Current Research Vertical Team Members
China Bolden, MS
China joined the program in 2017 and is a sixth-year student. Her research interests include the development of emotion regulation and its relationship to trauma and psychopathology in children and adolescents. Additionally, she is interested in psychophysiology as it relates to mental health outcomes in these populations. In her spare time, she mentors local high school students for college readiness, is a potter and spends as much time as she can with her baby boy.
Ben Johnson, MS
Ben joined the program in 2017 and is a sixth-year graduate student. His research interests include developmental trajectories of psychopathology and emotion regulation within late adolescence. He is also interested in risk and protective factors for problem behaviors amongst male adolescents.
Ellie Lisitsa, MS
Ellie joined the program in 2017 and is a sixth-year graduate student. Her research interests social support, self-compassion, mindfulness, and other factors that influence resilience against stress and contribute to post traumatic growth among adolescents and adults
Kate Benjamin, MS
Kate joined the program in 2018 and is a fifth-year graduate student. Her research interests include risk and protective factors for child and adolescent onset depression. Specifically, she is interested in how emotion regulation, cognitive style, and biological factors interact to influence the development of depression.
Sarah Chun, MS
Sarah joined the program in 2018 and is a fifth-year graduate student. Her research interests include investigating pathways of adolescent mood disorders, the use of emotion regulation strategies, and how both positive and negative life events contribute to youth outcomes.
Luke Vaartstra, BA
Luke joined the program in 2019 and is a fourth-year graduate student. His research interests include looking at how adaptive and maladaptive emotion regulation strategies relate to adult depression and mood disorders and how positive and negative life events influence mental health. His interests further include researching clinical psychology strategies and interventions for refugees.
Ken Safley, BS
Ken joined the program in 2020 and is a third-year graduate student. His research interests include the intersection of physiological and psychological factors which relate to stress-resiliency and trauma recovery, as well as strategies for the prevention and treatment of traumatic-stress injuries. He is interested in the role of Respiratory Sinus Arrythmia as it relates to traumatic-stress injury susceptibility and maladaptive emotional regulation.
Mary Charleson, BS
Mary joined the program in 2020 and is a third-year graduate student. She is interested in biological and socioemotional risk and protective factors for adolescent depression and suicidality. She is also interested in therapeutic interventions that ameliorate mood disorders and promote resilience after trauma.
Grace Friedman, BA
Grace joined the program in 2021 and is a second-year graduate student. Her research interests include parenting practices, adverse childhood experiences, and the development of temperament and emotional regulation in youth with ADHD, depression, and anxiety. She is also interested in working directly with children and families, with a particular emphasis on clinical and school-based interventions.