Research Staff & Research Assistants

Hi! I’m Alexa Aringer, staff at the Ad Lab and a first-year Clinical Psychology doctoral student at the University of Oregon under Dr. Sheila Crowell. I joined the Ad Lab in 2019 after transferring from Riverside City College and graduated from UC Riverside in 2020 with Phi Beta Kappa honors (B.S. in Psychology). Broadly, my research focuses on mechanisms of risk and resilience in minoritized youth and integrating biopsychosocial and developmental psychopathology perspectives in different contexts. I am interested in trauma, stress, and biophysiological mechanisms that impact health, psychological suffering, and multi-domain functioning. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my partner and pets, watching Netflix, and making really terrible candles.

Hello! My name is Haylee Lemus. I’m a staff member of the Ad Lab, and I earned my BA in Psychology in Spring 2022. Alongside my three-year-old daughter, I cherish outdoor activities and painting as our hobbies. My aspiration is to delve into Clinical Psychology and explore psychopathology across different contexts. Joining this lab offers a chance to understand psychological experiences in childhood and explore research methodologies. Looking ahead, I aim to focus on studying antisocial and violent behavior among minoritized populations.  

Hi! My name is Aditi Khadilkar and I will be receiving my BA in Psychology in 2026. After I finish undergrad, I hope to continue my education, eventually getting a PhD in psychology. My interests include cognitive and developmental psychology and my research interests include how cultural and religious backgrounds affect how a person views and overcomes trauma. I’m excited to join the Ad Lab and have an opportunity to explore and expand my research interests and capabilities. In my free time, I enjoy reading, playing volleyball, and listening to music!

Hi everyone! My name is Alejandra Moissiy, I will be receiving my bachelors degree in Psychology in the spring of 2024. My love for psychology began when I was 10 years old, volunteering at my local preschool and seeing how children’s personalities and mannerisms at such a young age are so uniquely different. Along with my psychology degree, I am also pursuing a minor in Business Organizational Behavior/ Human Resources. I hope to one day open my own psychology office and start a private practice. I look forward to pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology and expanding my knowledge of what this field has to offer. I am particularly interested in humanistic, positive psychology in pursuit of aiding youth to live life to its fullest potential and understand how experiences in life shape us, but do not hold us back. With this, I have really found a home in the UCR Adversity and Adaptation Lab. Outside of school I spend my time doing things that help me to live my life to its fullest which include, spending time with loved ones, traveling, gaming, and swimming.

Hi everyone! My name is Alexa Zelaya. I am planning on receiving my degree in Psychology in 2025! My dream is to pursue a career in clinical psychology and find new ways that we can help those who struggle with their mental health. I joined this lab to engage in research as well as educate myself on the ways a child’s environment influences their mindset. In my free time, I enjoy listening to music (Taylor Swift), reading, and making new memories with friends and family! 🙂

Hi everyone! My name is Amber Summers. I am planning on receiving my bachelors of science in psychology in spring 2025. I hope to one day work with clients but I am primarily interested in conducting research, specifically in adults with neurodevelopmental disorders. I want to research the specific adversities they face within childhood and adolescence and how that affects them later in life through socioeconomic factors and emotionally. I want to research whether certain therapy techniques that are considered to be effective in childhood actually have adverse effects in adulthood. I look forward to pursuing a PhD in clinical and developmental psychology and help contribute and further the field of psychology through research. I am really excited to be a part of the UCR Adversity and Adaptation Lab so that I can get a better understanding of how research into adversities is conducted and how research is applied into systems and everyday lives. Outside of school I enjoy music, doing art, spending time with friends, reading, and playing sports!

Hi! My name is Anel Lozano. I am a psychology major with a minor in Spanish and plan on receiving my degree in the spring of 2024. I joined the Ad Lab because of the focus they placed on children and their experiences growing up, I am an older sister of two and love interacting with children and hope to one day work with them. I am interested in understanding how adversity shapes their lives in order to provide assistance in hopes of improving their well-being. I am particularly interested in learning about topics such as parenting styles, and low-income, immigrant families. Aside from school, I enjoy reading, building puzzles, and hiking.

Mabuhay! よこそう！ My name is Camille-Faye Cabebe, and I joined the Ad Lab in Winter 2024. I am planning on receiving my BS in Psychology in 2026! When I finish my undergrad, I want to pursue a psychology PhD. I joined this lab to support minoritized adolescents in adverse life experiences. I want to work on changing policies by using research on supporting kids in holds like 5150/5250. I am also interested in the intergenerational transmission of emotional regulation, environments, and cognitive skills. Alongside being an RA, I work at the Student Disability Resource Center on campus! Some of my hobbies are practicing photography and media and learning languages such as Bisaya, Tagalog, and Japanese. Ingat ka! またね！

Hi! My name is Daisy Cisneros. I am recent Psychology graduate here at UCR! I am interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in clinical or counseling psychology and plan to take a gap year to gain more experience in research. I am so excited to learn about how the experiences of adversity in childhood have an impact on development through the Ad Lab. My personal research interests are within this area, but I am also interested in learning about how experiences in the early years, including childhood trauma and attachment styles, play a role in shaping the individual as a whole, and how they cope and view the world. I am primarily interested in seeing how this impacts the developmental transition between adolescence to adulthood. I am truly passionate about mental health and well-being and like to spend my free time doing things that make me happy such as spending time in nature, working out, and going to music festivals (occasionally)!

