Our Team
Christine L. Bae, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Foundations Of Education, Educational Psychology, Discourse and Learning Lab Director, Virginia Commonwealth University
Dr. Christine received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with a minor in Quantitative Research Methods at the University of Florida (2012). She worked as a postdoctoral researcher on a Science Education project in the Bay Area (2013-16, CSU East Bay). As an Assistant Professor at the VCU School of Education (2016 - present), she is applying learning, motivation, and sociocultural frameworks to understand and support equitable teaching and learning in science classrooms.
Fa Zhang, Ph.D.
Educational Psychology Researcher
Dr. Fa is a former GA and VCU graduate. Her research focuses on STEM teaching and learning. She has a particular interest in applying advanced statistical methods using large-scale databases to examine science learning motivation among elementary and middle school students. She also focuses on student science learning opportunities and teaching practices as they relate to achievement outcomes. She is currently completing her Masters degree in Statistics.
Lauren Cabrera, Ph.D.
Post-doctoral Fellow, Educational Psychology, Michigan State University
Dr. Lauren is a former GA and graduate of the Educational Psychology. As a former middle school science teacher, she is interested in classroom-based research directly tied to science teaching practices and student development. Her current research focuses on scientific discourse practices, with a focus on questioning and self-regulation in science classrooms.
Martinique Sealy, Ph.D.
Post-doctoral Fellow, Educational Psychology, American University
Dr. Martinique is a former GA, VCU graduate, as well as Holmes Scholar. She was AERA Division C Graduate Co-Chair from 2021-2023. Her current research focuses on students’ funds of knowledge [specifically identity, culture, and language] and creating asset-based classroom contexts to foster historically marginalized students’ academic achievement. She began her career as an elementary school teacher, has a bachelor of science degree in psychology, as well as a masters of arts degree in special education.
Daphne Mills, Ph.D
Educational Psychology Researcher
Dr. Daphne is a former postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Foundations of Education. She received her Ph.D. in Education within the Educational Psychology, Measurement, & Evaluation (EPME) strand from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. She began her career as a middle school science teacher and her research interests focus on science achievement motivation and the influences of parental socialization practices on science achievement in African American middle and high school students.
Jessica Gladstone, Ph.D
Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Dr. Jessica is a Postdoctoral Fellow. During graduate school at the University of Maryland she specialized in Educational Psychology and Developmental Science. In her research she focused on three main areas: (1) how parents and teachers shape students’ motivational beliefs, values, and engagement in math and science; (2) how undergraduates' motivational beliefs and values predict their engagement in math and science courses and how later engagement may then predict their motivational beliefs and values; and (3) how students’ personality characteristics, such as grit, relate to their motivation, self-regulation, and achievement.
Marquita Sea, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Mathematics, Educational Psychology, J Sargeant Reynolds Community College
Dr. Marquita is a former GA and VCU graduate. She is also an Associate Professor of Mathematics in the School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics at Reynolds Community College. Her research focuses on student motivation in mathematics and its association with achievement-related outcomes. In particular, her interests center on positively influencing students’ views and self-beliefs in mathematics.
Hui (Fiona) Sun
Doctoral Student
Fiona is a fourth-year doctoral student concentrating on Urban Service Leadership with primary research interests in the area of nonprofit organizational leadership and change, especially in religious and urban service institutions. With a multidisciplinary background and 16-year executive management experience, She got an Executive Master of Business Administration degree. Currently, she is also a student in the online program of Dallas Theological Seminary. Her secondary interests include the exploration of family relationship management (marriage and parenting) in conjunction with theological belief.
K. Hannah Walls
Former Doctoral Student
Hannah was a part-time doctoral student in Educational Psychology. She received a Master’s of Arts and is also a Nationally Certified School Psychologist and is the Division School Psychologist for Amelia County Public Schools. Her research interests include equitable practices in education for underrepresented students, the research-to-practice gap in education, and classroom practices to promote social/emotional growth in students.
Rachel Niemira
Doctoral Student
Rachel is an incoming first-year doctoral student in Educational Psychology. She graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with a B.A. in Psychology and Anthropology with a minor in Cognitive Science in 2023. Rachel is interested in exploring how we can help students succeed in their academics, while keeping their mental health, self-esteem, work-life balance, and curiosity intact.
Javonti Braxton
Doctoral Student
Javonti is a second-year doctoral student in Educational Psychology. He is a former middle and high school social studies teacher. His research interests include: student learning and motivation, literacy, and social studies education.
Kamil Hankour
Doctoral Student
Kamil is a second-year Educational Psychology doctoral student. He received a Master of Science in Psychological Science. His research interests include peer interactions and peer mentorship during adolescence, student-teacher interactions, as well as contextual factors that influence education, educational outcomes, and development.
