Brian P. Daly, PhD, is a child psychologist specializing in mental health promotion in schools and global leadership efforts around promoting school mental health. Dr. Daly's work seeks to improve school-based efforts to enhance social and emotional skills, mental health, and academic success. Daly is Professor and Department Head in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. He teaches undergraduate and graduate psychology courses including Pediatric Psychology, Lifespan Developmental Psychology, Child Psychopathology, and Social Psychology. Research conducted in Daly's Pediatric and Child Adolescent Psychology Lab includes evidence-based psychosocial interventions for youth, prevention and resiliency in urban youth, school mental health promotion, global leadership and collaboration around school mental health, and trauma in youth. One of his current research projects involves the delivery and evaluation of an evidence-based socioemotional learning (SEL) prevention program for first and second children in a school-based setting. The goals of this study are to promote positive teacher behavior management techniques and social competence for at-risk young children attending inner-city elementary schools located in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Meghan Butryn received her BS from Cornell University, and her PhD in clinical psychology from Drexel University. She completed her clinical internship at Brown Medical School. Currently she is a professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. Her primary research interests are innovations in behavioral approaches to obesity treatment and prevention; developing interventions for physical activity promotion; and disseminating evidence-based eating disorders prevention programs.

Evan Forman received his BA from Cornell University and his PhD from the University of Rochester. He completed clinical internships and fellowships at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, the University of Pennsylvania and the Beck Institute. Currently he serves as professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences and WELL Center Director. He has interests in the development, evaluation and dissemination of innovative behavioral and technology-based interventions for health behavior change.

Charlotte Hagerman grew up in Street, Maryland and received her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Mary Washington. In 2021, she received her PhD in Applied Social Psychology at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C, where she studied under Dr. Michelle Stock. Charlotte's research examines the social psychological influences of health behavior, with a focus on weight management. She is especially interested in research that can inform interventions to promote healthy eating and self-weighing while mitigating the harmful effects of weight stigma. In her spare time, Charlotte enjoys singing and traveling.

Adrienne Juarascio, PhD, received her bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and her PhD in clinical psychology from Drexel University. She is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. Her research is focused on the identification of factors that maintain eating pathology (e.g. emotion dysregulation, altered reward responsivity, impulsivity) that are inadequately targeted in existing treatment approaches and the development of novel treatment approaches that can better target these maintenance factors.

Erica LaFata, PhD, earned her B.A. degree in psychology from the University of Kansas and her doctoral degree in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan. LaFata completed a predoctoral internship at the Medical University of South Carolina and a two-year postdoctoral research fellowship with the Center for Weight and Eating Disorders at the University of Pennsylvania. Her program of research applies a cutting-edge perspective to understanding overeating and obesity by examining 1) which foods or food attributes (e.g., sugar) may be reinforcing in a manner that directly drives overeating, 2) whether core mechanisms of addictive disorders (e.g., withdrawal) may contribute to eating-related problems for vulnerable individuals, and 3) how food addiction may be a useful construct for individualized interventions. LaFata has investigated these empirical questions using a multi-method approach, including neuroimaging, scale development, food consumption paradigms, and self-report.

Stephanie Manasse, PhD, received her bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Drexel University. She is the Director of the mPOWER program, a summer fellowship for underrepresented minority trainees who wish to pursue research careers. Her research program is centered around developing novel treatments for adolescents and adults with eating and weight disorders, with a particular focus on improving self-regulation. She also is particularly interested in discovering maintenance factors (e.g., neurocognitive, affective, sleep-related) of disordered eating behavior that can serve as novel intervention targets.

Dani Arigo received her BS from Drexel University and her PhD in clinical psychology from Syracuse University. She is a faculty member in the Department of Psychology at Rowan University and holds appointments with the Department of Family Medicine at Rowan School of Osteopathic Medicine and the Department of Biomedical Sciences at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University. The overarching goals of her research program are to better understand psychological and social influences on health behaviors such as physical activity and dietary intake, and to effectively harness these influences in digital health behavior change interventions. A critical component of this program is differentiating stable, person-level relations from those that vary within-person (e.g., at the day or moment levels). Her current work focuses on (1) understanding within-person relations between social perceptions and physical activity engagement among midlife women with elevated risk for cardiovascular disease, and (2) tailoring the social features of digital physical activity interventions to meet the needs of this population. She has worked closely with WELL Center investigators on these and related research topics since 2012.