Hola friends, if you’re looking for a header as to what my interest in psychology is, it would be Academic Achievement. I know there are many circumstances in which it is challenging for a youth to situate themselves into the role of a student and humbly believe I can contribute in this area of the field, after graduate school. Understanding the ways in which one can excel is the reason why I adore the AD Lab, since our studies revolve around the ways in which life experiences influence development. Quite recently, I thought the world of academia to be an elusive type of beast, but I made it as a transfer student. Feel free to ask me about this if you’d like. My name is Hernan Zurita!

Hi everyone! My name is Karen Lam and I am UCR Class of 2024. I am a psychology major and hope to become a psychiatrist in the future. I want to work with at risk youth and children going through adversity in order to help them cope and thrive in their situations. I joined the AD Lab because I want to work with child in adversed environments and learn how they adapt and cope to these situations they have been put in. In my free time, I love to bake, go to the gym, and watch movies.

Hi! My name is Maisha Ahmed. I will receive my BA in Psychology in 2026. My research interests include adolescent psychology and how one’s circumstances can influence psychopathology over time. I’m excited to learn more about developmental psychology and expand my research capabilities in the Ad Lab. In my free time, I love reading, going on walks, and listening to music.

Hello, my name is Pablo Ramirez and I joined the Ad Lab in Spring 2024! I am a Psychology and Spanish double major and will be graduating in 2026. My current academic interests are in clinical and personality psychology and I hope to eventually earn a Ph.D. in one of these concentrations. The main research interest that I wish to explore is around borderline personality disorder (BPD) and how adverse life experiences during childhood may lead to the development of symptoms in adolescents and young adults. I hope to expand upon the current understanding of this highly stigmatized disorder and look into creating preventative measures that can help keep BPD from becoming a long-term issue for emerging adults. In my free time, I love to game, read, and explore new places!

Hello, my name is Pearl Perez! I joined Ad Lab in 2024 to gain research experience. I graduate in 2025 & plan on applying to grad school for clinical psychology. I work for a non profit organization tutoring special needs students. During my free time I hike, climb rocks, camp, paint & play my flute. I also have two cats, Anubis & Osiris.

Hello, my name is Rachel Francis! I will receive my bachelor’s degree in Psychology in 2024. My interest in the field comes from my experience as an EMT and youth counselor at a Youth Shelter. I aspire to have a career in Clinical Neuropsychology to understand cognitive strengths and weaknesses and develop strategies to improve quality of life. I joined the Ad Lab to explore child development, especially in the context of trauma and resiliency. I want to learn more about cognitive functioning and child development to serve these populations better. Some hobbies I like doing outside the lab are going to the gym, crocheting, and traveling.

Hi! My name is Ruhi Barman and I will be graduating with a BA in Psychology, Law and Society in 2025. I’m very interested in the intersection between psychology and law, especially in the context of juvenile justice. I find the AdLab’s focus on understanding the influence of life experiences on child adaptation especially intriguing and am excited to learn more about it! In my free time I love baking, reading, hanging out with friends, and pretty much anything outdoors!

Hi everyone! My name is Rayan El Khoury. I am a psychology major, UCR Class of 2027. After I receive my B.A. I plan on pursuing a Ph.D in psychology and clinical psychology through research or therapy. I want to learn how adversity shapes everyone and how it differs for everyone! Some of my hobbies include reading, watching shows/movies, going out with friends, and photography!

Hi! My name is Sachi Ashtikar, and I will be receiving my degree in Psychology in 2026! I have an intention to minor in Neuroscience as well. My current academic interests are in development and clinical psychology. I will be pursuing a PhD in the future. I am excited to gain research experience with the AdLab! I love listening to music, hanging out with my friends, and binging shows on Netflix.

Hi everyone! My name is Savannah Wong, and I will be receiving my bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Medical and Health Humanities Studies in 2024. I’m interested in pursuing a Psy.D. in clinical psychology, and hopefully specializing in pediatric clinical neuropsychology. After graduating from UCR, I will be taking a gap year(s) to gain more experience in research and clinics. I love working with children/adolescents and understanding how an individual’s environment can influence their development/brain, which is one of the many reasons why I was drawn to the Ad Lab. I cannot wait to learn new skills and grow as an individual in this lab. In my free time I enjoy working out, listening to music, traveling, and spending time with friends and family!