Welling Lab Alumni
Graduate Students/Postdoctoral Researchers
Sarah Donaldson
Sarah Donaldson graduated with her M.S. in Psychology in 2016. She previously received a B.A. from Occidental College and was a research assistant at UCLA's Department of Anthropology and at UC Davis' National Primate Research Center. Her thesis investigated preferences for cues to kinship and mate retention behaviors across the menstrual cycle in women and their male partners. She was accepted into the Ph.D. program at University of Oregon.
Mercedes (Sadie) Hughes
Sadie Hughes completed her B.Sc. at the University of Michigan before earning her license as a behavioral therapist, working with children with autism for two years. She joined the lab in 2019 and completed her M.S. degree in 2021. Her thesis investigated the influence of hormonal contraceptives on the stress response system using the Trier Social Stress Test. After graduation, Sadie went on to pursue a career as an Applied Behavioral Analysis Technician.
Mark G. McCoy
Mark McCoy, who also worked with Dr. Todd Shackelford, graduated with a M.S. in Psychology from Oakland University in 2014. He is interested in Evolutionary Psychology and, more broadly, in human sexuality, morality, and behavioral endocrinology. Mark's thesis investigated women's cognitive reasoning behind feigning orgasm. He was accepted into the Ph.D. program at Bowling Green State University to work with Dr. Anne Gordon.
Justin Mogilski
Justin Mogilski completed his Ph.D. in the lab and graduated in 2017. He then worked for an additional year as our Postdoctoral Lab Manager before joining the faculty at the University of South Carolina, Salkehatchie. His dissertation investigated variation in human mate choice using conjoint analysis. Previously, he completed a B.S. with Dr. Susan Hughes (Albright College) and a M.S. with Dr. Joel Wade (Bucknell University). He is interested in mate choice, mate preferences, and sexuality.
Sylis C.A. Nicolas
Sylis Nicolas graduated with her M.S. in Psychology in 2016. She previously received a Master's degree in Liberal Arts at Hollins University studying under psychologist Dr. Richard Michalski. Her thesis examined the use of risky sexual behaviors across the menstrual cycle. She is particularly interested in human sexuality, behavioral shifts across the menstrual cycle, personality, and religion.
Alex Orille
Alex Orille was an undergraduate student at Oakland University who joined that lab as a M.S, student in the Fall of 2019 and graduated in 2021. Alex completed a thesis on men's ability to detect cues to female fertility status before accepting a Ph.D. position in Dr. Rebecca Stumpf's lab in the Anthropology Department at the University of Illinois.
Simon Reeve
Simon Reeve was a Ph.D. student who joined the lab in September, 2014. He previously received a B.Sc. (University of Portsmouth, UK) and M.S. degree (Western Illinois University) in psychology. His M.S. thesis investigated the influence of romantic rejection/acceptance cues on mate preferences and sociosexual orientation. His research interests focused on the influence of social and environmental cues on mate preferences. Simon left the lab in 2018 to pursue other interests.
Kayla Shephard
Kayla Shephard graduated with her Masters in Psychology in April, 2019. She previously earned a Bachelor's in Psychology from Saginaw Valley State University. Her thesis investigated relationship initiation and dissolution behaviors associated with the fear of being single. She previously worked in applied clinical psychology as a Case Manager and Psychiatric Technician, and her plan was to become an Applied Behavioral Analysis Technician.
Anna Wysocki
Anna Wysocki joined the lab in 2015 and graduated with her M.S. in 2017. Previously, she got her B.S. in Psychology from Nova Southeastern University, where she worked with Dr. Valerie Starratt. Her M.S. thesis investigated partner exploitation tactics within romantic couples. She is interested in mating preferences and mating strategies, specifically sexual or financial exploitation. After graduation, she moved to UC Davis to pursue a PhD in statistics with Dr. Mijke Rhemtulla.
Honors Students
Maribel Blas-Rangel
Maribel Blas-Rangel is a senior majoring in French and Psychology at Kalamazoo College who completed a joint summer honors project in Dr. Welling's lab during the summer of 2016. Her thesis looked at diurnal variation in face preferences. She will graduate in 2017 and hopes to attend graduate school in the future to further her studies in psychology.