Kristal Lyn Brown, PhD, MSPH, is an assistant professor in the Creative Arts Therapies Department in the College of Nursing and Health Professions; she also holds a secondary appointment in the Department of Community Health and Prevention in the Dornsife School of Public Health. By training, Dr. Brown is an interdisciplinary health equity scholar—her work sits at the intersection of stress, obesity, and disordered eating. Dr. Brown graduated from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University with a BS in biology pre-med. She earned her Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, before completing a PhD in Social and Behavioral Sciences from Virginia Commonwealth University, School of Medicine. Dr. Brown completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine in 2023.

Brandy-Joe Milliron's research focuses on developing community-based nutrition and wellness interventions to prevent and manage chronic disease and improve family caregiver health, with a focus on understudied populations and cancer survivorship. While she has a broad background in obesity prevention and management, her current research explores the ways in which nutrition, wellness and healing behaviors promote healthy disease survivorship and caregiver health. Her research also focuses on designing better nutrition programs by improving our understanding of how people’s interactions with their environment affect their nutrition-related behaviors.

Dr. Ontañón's research focus lies in the intersection of artificial intelligence, computer games, machine learning and case-based reasoning. He has published over 90 scientific articles in these areas. Previous to joining Drexel University, he spent three years at the Georgia Institute of Technology as a postdoctoral researcher, and two years as a researcher at the Artificial Intelligence Research Institute (IIIA) in Barcelona, Spain.

Amani Piers earned her B.S. in psychology and biology from Trinity University and her PhD in clinical psychology from Drexel University. She has received extensive clinical training in eating disorders and health psychology concerns through positions at the Drexel University WELL Center, the Penn Center for Women’s Behavioral Wellness, the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Eating Disorder Assessment and Treatment Program, and the University of California San Diego Eating Disorders Center. She is currently working as a study clinician for Project ReLearn.

Deeptha Sukumar, PhD, joined faculty in the Department of Nutrition Sciences as an assistant professor in September 2013. After completing her initial training in India, she moved to the U.S. and obtained a PhD from Rutgers University. Her doctoral and postdoctoral work largely focused on examining the relationship of obesity and weight reduction with bone metabolism. Her research has been published in several top impact journals such as the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, Annual Reviews of Nutrition and Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism. Sukumar is the recipient of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) Young Investigator award in 2011.

Zoe Zhang, PhD, is a statistician with interests in neuroimaging data analysis and quantitative research methods including hierarchical models, multivariate analysis, generalized linear models, data mining, and Bayesian modeling. She is particularly passionate about statistical modeling and methodological development for social, behavioral, and biomedical related problems. She obtained her PhD in Statistics at Northwestern University, and is currently a faculty member in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.

Olivia is a postdoctoral clinical fellow at the WELL Clinic. Olivia received her B.S. in psychology and theater from Northwestern University, and her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Long Island University, Brooklyn. Her graduate research focused on the effects of food insecurity severity and body dissatisfaction on bulimic symptoms, with a focus on shame and dietary restraint as mediating factors. She has received clinical training in eating disorder treatment through a position at the Mount Sinai Eating and Weight Disorder Program. Prior to graduate school, she worked at a residential treatment center for eating disorders and as a meal support coach for patients stepping down from residential care.

Lisa Goldberg is the Operations Manager at the WELL Center. With a focus on process improvement and efficiency, she helps the WELL Center run smoothly, allowing researchers to concentrate on their ground-breaking work and fostering the growth of the clinic. Lisa earned her MA in Psychology from the College of William & Mary, conducting research in the Eating Behavior & Child Development Center. She received her BA in Psychology from the University of Vermont. Lisa brings a wealth of experience working in eating disorder treatment facilities, including program management at the residential and IOP/PHP levels of care.

