Fall 2022 Lab Party at Sarah's!
Research Staff
Rachelle Swan, Ph.D.
Senior Project Manager
Rachelle received her doctorate in Human Development from her native county at the University of California, Irvine, where she studied father involvement and its impact on the child, marriage, and school community. She left academia to pursue a career in evaluation research but has recently returned to manage the iCAN Lab for Dr. Karalunas.
Rachelle's email: rachelle@purdue.edu
McKenzie Figuracion, B.S.
Graduate Student
McKenzie graduated from Portland State University with a B.S. in Psychology. They are currently pursuing their Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology under the mentorship of Dr. Sarah Karalunas at Purdue University. McKenzie's research interests include how EEG biomarkers can be used to understand heterogeneity within ADHD and how these may be used to enhance access to clinical diagnosis.
McKenzie's email: mfigurac@purdue.edu
Zachary Yaple, Ph.D.
Research Associate
Born in the United States and raised in the United Kingdom, Zachary has an open mind towards worldwide travel. Zachary received a Research Masters in Behavioral Cognitive Science in the Netherlands and a PhD in Psychology from the Russian Federation as well as working as a Research Associate at the National University of Singapore and York University at Toronto, Canada. Zachary has accumulated a lot of experience in the field of cognitive neuroscience and has acquired knowledge of signal processing of EEG data. Zachary's main goals are to apply his advanced EEG skills to understand executive processes in the fields of developmental neuroscience and systems neuroscience.
Zachary's email: zyaple@purdue.edu
McKenzie graduated from Portland State University with a B.S. in Psychology. They are currently pursuing their Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology under the mentorship of Dr. Sarah Karalunas at Purdue University. McKenzie's research interests include how EEG biomarkers can be used to understand heterogeneity within ADHD and how these may be used to enhance access to clinical diagnosis.
Sarah Karalunas, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology
Licensed Psychologist (Oregon, #2414)
Sarah was born and raised in upstate NY. She completed her B.A. in Neuroscience at Hamilton College and received her Ph.D. in Child Clinical Psychology from Pennsylvania State University with a Specialization in Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. She is passionate about ensuring that all children and families have access to high-quality, evidence-based mental health care that addresses their unique needs and hopes her research can contribute to that goal.
Sarah's email: skaralunas@purdue.edu
Sarah Pieper, B.S.
Graduate Student
Sarah graduated from Smith College with a B.A. in Psychology and spent several years working in pediatric neuroimaging labs at the New York State Psychiatric Institute/Columbia University Irving Medical Center before joining the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program at Purdue under Dr. Sarah Karalunas. Her research interests include the neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying ADHD and how that knowledge can be leveraged to further parse the heterogeneity present within the disorder.
Sarah's email: pieper4@purdue.edu
Madelyn Heise, B.S.
Graduate Student
Madelyn graduated from the University of Missouri with a B.A. in Psychology and Political Science. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology under the mentorship of Dr. Sarah Karalunas. Madelyn is interested in the underlying neurophysiology associated with cognitive impairments and emotion dysregulation in children with ADHD.
Madelyn's email: trost1@purdue.edu
Gideon Miller, B.S.
Research Technician
Gideon graduated from Brigham Young University (BYU) with a B.S. in Biostatistics in 2022 and is currently pursuing a joint master's degree in Statistics and Computer Science at Purdue. He enjoys applying statistical methodology to diverse fields and joined the iCAN Lab for a chance to help with research that can improve people's lives.
Gideon's email: mill3167@purdue.edu
Sydney Aller, B.S.
Research Technician
Sydney graduated from Saint Louis University with a B.S. in Neuroscience. She is working as a research technician in the iCAN Lab before applying to graduate school for Clinical Child Psychology. Sydney's research interests include academic outcome research with ADHD diagnoses as well as the development of accessible classroom and home interventions to best support students and their families.
Sydney's email: saller@purdue.edu
Josh Becerra, B.S.
Research Technician
Josh graduated from Oregon State University with a B.S. in Psychology, minoring in Sociology. His studies focused on Criminology and Drug Use & Abuse. Josh has experience working with children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder as a licensed Applied Behavior Analyst, and he is currently building his resume for graduate school with his clinical interviewing experience from the iCAN Lab. Josh is still deciding between careers—will he pursue an M.S. in Counseling or Forensic Psychology?!
Josh's email: jibecerr@purdue.edu
Student Research Assistants
Roni Heyman
Roni is a senior studying Brain and Behavioral Science. After her undergraduate degree, she aspires to become a clinical psychologist and research brain-behavior relationships.