Sabrina Gretkierewicz
Sabrina Gretkierewicz graduated from Oakland University in December, 2013 with a Bachelor’s degree with honors in Psychology. Her honor's thesis examined the effects of testosterone in sensation-seeking behaviors in men and women. Sabrina's intentions were to attend graduate school and work towards a career as a Clinical Psychologist.
Ashley Harris
Ashley Harris graduated with an Honors in Psychology and minor in Biology in 2019 after working in the lab for two years. Her thesis investigated hormone dose in contraceptives and reported depression. After graduating, Ashley began a lab manager position at Wayne State University. She is interested in behavioral neuroscience and planned to pursue graduate school within that area.
Samantha Nagy
Samantha Nagy graduated with an Honors in Psychology in May, 2016. Her thesis investigated the relationship between emotion perception and attitudes toward domestic violence. After graduation, she joined Dr. Scott Pickett's lab to complete an M.S. in Behavioral Health and eventually she hopes to become an adolescent clinical psychologist.
Giovanni Randazzo
Giovanni Randazzo graduated with an Honors in Psychology and a Major in Philosophy in May, 2016. Gio's thesis investigated the relationship between sex drive and mate preferences among homosexual participants. After graduation, he joined Dr. Todd Shackelford's lab to complete his Master’s Degree here at Oakland University.
Jonathan Saulter
Jonathan Saulter graduated with an Honors in Psychology in December, 2014, but continued as an RA until June, 2015. His thesis examined how competition-induced changes in testosterone impacts mate choice. Previously, he was a RA for Dr. Jennifer Vonk and an active member of Psi Chi Honors Society. Jonathan accepted a position as a M.A. student in Wayne State's Philosophy program.
Andrea Smith
Andrea Smith completed an honors thesis in Dr. Welling's lab that examined the relationship between testosterone level and face preferences. She graduated in May, 2013. Andrea was accepted into the Cognitive Neuroscience Ph.D. program at St. Andrews University in Scotland.
Research Assistants
Matthew Bahoura
Matthew joined the lab in Fall, 2015 and volunteered for 2 years. His primary interests are in the field neuroscience. After completing his bachelor’s degree, his plan was to further his studies in graduate school.
Jason Barrett
Jason graduated from Oakland University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a minor in Sociology in 2015 after working in the lab for one year. His plan was to attend graduate school to pursue a career as a clinical psychologist.
Kayla Baszczuk
Kayla graduated from Oakland University in 2016 after working in the lab for 2 years. After graduation, she left Michigan to pursue a 6-month internship at Disney World. Her long-term plan was to eventually work with children who have disabilities.
Bradley Beckett
Brad worked in the lab in the Winter 2015 semester. Brad is interested in industrial-organizational psychology and business. Brad is also interested in mood disorders, suicide prevention, and the advancement of treatments for mental illnesses. He plans to attend graduate school.
Bethany Bengry
Bethany graduated from Oakland University with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a minor in Sociology in Spring, 2015. She worked in the lab during her senior year. She was accepted into the School Psychology Ph.D. program at Central Michigan University.
Graham Berry
Graham graduated from Oakland University with degrees in Psychology and General Management and a minor in Entrepreneurship in December, 2019. He worked in the lab during the last year of his undergraduate degree.
Zahir Billy
Zahir worked in the Welling Research lab during the 2017-2018 academic year to gain experience in research and to observe the scientific method in action. He is a foreign-trained dentist who started working toward his U.S. dental license in September, 2018.
Leah Bowles
Leah volunteered in the lab from the Fall 2015 semester until the Winter 2018 semester. She received a degree in Psychology along the way. She joined the lab to gain research experience to better prepare for graduate school.
Justin Bruyneel
Justin graduated from Oakland University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a minor in Biology in 2016 after volunteering in the lab for 2 years. Justin planned to attend graduate school and pursue a career in psychology.
Jesse Chen
Jesse was a post-bachelors student who joined the lab in the Winter of 2020 and volunteered for one year. He earned his degree in philosophy from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. His plan was to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology. He was mainly interested in individual differences within interpersonal relationships and how specific personality traits influence them.
