Research Team
Casey Blackburn
Casey Blackburn received his graduate degree from the department of Counseling Psychology at Santa Clara University. He began his academic career by completing his Bachelors of Science in Social Work at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Casey started working under Dr. Llamas in 2015 as a research assistant. He is now pursuing a career in User Experience research in order to broaden his skills as a researcher.
Kitzi Hendricks
Kitzi Hendricks is in her third year of the Counseling Psychology program at Santa Clara University. After graduating from Creighton University in 2011 with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Kitzi did volunteer work in Cochabamba, Bolivia for three years, serving both pre-adolescent and adolescent girls and, later, survivors of torture and political violence during the dictatorships. Her clinical interests include working with Latino children and families, especially those affected by political violence, and refugees. She is on the MFT track with an emphasis in Latino counseling and will graduate with her Master's in June 2018.
Vidur Malik
Vidur is a third-year graduate student in Santa Clara University's Counseling Psychology program with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy. A former sports journalist, Vidur is relatively new to the psychology field but is excited to continue his new career.
Vidur is interested in working with college-age students who are in the process of transitioning to adulthood. He has been working on a qualitative study that looks to clarify sources of support and stress for Latino/a college students at a large university in California.
Vidur is currently doing his practicum traineeship at the Bill Wilson Center in San Jose.
Danielle Marinsik
Danielle Marinsik recently received her Masters in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University and is on the path to receive her Marriage and Family Therapist license. She is passionate about working to help improve her community and she especially enjoys working with children. Since October of 2016 she has worked as a Mental Health Consultant at Kidango, an agency that provides supportive services to children and their families in the Bay Area.
Matthew McKenzie
Matthew McKenzie is a Counseling Psychology Graduate Student at Santa Clara University. Matt received his Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in 2015. Before pursuing education, he served in the United States Marine Corps. Upon receiving his Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology, he plans on applying to Doctoral Programs in Clinical Psychology. His goal is to work with and assist Veterans living with mental illness, and to go into academia to teach the next generation of Psychologists. His expected graduation date is June 2019.
Khoa Nguyen
Khoa Nguyen is a counseling faculty in the Math Department at De Anza College. Khoa received his Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 2013, a Master of Arts in Counseling with an emphasis in Health Psychology from Santa Clara University in 2016, and a Master of Science in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from Walden University in 2018. He has served as a graduate research assistant under Dr. Jasmín Llamas since 2015. Together they investigated the impact of faculty match, having a professor of the same ethnicity, on college students’ GPAs and graduation rates. His long-term research goal is to critically examine racial inequality in higher education and the workplace in order to make equity a vital component of our education system and workforce. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology with an emphasis in Organizational Diversity & Social Change at Walden University.
Tram Pham
Tram Pham is a graduate student at Santa Clara University in the Master’s in Counseling program. She is expected to graduate in June 2018. Tram received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Education from University of California, Santa Cruz in 2016. Tram is currently a counselor for the EOPS program at Evergreen Valley College.
Tram’s research interests include cultural and social factors/processes, parental relationships, and psychological causes that influence adolescents and emerging adult' academic motivation, achievement, and college transition and adjustment. She is also interested in the effects of racial and ethnic experiences on college students' mental health, well-being, and coping methods
Marissa Sia
Marissa Sia is a recent graduate of the Counseling Psychology program at Santa Clara University. She has had a longstanding interest in Psychology. She received her Bachelor of Science in Psychology with Minors in Urban Education and Spanish Studies. Her interests include working with adolescent and adult populations from a trauma-informed lens. After graduating, Marissa will pursue her Doctorate in Psychology degree with the hope of becoming a clinical psychologist.