I grew up in NYC. As a child, my father worked as a cook in Chinese takeout restaurants, and my mother worked as a seamstress. I spent most childhood summers hanging out with my friends at the local public library or at the mall (great places for air conditioning) as well as juggling different part-time jobs (I started working when I was 14 and minimum wage was $5.15/hr!).
I left NYC to live in the Boston area, first for college (Wellesley College) and then for graduate school (Boston College). As a first-generation college student, I found college to be liberating and eye-opening, yet also challenging and isolating. It wasn't until my junior year that I really came to enjoy my college experience. I had inspiring and supportive professors who helped me discover my passion for neuroscience and psychology. After college, I worked as a lab manager, where I solidified my interests in academia. In graduate school, I was in the Morality Lab, where I conducted cool research on social cognition using different methods from cognitive neuroscience (e.g., fMRI), social psychology, and developmental psychology. After graduate school, I worked as a postdoctoral research associate and fellow at Princeton University. As part of the Princeton Social Neuroscience Lab, I conducted cutting-edge research examining brain and behavioral dynamics between people during actual conversations in real-time. I have been blessed with exceptionally kind, smart, and generous friends and colleagues. I am forever grateful for the encouragement and support people in my life have provided me throughout the years. I want to give special thanks to Jeremy Wilmer (who first introduced me to research), Liane Young (my grad school mentor and favorite person), and Diana Tamir (my cheerleader during times of academic angst). Without them, I am unlikely to be where I am now, an assistant professor in the School of Psychology and Counseling at Caldwell University. As a professor, I am committed to teaching and mentoring future generations of students. I derive great joy from helping students discover their academic and career interests and take great pride in creating opportunities for students to thrive in their chosen paths. |