Kyla Cleere
Kyla volunteers in the lab during the Fall 2018 semester. Kyla's plan was to attend graduate school, and she was interested in school and career counseling.
Jenna DeRieu
Jenna graduated with a degree in Psychology and a Biology minor in 2017, but volunteered in the lab for an additional year. She joined the lab to gain research experience to better prepare for graduate school.
Lazo Dordeski
Lazo was a Psychology Major at Oakland University who volunteered during the Fall 2019 semester. He planned to pursue law after graduating from OU.
Paige Elshoff
Paige was a Psychology and Political Science major at Oakland University who worked in the lab in during the 2019-2020 year. She is interested in a future in the psychology field and planned to attend graduate school after graduation.
Quinn Foussianes
Quinn was a post-baccalaureate student who graduated with her B.A. in Psychology from Oakland University in December 2019 and volunteered in the lab until 2021. She was planning on attending graduate school for either cognitive psychology or neuroscience.
Chelsea Fulks
Chelsea volunteered in the lab from January-December, 2014. Her work with the Crisis Line at Common Ground and working with an attorney got her interested in environment x behavior interactions. Next, she moved to England to pursue a Master's at Birkbeck, University of London.
Samantha Halime
Samantha graduated from Oakland University with her bachelor’s degree in Linguistics with a minor in Psychology in 2017 after volunteering in the lab for 2 years.Her plan was to pursue a graduate degree in Linguistics with a focus on language acquisition and syntactic development in the brain.
Keaton Hallman
Keaton volunteered in the lab as a Research Assistant from Winter 2015 until Fall 2018. He joined the lab in order to gain research experience. His plan was to go to graduate school for a Master’s degree in psychology and become a counselor.
Sierra Harris
Sierra joined Dr. Welling's lab as a Research Assistant in the Winter 2016 semester and volunteered for two and a half years. She has always been interested in psychology and in conducting experiments. Her long-term goal was to become a psychotherapist.
Yomna Hassaballa
Yomna was Psychology and Criminal Justice MAjor with a Minor in Sociology who volunteered in the lab from September 2015 until December 2016. After graduation, her plan was to obtain a degree in Clinical Psychology with the intention of working with disabled children.
Sarah Henry
Sarah volunteered in the lab during the 2018-2019 academic year while working towards a bachelors degree in Psychology. She plans to go onto graduate school for clinical psychology. In her free time, Sarah likes to crochet, go to concerts, and watch horror films.
Melissa Hitch
Melissa volunteered in the lab from 2016-2019 while pursuing a degree in Biomedical Science with a pre-med concentration. Since she also enjoys Biology and investigating how the body and mind work together, she hopes to one day combine her passions and work in the field of neurology, preferably in pediatrics.
Karli Iceman
Karli joined the lab in 2014 and volunteered for four years. She worked on numerous projects before leaving to pursue training in clinical psychology.
Rachel James
Rachel graduated from Oakland University in 2018 with her BA in Psychology after working in the lab for one year. She began pursuing her interest in evolutionary psychology in Dr. Todd Shackelford's lab in Fall 2018 as a graduate student.
Natalie Jankowski
Natalie volunteered in the lab from 2020-2021, when she graduated with a degree in Psychology. Natalie has an interest in clinical and abnormal psychology, and planned to attend grad school after graduation.
Ashley Katta
Ashley volunteered in the lab during the 2018-2019 academic year. She was a Psychology major with a double minor in Sociology and Criminal Justice. Ashley's long term goal was to attend graduate school and acquire a masters in Social Work and work as a mental health counselor.
Deanna Katto
Deanna graduated with a degree in Psychology and a minor in Sociology in 2015 after working in the lab for 2 years. Her experience and interest in Industrial-Organizational psychology landed her a marketing internship with Drs. Steve Stanton and Karen Markel. She went on to work as a researcher at an advertising agency.
Patricia Landreth
Patricia graduated from Oakland University with a Bachelor's in Psychology and a double-minor in Anthropology and Women & Gender Studies in 2016 after volunteering in the lab for two years. After graduating, Patricia accepted a research-related full-time job.