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Chandni "Maggie" Garg
Maggie is a senior majoring in Genetics with a minor in Biotechnology at Purdue University. At the iCAN Lab, she works on data analysis and modeling along with our Research Technician, Jason. Her passion for research combined with a zeal to apply theory to solve real-world problems makes her super excited to work hands-on in the biotechnology industry post-graduation.
Jack Naumovich
Jack is a senior at Purdue University studying Health Science Pre-professional with a pre-medicine concentration. He is very excited to join the lab and gain experience working with children in preparation for a career in pediatrics.
Javier Camarillo
Javier Camarillo is a Senior at Purdue University studying Psychology along with a minor in Human Development and Family Studies. He is excited to work in the iCAN lab to gain experience and pursue his ambition of becoming a clinical psychologist focused on children and adolescents.
Katelyn Macknyk
Katelyn is a senior at Purdue University studying Biochemistry and Brain & Behavioral Science. In addition to the iCAN lab, she works in a genetics research lab focused on the H2A.Z histone modification pathway in Arabidopsis plants, working to understand the CHD5 tumor suppression pathway in humans.
Madalyn Owen
Madalyn is a junior at Purdue University studying Brain and Behavioral Sciences. She joined the iCAN lab to gain experience with researching, as she hopes to pursue a career as a clinical psychologist.
Mia Griffin
Mia is a senior double majoring in Psychology and Sociology. She's looking forward to learning more about psychological research as that is what she plans to do for the future.
Olivia Hay
Olivia is a senior at Purdue University studying Brain and Behavioral Sciences. She joined the iCan lab to gain research experience in preparation for a doctoral degree in clinical psychology.
Raiyana Alam
Raiyana is a sophomore at Purdue University pursuing a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering with a minor in Psychology and a focus in pre-medicine. Her ultimate goal is to work in the field of pediatric medicine, so she joined the iCAN lab to gain more experience working with children .
Sarah Ramsey
Sarah is currently pursuing her B.S in Psychology and Human Development Family Sciences. After graduation she plans on attending graduate school for clinical psychology so she may reach her goal of becoming a clinical psychologist for teens and young adults. She chose the iCAN lab for the chance to work in a more interpersonal clinical setting to become more prepared for her future career.
William Heagerty
Will is a fun person that is getting his B.S. in Brain and Behavioral Sciences. He loves making the best of any situation and getting to know who he’s around. In the future Will plans on teaching abroad and eventually get his Ph.D. in clinical psychology.
Izabella Santos
Izabella is a sophomore pursuing a B.S. in Psychological Sciences and Human Development Family Studies. She eventually plans on attending graduate school for clinical psychology and working as a Child Therapist. She saw the iCAN Lab as an opportunity to enhance her skills working in a clinical and child-based environment and is excited to gain more experience within her future career field.
Lillian Millspaugh
Lillian is a junior in Psychological Sciences, with minors in Human Development and Philosophy. Lilly hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Neuropsychology and eventually treat children with anxiety-related disorders.
Trina Tagamolila
Trina is a sophomore studying Brain and Behavioral Sciences with a focus on pre-med and a minor in Statistics. Her goal is to gain experience in research working with children and eventually pursue a career in child psychiatry.
Benjamin Blachly
Ben is a junior majoring in Psychology and minoring in Statistics. He is excited to join the iCAN Lab to explore a different side of clinical psychology, since his other work mostly involves adults with mood disorders and anxiety. He hopes to get a PhD in clinical psychology and work as a practitioner or researcher.
Abigail Fouts
Abigail is in her first year at Purdue and is currently working toward her B.S. in Brain and Behavioral Sciences with a minor in Biological Sciences when she's not busy singing with the Purduettes, playing guitar, or dancing. She has grown up with (and is still growing up with) ADHD and intends to use her experience and education to perform research focusing on ADHD in her future and in the present in the iCAN lab!
Kennedi Cole
Kennedi is pursuing a B.S. in psychological sciences. Post-graduation, Kennedi plans on attending graduate school with a focus on clinical psychology with a goal to become a child psychologist to raise awareness to psychological disorders in children and child advocacy.
Grace Gilbert
Grace is currently a freshman at Purdue studying Brain and Behavioral Sciences and she has plans to earn a Bachelor's degree in Neuroscience. She joined the iCAN lab because she has an interest in researching better ways to diagnose ADHD and provide resources and treatments to the individuals that won't change core aspects of their personality. ADHD is very personal to her as three of her four siblings have been diagnosed with ADHD.