Illinois, Chicago (UIC). Dr. Bañales infuses her personal experiences as a Mexican American woman who is a first-generation high school, college, and doctoral student from the Southwest side of Chicago with her community-engaged research with youth of color in schools and community organizations. Her research examines how youth develop beliefs, feelings, and actions that challenge racism (i.e., youth critical racial consciousness development). In collaboration with youth, schools, parents, and community organizations, she co-creates opportunities that facilitate youths’ critical racial consciousness development. 

Dr. Bañales loves hot black coffee, singing, and walking at a very leisurely pace.

Felicia Gutierrez (she/her) is a fifth-year doctoral candidate in the Community and Applied Developmental Psychology program at the University of Illinois, Chicago. She works under the mentorship of Dr. Bañales and is a graduate research assistant in the CAMBIAR Collective. After completing her master's in Couples and Family Therapy at the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!), she knew her next academic goals would center around applying her clinical background in the context of research. Felicia has been fortunate to have earned significant experience in clinical interventions, youth participatory action research, and quantitative analyses.  Felicia’s research interests focus on the intersectional connections between youth mental health, school ethnic-racial socialization, ethnic-racial identity, and anti-racism action.

In her free time, Felicia enjoys watching every horror movie she can possibly stream, snuggling up with her cat Iggy-Biggz and a non-academic related book, and going on adventures with her twin sister and chihuahua, Canelo. As a true-blue west coast baby, she is excited to continue to explore the surrounding areas and see what the Midwest has to offer!

Alfred J. Rodriguez (they/them) is a third-year doctoral student in the Community and Applied Developmental Psychology program at the University of Illinois, Chicago. With a bachelor's degree in Biology and prior experience in public health and higher education, they bring a diverse background to their studies.

Working alongside Dr. Josefina Bañales, their primary research focuses on Queer and Trans youth identity development and youth critical consciousness, particularly for racialized youth. They are particularly interested in exploring the intricate aspects of intersectional youth identity development and the importance of fostering cross-group solidarity.

Alfred has a strong passion for developing research methodologies rooted in Queer/Trans/Feminist and abolitionist principles. They strive to integrate qualitative and quantitative techniques that are responsive to the needs of the community, aiming to deepen their understanding of what liberation means for youth and their communities.

In their free time they enjoy trying new places to eat and cooking. They are a lovely parent to their tuxedo cat named Nano. 

Stacey Cabrera (she/her) is a second-year doctoral student in the Community & Applied Developmental Program and CAMBIAR Collective at UIC. Stacey graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.A. in Psychology & minor in Human Development. 

Her research explores youths' critical consciousness development, intersectional identities, and peer socialization efforts in navigating academic institutions and educational inequities within them. Additionally, an emerging area of interest centers on how youth of color develop self-love as an act of resistance to oppressive structures.

When not doing research, Stacey loves to spend time with family and friends, explore cool places, and try new cuisines in Chicago. 

Daniela (Dani) Cervantes (she/her) is a Post Baccalaureate Fellow at the University of Illinois Chicago. She is a first-generation Mexican-American woman born and raised in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood. She received her B.A from UIC in Applied Psychology accompanied by a minor in Latin American/Latino Studies. Her research interests include Liberation Psychology, BIPOC youth mental health, community activism, and critical consciousness.

In her free time, Daniela enjoys trying new cuisines and visiting coffee shops.

Isaiah Efrain Irizarry (he/him) is a Post-Bac Research Fellow at the University of Illinois Chicago. He was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. Isaiah graduated with his B.S. in Psychology from UIC and also completed a minor in Latin American and Latino Studies. He is interested in how social determinants of health impact the mental health and well being of Latinx youth. He hopes to leverage his research develop culturally responsive, community-driven solutions to address mental health disparities and promote collective well-being.

His facorite place to visit is Puerto Rico and he loves listening to anything reggaeton :)

Natalie (Nat) Godines-Villanueva (she /her) is an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois, Chicago, born in the suburbs of Chicago. In cherishing friends and family, she realized advocating for them and her culture was a huge part of who she is. She plans to take that passion into everything she does. Natalie is currently double majoring in Psychology and Sociology with a minor in Spanish! One of her main interests is the sociological factors that lead to incarceration. She aspires to create a structured system that will provide psychological treatments for inmates. 

Natalie loves to go to the gym, read, and spend time with friends and family.

Montserrat (Montse) Rápalo (she/her) is an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois, Chicago. She is double-majoring in Applied Psychology and Criminal Law and Justice. She was born and raised mostly in Honduras. This has made her interested in research regarding the Latinx community and how criminal behavior creates a pattern in crime. In addition, Montse is also one of the few women in her family to go to college. This is why she is very passionate about research regarding gender equality and women's rights. 

Montse enjoys reading, spending time with her family, and listening to music.

Alitza Perez (she/her) is a first-year undergraduate student majoring in Applied psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. As Alitza begins to explore research, she hopes to learn more about mental processing, mental health, and racial and cultural effects on youth.

Alitza is a first-generation Mexican American and the youngest in her family. Born and raised in the suburbs, she learned to cherish her cultural and ethnic identity and learned that it's what made them who they are. In her free time, she loves to take photos, create illustrations, work out, and hang out with her friends.