Amanda Lukaschewski
Amanda volunteered in the lab during the 2014-2015 academic year. She also worked as a volunteer at the Beaumont Hospital Outpatient Center and at Grace Hospice, providing patient care and support. Her plan was to attend graduate school for Forensic Psychology.
Jacqueline Martin
Jacqueline was a Psychology major at Oakland University who worked in the lab from 2019-2020. She was particularly interested in the psychology of human sexuality and mood disorders, and planned to pursue graduate-level training in clinical or school psychology.
Nicole Massoud
Nicole was an Honors College student who worked in the lab during the 2018-2019 academic year. Her plan when she left the lab was to finish her degree in psychology with a minor is relational communication and go on to graduate school.
Emily Mertz
Emily volunteered in the lab from September 2016-December 2017. She also worked with children and those with special needs, and was the website manager for Psi Chi. She left the lab to attend graduate school in counseling psychology.
Noor Najim
Noor graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Minor in Sociology in 2016 after volunteering in the lab for 1 year. She is also fluent in Arabic and Chaldean. Her plan after graduation was to attend graduate school.
Che'Trell Pratt
Che'Trell was a Psychology major with a minor in Communications at Oakland University who volunteered in the lab in Winter 2020. She was interested in the psychology of mate choice, marital success, and reproduction, and planned to pursue graduate training in clinical or child psychology.
Rebecca Rice
Rebecca graduated from Oakland University with a double-major in Psychology and Writing and Rhetoric in 2016 after volunteering in the lab for 2 years. She hopes to become a Military psychologist and eventually apply to graduate schools.
Isaac Scherer
Isaac volunteered in the lab from September 2016 until December 2017. Upon graduation, his plan was to pursue his interests in industrial/organizational psychology.
Rachel Shango
Rachel graduated from Oakland University in 2016 with a double-major in Psychology and Criminal Justice after volunteering in the lab for 2 years. She was accepted into the M.S. program in the Criminology department at Wayne State University.
Mark Shoemaker
Mark volunteered in the lab for a year and half starting in Winter 2016. He majored in Psychology with a focus on social psychology and a minor in Religious studies, and was an officer with Psi Chi. He plans to eventually obtain his Ph.D. and do research and teach at a university.
Janelle Smith
Janelle is a double-major in Psychology and Sociology who volunteered in the lab during the Winter and Fall 2016 semesters. She was also the Officer of Philanthropy for Oakland University’s Psi Chi. Her plan was to eventually pursue a Master’s in Counseling Psychology.
Juliette Smith
Juliette joined the lab at the start of the Winter 2017 semester and graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor's in psychology and minor in anthropology. When she left, her plan was to attend graduate school and earn her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.
Amanda Szczesniak
Amanda was a fourth-year student from the University of Michigan who worked in the lab over the Summer of 2019. She is a Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience major and plans to attend graduate school following completion of her undergraduate studies.
Sharon Tan
Sharon worked in the lab from 2017-2019 when she was enrolled as a pre-med student with a major in biochemistry. She was also a former Peace Corps Ambassador. After graduation, her plan was to eventually open her own health practice here in Michigan.
Jennifer Vrabel
Jennifer volunteered in the lab from 2013 until she graduated in 2015. She double majored in Psychology and Criminal Justice. She was accepted into the Ph.D. program here at Oakland University to work with Dr. Virgil Zeigler-Hill.
Chelsea Wyrick
Chelsea volunteered in the lab during the Fall 2013 semester in order to gain more experience in research. She graduated with her BA in Psychology in December, 2013. Her plan was to pursue a Master's in rehabilitation counseling.
TJ Wiëthorn
TJ Wiëthorn is an OU alumni with degrees in Psychology and Linguistics who previously attended the JCMU program in Shiga, Japan. He was a research assistant in Dr. Welling's lab during the 2012-2013 academic year. In 2013, TJ was accepted into Law School.
© Lisa Welling, 2021. All rights reserved. The Welling Research Lab is affiliated with the Department of Psychology at Oakland University. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect institutional policy.
