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Meg Schlichting, PhD
Assistant Professor of Psychology PhD in Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin BA in Cognitive Science, University of Pennsylvania Meg is the Principal Investigator of the Budding Minds Lab at U of T. She is interested in how the episodic memory system (especially the hippocampus and its surrounding medial temporal lobe cortex) interacts with prefrontal brain regions to update our stored memories with new information. Her work aims to characterize how these neural operations happen in healthy young adults, as well as how they might change as the brain develops across childhood and adolescence. In her spare time, Meg loves to cook, try new restaurants, and explore all that her new city of Toronto has to offer. Meg's CV |
Post-Doctoral Fellows
Graduate Students
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Tess Forest
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Sagana Vijayarajah
BSc in Psychology, York University MA in experimental psychology, University of Toronto Sagana is a PhD student in Dr. Schlichting’s lab. She is interested in exploring the developmental changes in memory that occur from childhood to adulthood and how they impact decision-making and learning strategies. In her spare time, she likes to bike, paint, and spend time with family and friends. |
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Merron Woodbury
BSc in Neuroscience, Minor in Computer Science, McGill University Merron is a graduate student in Dr. Schlichting’s lab. They are interested in using various neuroimaging and computational techniques to study structural and functional changes in the brain underlying the development of memory processes. In their spare time, Merron loves to paint, read feminist science fiction and fantasy, and spend time outdoors. |
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Emily Heffernan
BASc in Electrical Engineering, Queen's University MA in Psychology, University of Toronto Emily is a PhD student in Mack Lab and is doing an outside project with Dr. Schlichting on hippocampal white matter development. She is interested in how behavioural, neuroimaging, and computational modelling data can be combined to understand how we learn. When she's not studying the brain, Emily enjoys doing yoga, reading, and hiking. |
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Alex McArthur
BA in Political Science and Philosophy, University of Western Ontario BSc in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Western Ontario Alex is a PhD student in Dr. Schlichting’s lab. He is interested in using different neuroimaging techniques to explore how learning and memory systems change across development. In his free time, Alex is almost always reading, but he also enjoys painting, yoga, and visiting used bookstores. |
Lab Manager
Zahra Abolghasem (she/her)
BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto
Zahra recently graduated from the Psychology Research Specialist Program at the University of Toronto. She is passionate about many of the different branches of psychology, but her main interest lies within the field of developmental psychology, and she has a particular fascination for cognitive development. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking/baking, hiking, and painting.
Contact info: manager.buddingmindslab@gmail.com
BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto
Zahra recently graduated from the Psychology Research Specialist Program at the University of Toronto. She is passionate about many of the different branches of psychology, but her main interest lies within the field of developmental psychology, and she has a particular fascination for cognitive development. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking/baking, hiking, and painting.
Contact info: manager.buddingmindslab@gmail.com
Carleigh Pace-Tonna (she/her)
BSc in Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Toronto
Carleigh recently graduated from the Psychology and Neuroscience program at University of Toronto. She is interested in understanding how people learn and remember information. In her free time, she enjoys playing violin, crocheting, painting, and learning German.
Contact info: manager.buddingmindslab@gmail.com
BSc in Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Toronto
Carleigh recently graduated from the Psychology and Neuroscience program at University of Toronto. She is interested in understanding how people learn and remember information. In her free time, she enjoys playing violin, crocheting, painting, and learning German.
Contact info: manager.buddingmindslab@gmail.com
Research Assistants
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Mariana Castrillon
BSc Psychology Research Specialist Program, University of Toronto (in progress) Mariana is going into her third year at the University of Toronto, intending to pursue a degree from the Psychology Research Specialist Program. Her experience working with child refugees and conducting research on alternative strategies to manage traumatic memories that have led to PTSD have made her passionate to learn more about memory integration and its connection to cognitive development in children. Outside of the lab, Mariana enjoys playing her cello, travelling, and spending time with her family and friends. |
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Katherine Lili Chen
BA in History and Philosophy of Science, University of Toronto (in progress) Katherine is a work-study student at the budding minds lab and is going into her fourth year studying the history and philosophy of science at Uoft. She is interested in how developmental differences impact things like learning. In her free time she enjoys baking, swimming and spending time with her friends and family. |
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Keevyn Hirschfield
BSC Psychology Research Specialist Program and Cognitive Science Major, University of Toronto (in progress) Keevyn is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a degree from the Psychology Research Specialist Program alongside a major in Cognitive Science. He is joining the Budding Minds lab for his undergraduate thesis, which focuses on aphantasia - the blindness of the mind's eye - and how this condition impacts memory retrieval. Outside of class, Keevyn enjoys a combination of long walks, coffee, and podcasts. |
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Rachel Ho
BSc Psychology Specialist, University of Toronto (in progress) Rachel is a third-year undergraduate student specializing in Psychology. She is interested in developmental and educational psychology, specifically in how learning takes place in different brain areas. In her free time, she enjoys exploring new coffee spots, watching sunsets and spending time with her family and friends. |
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Dana Huang
BSc in Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Toronto (in progress) Dana is a first-year undergraduate student studying neuroscience and physiology. She is interested in studying memory and learning, and how that develops and changes from childhood, adolescence and into adulthood. In her free time, she enjoys swimming, reading, and playing the piano! |
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Jessica Im
BSc in Psychology , Environment & Behaviour, and Urban Studies, University of Toronto (in progress) Jessica is a first-year undergraduate student specializing in Psychology and minoring in Environment and Behaviour as well as Urban Studies. She is interested in how learning, memory, and the brain is affected by surrounding environments. In her free time she likes to play video games, go out to eat, and crochet. |