Danny Choo-Kang joined the WELL Center as a research coordinator for Charlotte Hagerman, PhD, after graduating from Barnard College with a B.A. in psychology in 2024. As an undergraduate, Danny worked in the Metacognitive Lab at Barnard and the Seaver Autism Center at Mount Sinai, while also conducting independent research on the effects of short-form video platforms on working memory and perceptions of time. In the future, Danny plans to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology and hopes to study technology addiction and promote digital wellness.

Ivy Dang is a research coordinator for Evan Forman, PhD, working on Project NeuroFit. She graduated from Williams College with a B.A. in Psychology and a B.A. in English. During her undergraduate years, she worked as a research assistant in the Williams College Health Lab, whose work focused on using technology to examine the predictors of dietary and physical activity lapses in behavioral weight loss programs. Ivy’s research interests include treatment adherence strategies and the incorporation of technology in interventions for weight loss and eating disorders in adolescent and adult populations. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.

Chloe Hessler is a research coordinator working under Erica LaFata, Ph.D., on Project Response (1K23DK129825-01A1). She graduated summa cum laude from The College of New Jersey with a B.A. in Psychology and a pre-medical track. While at TCNJ, Chloe worked in the Cognitive Outcomes and Processes Lab with Ashley Borders, Ph.D., conducting both collaborative and independent research over four semesters. She completed her senior honors thesis in Fall 2021, developing a metacognitive model for ultra-processed food addiction. Chloe's research interests include understanding the interactions between ultra-processed food consumption and problematic eating behaviors, as well as the biological processes driving ultra-processed food addiction. She is also interested in behavioral and technology-based interventions for treating problematic eating. Chloe plans to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology after gaining valuable clinical and research experience at the WELL Center.

Asher graduated with honors from Rutgers University New Brunswick with a B.S. in Public Health and a minor in Psychology. As an undergraduate student, she worked as a research assistant for the ABUSA and REHAB labs at the Rutgers Addiction-Health Behavior Center where she assisted various studies that broadly spanned anxiety and substance use disorders. She also interned at the Children’s Specialized Hospital where she completed her senior project which evaluated the effectiveness of a novel, multidisciplinary program for diabetes control in pediatric patients. Asher also dedicated a majority of her undergraduate years to the Rutgers Undergraduate Research Journal (RURJ) for which she served as the Program Director, and published the cutting edge research conducted at the university to strengthen the undergraduate research community. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, and she is determined to do work that helps others achieve their best physical and mental health outcomes through the integration of public health principles and psychological research.

Gianna LaMena joined the WELL Center as a research coordinator for Adrienne Juarascio, PhD after graduating from Lehigh University in May 2024 with a B.A. in psychology. In her time at Lehigh, she took an interest in adolescent and emerging adult mental health. During her senior year, she coordinated recruitment for a study on adolescent friendship quality and coded data on social media in the context of adolescent peer relations. Her senior honors thesis investigated the reasons why parents avoid discussing consent with their emerging adult children, as well as how these reasons relate to parent-child relationship quality, endorsement of traditional gender norms, and intentions to communicate about consent. She hopes to pursue a master’s degree and become a therapist specializing in adolescent eating disorder recovery.

Caroline Miller is a research coordinator for Dr. Adrienne Juarascio. She graduated from the University of Chicago in 2022, majoring in neuroscience and psychology. Her undergraduate research focused on developmental mechanisms of octopus arm regeneration, before shifting her focus to clinical research. After graduation, she completed a postbaccalaureate fellowship at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) focusing on mood disorders in children and adolescents. Her research at the NIMH focused on the neural correlates of reward processing and the relationship between trait impulsivity and task-based measures of inhibitory control. Caroline is interested in researching brain-based mechanisms of disordered eating and co-occurring behaviors, including substance use and self-injury. She hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

Alexandra Mouangue is a research coordinator for Stephanie Manasse, PhD., working primarily on Project ONWARD and co-facilitating therapeutic groups for Project WATCH. She graduated from Wellesley College in 2024 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Economics. During her undergraduate studies, Alexandra explored topics at the intersect of cultural and clinical psychology. Her honors thesis investigated the impact of limited resource predictability on impulsive decision-making (greater temporal discounting) for individuals from low social class backgrounds. Alexandra aims to further explore the implications of sociocultural variables on intervention development and treatment access for marginalized populations. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with a focus on anxiety disorders, researching the efficacies of integrative treatments that incorporate mindfulness-based modalities for conditions like OCD and PTSD.

