We are thrilled to welcome two new doctoral students from the University of Massachusetts Boston to our lab for the Fall 2022 semester!
Saniya Soni (left) is an incoming 1st year graduate student at UMass Boston’s Clinical Psychology Doctoral program. She graduated from Drexel University with a degree in psychology and criminal justice, where she conducted research on BIPOC mental health and implemented suicide prevention strategies. Since 2020, she has been working on digital mental health interventions with early phase startups. Her clinical interests include working with young adults of marginalized identities, forensic interventions, and culturally responsive evidence-based practices. She has spoken publicly about the importance of representation in mental healthcare with The JED Foundation, the Epic Foundation, Morgan Stanley, MTV, and CNN. She also co-hosts a podcast called Loudmouth Ladkis, which focuses on the intersection of South Asian and Western identities with an emphasis on mental health.
Emily Hersch (right) is an incoming 1st-year graduate student at UMass Boston’s Clinical Psychology Doctoral program. Emily completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at Emory University. After graduation, she worked as a lab coordinator at Columbia University and conducted research for a technology startup developing mobile parenting applications. Emily then completed her master’s degree in Clinical Psychology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, where she worked as a research assistant at the Center for Behavioral Intervention Technologies. Emily’s research interests lie at the intersection of psychology, human computer interaction, and implementation science. She is passionate about increasing the accessibility of mental health services for vulnerable youth and families through the development, evaluation, and implementation of online interventions. She is particularly interested in examining how supportive accountability can increase youth’s engagement with online mental health tools.