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Krystyna MacRae
BSc Psychology specialist, neuroscience major, University of Toronto (in progress) Krystyna is a fourth-year student specializing in psychology and majoring in neuroscience. She is interested in the developmental changes of memory formation and recall. She is also curious about the potential of memory to be enhanced, erased, and altered in a lab environment. In her free time, she enjoys playing the piano, reading, cooking, and swimming. |
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Rena Rivera
BSc in Nursing, University of Toronto (In progress) Rena is in her first year of nursing at the University of Toronto. She is interested in cognitive and developmental psychology, specifically in the changes that arise with memory formation due to the developing brain. In her spare time, she enjoys watching Netflix, baking, and spending time with her dogs Rocky and Robyn. |
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Vanessa Sgambelluri
BSc in Psychology and Health and Disease, University of Toronto (In progress) Vanessa is an incoming third-year student at the University of Toronto. Upon discovering her passion for the human mind a couple of years ago, she delved deeper into this interest through her postsecondary career by engaging in fascinating classes such as Abnormal Psychology, Social Psychology, and more, while also combining this knowledge with the captivating field of medicine. She is particularly intrigued in learning about the mental and physical barriers that undermine illness through the use of neuropsychological methods. Ultimately, she loves to learn; however, when she is not learning, she enjoys cooking, tutoring, and spending time with those she loves most! |
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Sophia Zhao
BSc in Psychology and Physiology, University of Toronto (In Progress) Sophia is a fourth-year student pursuing a double major in Psychology and Physiology. She is interested in cognitive psychology and how different environmental factors can change the brain during development. In her free time, Sophia enjoys playing tennis and finding new restaurants with her friends. |
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Cherrie Zhu
BSc in Neuroscience and Pathobiology, University of Toronto (In Progress) Cherrie is a third-year undergraduate student studying Neuroscience and Pathobiology. She is interested in understanding how children’s minds learn, remember and adapt throughout development! In her free time, she enjoys photography, exploring the outdoors, and trying out new recipes. |
Lab Alumni
Postdoctoral Fellows
Anna Blumenthal
Xiaoping Fang
Research Assistants/Lab Managers
Mrinal Anagal - BSc in Nursing (BScN), University of Toronto (In Progress)
BSc in Neuroscience, Physiology, and Immunology, University of Toronto
Sasha Arnett - BSc in Life Sciences, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Hailey Benedict - MSc in Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto (In Progress)
BA in Psychology, McGill University
Sarah Berger - MSc in Psychology, University of Western Ontario (In Progress)
BSc in Psychology and Biology, Queens University
Samantha Bray Kingissepp - M.Ed. in Counselling and Psychotherapy at OISE, University of Toronto (In Progress)
BA in Honours Specialization Psychology, University of Western Ontario
Eryk Brol - BSc in Computer Science, University of Toronto
Freeman Chan - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Eric (Xingjian) Che - BSc in Physiology, Neuroscience and Immunology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Nathan Chen - BSc in Neuroscience and Immunology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Sua Cho - BSc in Human Biology, Physiology, and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Andrew Chun - BSc in Psychology and Sociology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Catherine Clarke - BSc in Psychology and Human Biology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Natanela Dain - BSc in Psychology and English, University of Toronto
Brad Dalgleish - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Carissa DeMarinis - Juris Doctor, University of Toronto (In Progress)
BSc in Neuroscience, Psychology and Physiology, University of Toronto
Ashiana Dhanani - BSc in Human Biology and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Simran Dhir - BSc in Pharmacology and Biomedical Toxicology, Education and Society, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Oceana Ding - BSc in Cognitive Science, Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Lana Duan - MSc in Medical Science at the University of Toronto and SickKids Research Institute (In Progress)
BSc in Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Toronto
Zosia Gontarz
Isabelle Vanasse Grosdidier - BSc in Psychology, Sociology, and Physiology, University of Toronto
Alyssa Ho - BSc in Neuroscience, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Nicole Hung - BSc in Psychology and Urban Studies, University of Toronto (In Progress)
David Huynh - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Zachary Johnson - BSc in Psychology Specialist, Linguistics Minor, Buddhism/Psychology/Mental Health Minor, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Nisha Klein - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Ezra Laker - BSc in Cognitive Science and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Sherry Li - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Tianyu Lu - BSc in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Specialist, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Eilidh McAlister - BSc in Psychology and Immunology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Elida Nexha - BSc in Psychology, Health Studies, and French, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Amy Pan - BSc in Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Julia Pearce
Eden Prosser - BSc in Neuroscience, Molecular Genetics, and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Cheryl Quan - BSc in Psychology, Biology, and Anthropology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Sarah Ripley - BSc in Psychology, Statistics, and Mathematics, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Valeria Sarangova
Riveea Satkunaratnam - BSc in Immunology and Physiology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Katarina Savel - BSc in Neuroscience, Psychology, and Spanish, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Chuyun Shen - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto
Hasaan Sobaan
Hannah Tarder-Stoll - PhD in Psychology at Columbia University (In Progress)
BMus in Classical Voice Performance, University of Toronto & BSc in Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Toronto
Thurka Thillainathan - BSc in Psychology and Anthropology, University of Toronto
Mila Valcic - BSc in Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Mia Vucurovic - BSc in Psychology and Philosophy, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Chen Yang - BSc in Pharmacology, Physiology and Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Wangjing Yu - PhD in Psychology at Columbia University (In Progress)
BSc in Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Toronto
Xuan Zhang - BSc in Psychology, University of Toronto (In Progress)
Cindy Zhou
Our lab is growing - join us!
We are recruiting students for the work study program at UofT. We are also still looking for postdoctoral fellows to join our team!
Visit the Get Involved page for more information.
We are recruiting students for the work study program at UofT. We are also still looking for postdoctoral fellows to join our team!
Visit the Get Involved page for more information.