Jannah graduated summa cum laude from Oregon State University in June 2023 with an honors B.S. in Psychology and a minor in writing. She is a research coordinator in the Manasse lab, where she coordinates Project Mind Your Heart and directs the Teen Citizen Scientists Youth Advisory Board. In the future, Jannah hopes to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology, where she wants to focus her research on suicide, non-suicidal self-injury, and eating disorders, particularly among marginalized populations.

Isabella Pruscino is a research coordinator for Stephanie Mannasse, PhD, working primarily on ProjectWATCH. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Wesleyan University in 2024 with a B.A. in Psychology and Government. Isabella has worked in a variety of research labs at Wesleyan, covering topics ranging from sleep and psychosocial adjustment in emerging adults, healthcare access for immigrant communities across Connecticut, and eating disorders. She was awarded the Holzberg fellowship for her commitment to research at Wesleyan and her determination to pursue graduate studies in psychology. Outside of lab work, Isabella has worked with children with autism and ADHD in schools and at the Child Mind Institute. After her time at the WELL Center, Isabella aims to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical child psychology.

Rachel Shannon joined the WELL Center as a research coordinator for Evan Forman, PhD, after graduating from Lipscomb University with a B.A. in psychology in 2024. As an undergraduate, Rachel worked with Dr. Casey McGregor at the University of Rhode Island on her research examining the mental health effects of intensive mothering in mothers and their children. She also conducted independent research through her honors thesis examining the relationship between social physique anxiety and foods with moral connotations (e.g., chocolate) in women with body image dissatisfaction. She worked in a clinical setting with adolescents at a health and wellness camp, focusing on sustainable weight loss through fitness, nutrition, and self-esteem intervention. In the future, Rachel plans to pursue doctoral-level study to become a research-oriented clinician and scientist.

Rachel Sinex is a research coordinator for Dr. Stephanie Manasse, PhD, working primarily on Project STAR. She received BAs in Psychology and Peace and Conflict studies with high honors from Swarthmore College in 2022. During her time at Swarthmore, Rachel worked as a research assistant for the Swarthmore O.C.D., anxiety, and related disorders (SOAR) lab. Rachel is currently a master’s student in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Her research and clinical interests focus on the ways that counseling interventions can improve individual and community health and well-being. Specifically, she is interested in the treatment of eating disorders, O.C.D., and anxiety disorders in adolescents and adults.

Hannah Silverstein is a research coordinator in Dr. Meghan Butryn's lab. She joined the WELL Center in 2024 following her graduation from Washington University in St. Louis with a B.A. in Psychology. During her undergrad, Hannah worked in the Clinical Geropsychology Lab, conducting independent projects related to patient-physician communication in palliative care appointments, and exploring the landscape of palliative care in Senegal while studying abroad in the country. She also interned at Weill Cornell through their Translational Research Institute on Pain in Later Life and helped with projects looking to treat pain related to dialysis. In her senior year, she completed an honors thesis investigating the influence of gender bias in treating and judging fatigue. She is interested in health psychology, with a focus on researching psychosocial interventions to improve the care of those with serious illnesses. Following her time at the WELL center, Hannah intends to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology with a health focus.

Anna Upman is a research coordinator for Meghan Butryn, Ph.D. She graduated in May 2024 from Loyola University New Orleans magna cum laude with a B.S. in Neuroscience, concentrating in psychology and minoring in public health. As an undergraduate, she worked with Kate Yurgil, Ph.D., in an EEG lab focused on cognitive neuroscience. Additionally, she worked as a behavioral therapist at a school for children with autism. Anna's research interests lie in lifestyle medicine and chronic illnesses, particularly in relation to nutrition. In the future, Anna hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Neuroscience.