UGSP Board 2024-2025

EXECUTIVE BOARD

Riley Marshall
UGSP Co-President

Riley (they/them) is a 5th year doctoral student in the Social area. Their work focuses on increasing solidarity from dominant group members through intersectional frameworks. They care deeply about the role of community support and mentorship in academia, and are excited to help UGSP continue to provide space for resources and shared experiences among URM graduate students as Co-President.

Xochitl Arlene Smola
UGSP Co-President

Arlene (she/her) is a first-generation 5th year Latina doctoral student in developmental psychology. Her research focuses on the developmental importance of youth voice and contributions, with a focus on cultural values and disparities. Following her time as the Secretary and High School Outreach Committee Co-Chair, she is excited to serve underrepresented students through the broader UGSP initiatives as Co-President.

Siôbhan Glynn
UGSP Vice President

Siôbhan (she/her) is a 5th year doctoral student in the Developmental area. She studies how children and adolescents identify complex emotions and the scaffolding that supports emotion processing. Siôbhan has passionately supported the academic and career development of high school and undergraduate students with diverse backgrounds through volunteering in UGSP initiatives, holding her own small workshops, and providing mentorship. She is also dedicated to extending support to her fellow underrepresented graduate students by establishing community and connection in the department as she has done with the Social Committee in previous years. Siôbhan is excited to support UGSP through its broader initiatives as Vice President.

Fran Querdasi
UGSP Treasurer

Fran (she/her) is a 5th year doctoral student in the Developmental area. Her research is centered on understanding how exposure to early life and intergenerational adversity are related to depression, anxiety, and chronic pain, focusing on biological (e.g., gut microbiome, immune system) and psychological (e.g., understanding of emotions) mechanisms. She is passionate about supporting underrepresented students in psychology, science, and academia more generally.

 

Sukriti Gupta
UGSP Secretary

Sukriti (she/her) is a fourth-year PhD candidate in the Behavioral Neuroscience area. Her research is focused on understanding the neural underpinnings of value-based decision making. Following her role as the co-Chair of the High School Outreach Committee, she hopes to continue supporting underrepresented students in psychology through broader UGSP-wide initiatives.

 

Committee Chairs

Christina Huber
UGSP Brown Bag Committee Co-Chair

Christina is a fourth-year graduate student in the Social Cognitive Neuroscience Lab. Leveraging social neuroscience tools like fMRI and fNIRS, Christina’s work explores the brain bases of perspective change, with the ultimate goal of advancing societal equity. As co-chair of the Brown Bag Committee, Christina is eager to support graduate students’ professional advancement and feelings of belonging at UCLA.

Gil Moreu
UGSP Brown Bag Committee Co-Chair

Gil is a 4th year Ph.D. student in the Social Psychology area. He does research on the social impact of non-prototypicality and its downstream consequences for how people think about their identity and how willing they are to engage in group-serving behavior. As co-chair of the Brown Bag Committee, he looks forward to working to demystify the “hidden curriculum”  and facilitating graduate students’ professional success. 

Megha Nagaswami
UGSP High School Outreach Committee Co-Chair

Megha is a 3rd year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology area. Her research focus is on experiences of trauma among underrepresented populations, especially as related to intimate partner abuse or domestic violence. Megha is excited to work with the High School Outreach committee to expand access to, awareness, and excitement about psychological research.

Ava Trimble
UGSP High School Outreach Committee Co-Chair

Ava (she/her) is a 3rd-year PhD student in Developmental Psychology at UCLA. Her research investigates the contributions of adolescent interpersonal relationships to long-term social development and psychological well-being. As Co-Chair of the High School Outreach Committee, she aims to support and provide resources to underrepresented students as they transition to higher education institutions and explore careers in psychology.

Sydney Tran
UGSP Social Committee Co-Chair

Sydney is a 2nd year graduate student in the Social Psychology area. Her research focuses on examining the ways identities shape and are shaped by the contextual environment and the subsequent effect on personal and intergroup relations. As Social chair, her goal is to facilitate a friendly and welcoming environment for graduate students to build connections and friendships.

Remus Mitchell
UGSP Transfer Outreach Committee Co-Chair

Remus (they/them) is a second-year doctoral student in quantitative psychology. Their research focuses on methodological issues pertaining to multilevel modeling, structural equation modeling, as well as longitudinal designs. They are committed to providing support to underrepresented students and cultivating an inclusive community within the psychology department. As the transfer committee chair, Remus aims to develop initiatives to connect transfer students with resources and research opportunities throughout the department. 

Alice Xu
UGSP Undergraduate Outreach Committee Co-Chair

Alice is a 3rd year graduate student in the Developmental area. Her research interests include individual differences during learning and cognitive development. She transferred from a community college to UCLA during her undergraduate. As the Co-Chair of the Undergraduate Outreach Committee, she hopes to provide more resources to undergraduate students, especially those who are underrepresented.

Jasmine Hernández
UGSP Undergraduate Outreach Committee Co-Chair

Jasmine (she/her/ella) is a 3rd year PhD student in Developmental Psychology at UCLA. Her research focuses on how positive human behaviors, such as prosociality, develop during the period of adolescence and how the adolescent brain and environment (e.g., family, culture) support these positive behaviors and well-being. As Co-Chair of the Undergraduate Outreach Committee, she is dedicated to empowering underrepresented students with invaluable resources and guidance on applying to graduate school.

 

Founders

Courtney Heldreth

Courtney Heldreth
UGSP Founder

“UGSP is important to me because it makes me feel supported by others like me who might have unique experiences in graduate school. UGSP is an important community that encourages the potential and promise of those from underrepresented groups by giving back to others in a meaningful way.”

 

Jenessa Shapiro

Jenessa Shapiro
Founding UGSP Faculty Sponsor – In Memoriam

“UGSP is important to me because it provides a supportive, welcoming community for students from underrepresented groups. What is impressive about UGSP is that it is student-initiated and student-run. As a result, UGSP genuinely understands, and can address, what is needed and wanted by underrepresented students in psychology. UGSP is clearly committed to making a difference in the pipeline– committing time, energy and resources to the graduate students in psychology, to the undergraduate community, and to the community at large. I hope to see you at the next UGSP event!”