Meet the Team
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Lizzie O'Rourke, MA
5th Year, Clinical Ph.D. Lizzie O’Rourke is currently a fifth year Ph.D. student in the clinical psychology program at the University at Albany and on a clinical internship at the University of Rochester Medical School. She earned her M.A. from the University at Albany and a B.S. from the University of Vermont where she worked as a Research Assistant in a lab investigating school interventions for children with ADHD. Lizzie spent several years working as a residential counselor and associate clinician for children in acute psychiatric crisis before continuing her intervention research at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center examining interventions for adolescent substance use. Lizzie is interested in the relations among executive function deficits, ADHD, and anxiety. |
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Cheryl Best, MA
5th Year, Clinical Ph.D. Cheryl is currently a fourth year Ph.D. student in the clinical psychology program at the University at Albany. An Arizona native, she earned her B.A. in psychology from Harvard before spending two years as a residential counselor and clinical educator at the McLean Adolescent Acute Residential Treatment unit in Belmont, MA. Her primary research interests lie in cognitive mediators of psychopathology in children, cognitive and emotional effects of trauma, and differential effects of racial, socioeconomic, and geographical diversity. |
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Atara Siegel, BA
4th Year, Clinical Ph.D. Atara Siegel is a fourth year Ph.D student in the clinical psychology program at the University at Albany. After earning her B.A. in psychology from Yeshiva University in New York City, she worked as a research assistant at Columbia University studying career education programs for youth transitioning out of foster care. Later, she worked at Hunter College on projects studying stress-induced drug craving & the effects of trauma on visual attention. Her primary interests include studying the social-cognitive effects of early trauma exposure, as well as familial and community factors which promote resilience. While not working, she enjoys running and exploring the beautiful parks of the Capital Region. |
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Joseph Bettcher, MA
4th Year, Clinical Ph.D. Joseph Bettcher is currently a fourth year Ph.D. student in the clinical psychology program at the University at Albany. After obtaining his M.A. from San Diego State University, Joseph worked as a Neuropsychometrist and Research Assistant at the Neuro Cognitive Institute. Joseph is interested in the development of executive function in child development, particularly as it relates to educational achievement in youth. |
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Anna Yeo, MA
3rd Year, Clinical Ph.D. Anna is a third year Ph.D. student in the clinical psychology program at the University at Albany. Prior to joining the CCD Lab, she earned her M.A. in clinical psychology from Columbia University Teachers College and spent several years working with children as a counselor, teacher, and evaluator. While pursuing her M.A., Anna volunteered at Montefiore Medical Center and New York State Psychiatric Institute to assist with research on the effects of DBT on self-injurious ethnic minority adolescents, intergenerational transmission of trauma, and psychiatric stigma in immigrant communities. After obtaining her degree, she served as a research evaluator at the Child Mind Institute to provide clinical and academic assessments. Her primary research interests include the impact of stressors (e.g., type 1 diabetes, sociocultural stress) on the development of self-regulation and psychological interventions for regulatory deficits. |
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Laura Welch, BA
2nd Year, Clinical Ph.D. Laura is a second year clinical psychology Ph.D. student at the University at Albany. She earned her B.A. in psychology from UNC Chapel Hill and researched preschoolers’ executive functions, social interactions, and school readiness at their Center for Developmental Science. She also investigated impacts of pregnant women’s drug use, and bed sharing on infant sleep and behavior. In her hometown, she examined parent emotion regulation in response to child obesity at UNC Charlotte. In their elementary education department she researched teacher skill in identifying effective teacher-child interactions, and coaches’ ability to provide consistent feedback to student teachers. She also volunteered at a children’s psychiatric residential treatment facility and worked as a nanny. Laura is interested in how child-level influences (emotion regulation and executive functions) and environmental-level (peers, teachers, and parents) might impact children’s behavioral, social, and cognitive development. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, reading, and baking. |