Singith Nuwanga Perera
Doctoral Student
Singith is an incoming first-year doctoral student in Educational Psychology. He acquired a bachelor's degree in Economics and Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a masters in Product Innovation from DaVinci Center for Innovation,VCU. Singith focuses on social innovation in education, healthcare and wellness with the hope of empowering cognitive engagement, resilience, decision making and problem-solving through his research into metacognition, associative thinking, motivation and self-agency.
Research Assistants and Volunteers
Dylan Young
Research Assistant
Dylan is a Psychology undergraduate with a minor in Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education. She is interested in how different factors such as SES, race, ethnicity, gender, and especially disability, impact education. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a doctorate in School Psychology.
Former Research Assistants
Larson Ashworth
Larson Ashworth is a recent VCU graduate with a B.S. in Criminal Justice. She plans on pursuing a law degree through higher education. She would love to go into education law and has an interest in issues that arise in the K-12 system. In terms of research, she is interested in better understanding students' motivation and engagement.
Mahnoor Muhammad
Research Assistant
Mahnoor is a fourth-year honors undergraduate student at VCU studying Applied Psychology with a double minor in Spanish and Sociology. She plans to pursue graduate school for clinical psychology and is especially interested in working with LGBTQ+ and/or immigrant youth and their families.
Myles Gauthier
Myles Gauthier is a recent VCU graduate who studied psychology with a minor in biology. He will be pursuing higher education in clinical psychology and is interested in the study of genetics including how they influence behavior and mental disorders.
Alexis Lubinskas
Alexis Lubinskas is a VCU graduate with a B.S. in Psychology. She is currently working full-time teaching and hopes to help children and adolescents succeed mentally, socially, and educationally. Her research interests include holistic healing, psychotherapy, and child development.
Christopher Rivera Carvajal
Samreen Qureshi
Research Assistant
Samreen is a recent graduate from VCU with a bachelor's degree in Psychology. She plans to begin her master’s soon in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and wants to pursue a doctoral degree in the future. She wants to become licensed and practice in a clinical setting.
Yeji Hwang
Colleen McCormick
Darien Hildebeidel
Darien is a recent VCU graduate who studied Psychology and Criminal Justice. She is planning to pursue Forensic/Clinical Psychology through higher education. Research wise, she is most interested in targeting the pre-existing risk factors that promote deviant behavior through the involvement of the juvenile justice system and how positive protective factors alleviate disparities in youth wellbeing
Mariela Romero
Mariela Romero is a VCU graduate who studied Psychology. She plans to pursue her education in Counseling Psychology. Mariela is most interested in topics relating to mental health.
Drishya Bameta
Research Assistant
Drishya is a final-year Graduate student in economics at Virginia Commonwealth University. He plans to be a behavioral analyst and is interested in behavioral economics, econometrics modeling, and decision science.
Avery Johnson
Daniella Sniffen
Zack Carter
Muntaha Khan
Muntaha Khan graduated from VCU 21’ with a Psychology major and a Criminal Justice minor. She will be pursuing higher education in Social/Criminal Psychology and is interested in researching the impacts of alcohol/substance abuse on social relationships and the psychological development of criminals based upon their adolescent environments.
Ethan Kuhstoss
Ethan is a former VCU student who studied applied psychology with a minor in philosophy. He plans to attend graduate school for clinical psychology and hopes to practice with clients in a therapeutic setting.
Briana Meehan
Research Assistant
Briana is a senior at Virginia Commonwealth University majoring in Psychology and minoring in Spanish. She is pursuing a career in education and TESOL. Briana is fascinated by research in social and educational psychology, specifically in the motivation and engagement of students.
Caroline Miller
Maeve Connaughton
Research Assistant
Maeve is a senior at VCU studying psychology and public relations. She plans to pursue graduate study in the field of Clinical Social Work and is interested in working in a therapy setting with children and young adults.
Landon Wigg
Daniel Russell
Harris Holland
Varsha Vasudevan
Varsha Vasudevan is a former undergraduate student at Virginia Commonwealth University. She is passionate about psychology and believes children and young people can teach us about human behavior. She is interested in abnormal behavior, development, and how children absorb knowledge and make sense of the world.
Aneet Samra
Aneet Samra is a former RA and recent VCU graduate with a Psychology major and a Biology minor. She currently is working as a medical scribe and plans to keep pursuing a career in medicine. She is most interested in research topics related to mental health.
Carley Toney
Michelle Krushelnisky
Peyton Buongiorne
Research Assistant
Peyton is an undergraduate student at Virginia Commonwealth University. She is majoring in psychology, with a minor in sociology. She will be graduating in fall of 2022, and hopes to pursue post-graduate work in counseling psychology, Her primary research interests are in counseling, educational, and social psychology.
