Peter McCauley joined the HDFS department in the Fall of 2022 and is working with Dr. Ryan Watson. Before coming to UConn, he attended the University of Kentucky, earning a B.A. in Psychology with minors in Spanish and Linguistics and graduated Summa Cum Laude. While at the University of Kentucky, he was a research assistant in Dr. Christia Brown’s Social Inequality in Development Lab. Under the direction of Dr. Brown, Peter worked on research examining how children develop and perceive stereotypes and how various forms of school-based discrimination affect historically marginalized youth. He also volunteered as an ESL tutor for first-generation immigrant elementary school students in local public schools.

During his final year at the University of Kentucky, Peter conducted his honors thesis examining why and when adolescents perpetrate gender-based harassment, and the contextual factors, such as sexual prejudice and gender typicality, that influence the frequency of this harassment within schools. This line of work motivated Peter to join the SHINE (Sexuality, Health, and INtersectional Experiences) lab to study queer identity development and experiences with bias-based harassment. While at UConn, Peter hopes to research how bias-based harassment, and the emotional distress as a result of experiencing this type of harassment within schools, influences queer youth’s well-being and identity development. Additionally, he hopes to use this work to leverage intervention methods that reduce the amount of harassment youth face, with the long term goal of creating healthy learning environments for all.

Peter is excited to be continuing his academic journey at UConn in a department that is highly involved with applied research surrounded by supportive faculty and colleagues. He looks forward to expanding his knowledge and working in the SHINE lab throughout his years at UConn. When not working, Peter loves to explore new vegan recipes, play his violin, and has recently tried his hand at baking (currently unsuccessfully) with his partner, Carson.

Madison Mas is a first year Ph.D. student working with Dr. Beth Russell. Originally from New Mexico, Madison moved to Tucson, Arizona to begin her undergraduate career. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Arizona with a B.S. in Family Studies and Human Development and a B.A. in Psychology. While studying at the University of Arizona, she conducted research under the direction of Dr. Rebecca Gomez in the Tigger Child Cognition Lab studying how children acquire language and the role of sleep in language acquisition. Madison also volunteered in community outreach programs through the university’s Women in Medicine and Science club where she spent afternoons teaching science experiments to elementary school kids. Madison was also very involved with the local Active Minds chapter and gave talks about mindfulness and mental health resources for peers.

In her final year at the University of Arizona, Madison completed her honors thesis exploring the mental health challenges faced by queer individuals and, more specifically, stressors unique to bisexual women that contribute to increased mental health challenges. This area of research led her to the UConn HDFS program where she hopes to continue researching mental health in the queer community. In this new research, however, the emphasis will be on resilience, promoting emotional well-being, and employing strengths-based approaches to research.

When she’s not in school, Madison spends her time pursuing creative outlets and taking care of her two vision impaired cats (Zuko and Azula). She is a very passionate photographer and has shown her work in New York. She has spent the majority of her life dancing and would love to find new places and people to dance with.

Fanwen Zhang is a first-year Ph.D. student who joined HDFS in 2022 to work with Dr. Sara Harkness, with broad interests in culture, parenting, and social-emotional development. Specifically, she is interested in how culture influences parents’ beliefs and practices in social-emotional development, especially in Asian culture. In addition, Fanwen is interested in the current development and evaluation of social and emotional learning programs in cross-cultural settings.

Fanwen earned her B.S. in Psychology and Rehabilitation and Human Services (RHS) from Penn State University in 2020. In 2021, she received her M.Ed. degree in Prevention Science and Practice from Harvard Graduate School of Education. After graduation, she worked as a research assistant at Parent-Child Dynamics Lab at Penn State, where she helped conduct a research project, Parent Regulation, Engagement, Stress, and Health (PRESH). She conducted study sessions with families and was trained in Mindware data collection, hair/saliva cortisol collection, and the Trier Social Stress Test. Also, she collaborated with colleagues to analyze how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted parental stress, which can, in turn, affect children’s internalizing and externalizing behaviors. In addition to working at Penn State, Fanwen also worked on developing literacy-related curriculum materials for elementary-aged students and teachers at READS Lab at Harvard. Although Fanwen has been involved in research across multiple disciplines, an enduring theme is her interest in parenting and cross-cultural research. She hopes to start her research, expand her knowledge, and strengthen her research skills in her future years at UConn.

