Meet the COLOR Lab!
Alex Cowand (She/They)
Graduate Student
Alex is a fourth-year clinical psychology graduate student in the COLOR lab. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.A. in Mathematics and a minor in Neuroscience. Their current research interests include the psychological and somatic experiences of oppression and how ecological levels impact the mental health and well-being of historically excluded populations.
Shequanna Belizaire (She/Her)
Graduate Student
Shequanna is a second year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology Ph. D. program working with Dr. Mekawi. She graduated from the University of Florida with a B.A. in Sociology and earned her M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of Cincinnati. Her current research interests involve studying the cognitive and behavioral motivators of racism and prejudice as well as exploring opportunities to develop population-driven interventions for BIPOC populations
Maryam Ware (She/Her)
Graduate Student
Maryam Ware is a second year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program working with Dr. Yara Mekawi. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience & Behavior with a minor in Psychology. Her current research interests include examining the mechanisms by which racism and its consequences impact development and using this knowledge to develop impactful interventions.
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Graduate Student
Lauren is a first-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program working with Dr. Yara Mekawi. She graduated from the University of Virginia with a Bachelors of Arts in Psychology. Her current interests revolve around investigating the cognitive impacts of racism and discriminatory stress and its relationship with current and future mental health symptoms as well as developing culturally-sensitive interventions informed by the unique experiences of BIPOC individuals.
Lauren Hall (She/Her)
Graduate Student
Meg is a first-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program working with Dr. Mekawi. She graduated from the University of Louisville with a Bachelors of Science in Psychology and a minor in Biology. Meg’s research interests include anti-racism interventions and the cognitive mechanisms of racism within racially privileged groups. By systemically analyzing how racist thoughts are formed and maintained, Meg hopes to identify effective interventions to reduce racist beliefs and mitigate the impacts of racism on BIPOC communities.
Meg Powers (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Hello! My name is Batool and I am a third-year undergraduate student and the University of Louisville studying Psychology. I hope to make psychology more accessible and help make others of different cultural, racial, and ethnic backgrounds get adequate and quality psychological care. I hope through the COLOR Lab that I will be able to gain the necessary knowledge to get closer to accomplishing these goals.
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
Batool Alderawi (She/Her)
Maei Allan (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Maei is a Junior majoring in psychology and social work. She is also the President of the Women 4 Women Student Board and Volunteer Coordinator for the United Nations Association - Women, these organizations on campus focus on empowering women and gender-diverse individuals to be successful in the academic and professional world. The COLOR lab is a perfect fit for her because of her interest in studying generational trauma and working on mental health areas within the Arab community.
Cara Akin (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Cara is a senior at the University of Louisville pursuing her B.S. in Psychology and minor in Spanish.
In addition to her role as a research assistant, she serves as vice president for the College of Arts and Sciences Student Council as well as the Event Coordinator for the National Council of Negro Women.
Olivia Florell (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Olivia is a senior Psychology student at the University of Louisville with a minor in Health, Medicine, and Well-being. She is the communications director of raiseRED- which is a philanthropic organization at UofL that helps raise money for pediatric cancer and blood disorders. Through working in the COLOR lab, she hopes to enhance research regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Avery Huff (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Avery is a Junior with a major in psychology on a pre-PA track. At the university, she is a porters scholar and the treasurer of the student parent association. Within the COLOR lab, she hopes to learn more about the experiences of minorities as well as herself. With those experiences in mind, she strives to promote quality medical attention to patients belonging to underrepresented groups.
Keyona Hughes (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Keyona is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a B.A. in English with a minor in Social Change. She is a Porter Scholar and a member of Omicron Delta Kappa. She has a passion for highlighting the voices of minorities and through the COLOR Lab, is looking forward to learning the psychological effects being a minority produces.
Tryston Peacock (He/Him)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
I am incredibly interested in researching the experience of children and how they are affected by the current social justice climate of our culture. I hope to better understand the experience and needs of children, especially regarding transgender and non-binary youth, and how we can create safe spaces for them to learn and grow in our society.
I pursued a position in the COLOR Lab to be a part of the social-justice-driven research to better understand the ongoing legacies of racism that exist in the field of psychology and our culture at large. I have a desire to gain education and training in how psychology research is conducted and applied to the goal of creating a more inclusive society for all.
Jillian O’Dell (She/Her)
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Jillian is a junior psychology major with a minor is social work. She is interested in furthering her education to enter the clinical field, where she hopes to further improve mental health outreach for children of all backgrounds.
Jillian's research interests surround access to mental health outreach/options for minorities, and how racism/oppression can affect the mental health throughout development.
Dr. Yara Mekawi (She/Her)
Director and Assistant Professor
Dr. Yara Mekawi is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and head of the Challenging Ongoing Legacies of Racism (COLOR) Lab. Dr. Mekawi earned her PhD in Clinical and Community Psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
FACULTY & STAFF
Maddie Bailey (She/Her)
Lab Manager
Maddie is continuing to work in post-bacculareate research to enhance her research skills and prepare to apply for Clinical Psychology Ph.D programs. She is interested in research on the stress/anxiety/trauma continuum in high-risk adult populations and examining social and societal factors interactions with severity of symptoms and presentation. She is also a research assistant for the Kent School of Social Work for a project partnered with Wellspring to evaluate integrated care for persons experiencing homelessness and co-occurring substance use and mental illness.