In her free time, Fanwen enjoys DIY, cooking, and exploring nature. Her current projects include a 1000-piece puzzle, bead bracelets, and a LEGO castle. She is a cat lover and loves cuddling with her cats, Grigio and Nera.

Read all about the Family Sciences Undergraduate Council (FSUC) here!

Sabrina Uva earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Development and Family Sciences from UConn in 2022 with a double minor in Psychology and Gerontology. She graduated Summa Cum Laude and was a member of various honors societies including Phi Beta Kapa, Psi Chi, and Alpha Lambda Delta. In addition, she served as the President of the Student Government Association at the UConn Stamford Campus. She was awarded the Cohen Scholarship for enhancing community due to her leadership accomplishments. Specifically, she worked in a coalition of legislators to pass a bill on menstrual equity and led an initiative that provided free menstrual products to the campus community. Sabrina is passionate about creating inclusive communities and plans to continue her efforts through policy and research in the Human Development and Family Sciences doctoral program.

Sabrina started her graduate studies working on anti-racism research with her advisor, Dr. Annamaria Csizmadia. Broadly, Sabrina focuses her research on understanding the implications of racial bias for college students’ mental health outcomes. She is pursuing this research interest by conducting a study to examine if protest and activism combined with pandemic-related stressors might affect college students’ psychological and academic adjustment. She is also interested in understanding social media’s role when engaging in these activities. She has submitted her work to present to professional organizations including the Society for Research in Child Development and the Society of Research on Adolescence.

In addition to her research, Sabrina is interested in utilizing emerging technologies for the social good. She currently serves as the Lead of Writing for the NASA Big Idea Challenge finalist team. In her work with the team, she applies human development frameworks to understand how to use advanced technology to foster therapeutic advancements and inclusive communities. In addition, she worked in an entrepreneurial business leadership academy to create an impact project, focused on utilizing technology to facilitate projects and creative ideas among students, especially students with neurodivergent backgrounds. Sabrina is excited to bring her interdisciplinary background in innovation, policy, and research to the HDFS graduate program.

Doctoral student Kaleigh Ligus posted a blog in AcademyHealth addressing research on the current state of rural hospitals and resolutions to reinvigorate the health of Americans. Read her blog here. 

Alex Del Farno is a first-year Ph.D. student who joined the HDFS department in 2022 to work with Dr. Lisa Eaton. He earned his B.A. in Psychology from the University of Rhode Island in 2020. Alex’s research interests focus broadly on the well-being of sexual and gender minorities (SGM), primarily involving individuals with transgender experience. Specifically, Alex is interested in how SGM embrace sexuality in the form of sex positivity, sexual safety, and health, and the role these factors play in their identity. Alex intends to collaborate on projects in the SHINE lab under Dr. Ryan Watson.

Alex has been doing research with SGM populations since his undergraduate years. For most of his time at URI, he studied attitudes and behaviors regarding transgender-identifying individuals, as well as campus climate for the identifying students. At URI Alex’s research was paused during the COVID-19 pandemic, and he graduated soon after. After graduation, he worked as a community behavioral health specialist for adults with severe mental illness and addiction. Subsequently, Alex served as a lead research assistant at Brown University working with trans-women at risk of HIV to foster support, sexual health, and PrEP education. Alex also volunteered with SHIP (Sexual Health Includes Pleasure) to encourage inclusive, medically accurate, and safe sex education for adults. He also became a certified HIV test counselor. Eager to continue his research and expand his knowledge in the field, Alex intends to make the most of his first and future years at UConn.

In his free time, Alex loves creative writing, cooking, and making art. He credits his family for his passion for helping, as both his mother and older sister are healthcare professionals. Alex spent two years learning and speaking Japanese, and his dream is to one day visit Japan.