Read up on our lab's researchers, some of whom you'll meet during a visit.

LAB DIRECTOR & PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Viridiana Benitez, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor
Department of Psychology
Email
Faculty website

My research focuses on understanding how cognitive mechanisms and language experience shape word learning across development.

GRADUATE STUDENTS

LAB COORDINATOR

Crystal Brucato

Graduate Student

B.S., 2024 ,Arizona State University (Psychology)

Hello, my name is Crystal Brucato. I’m a first-year master’s student in the Auditory Language Neuroscience program. I earned my BS in Psychology with a minor in Spanish from Arizona State University, where I was a student at Barrett, The Honors College. I’m passionate about helping children from under-recognized populations and hope to become a neuropsychologist and pursue a PhD. My research interests include understanding and supporting children with neurodevelopmental conditions such as ASD and ADHD, especially in ways that connect to auditory and language processing.

Anyssia Gomez

B.S./B.A., 2025, Arizona State University (Family and Human Development & Psychology)

Hi, my name is Anyssia Gomez and I am a Graduate from ASU. I double majored in Psychology and in Family and Human Development. I plan on going to graduate school for clinical psychology, and specialize in adolescents. I love helping with children and hope to have my own practice as a clinical psychologist for adolescents in my local community. I am also currently trying to learn Spanish in my free time. Which led me to find the Learning and Development lab due to their involvement with language development in children. I am so stoked to be a part of the team and further my interest in working with children in the psychology field.

Sarah Rajendra

Graduate Student

B.Soc., 2021, National University of Singapore (Psychology & Business Management)

Hello! My name is Sarah Rajendra and I am a first year Ph.D. student specializing in Developmental Psychology. I completed my undergraduate studies majoring in Psychology and Business Management at the National University of Singapore. My research interests include young children’s language development, specifically bilingual word learning and comprehension and demographic predictors of language development. In my free time, I love to bake, exercise, and attend concerts!

Nithiya Uppara

Graduate Student

BTech, 2017 ,International Institute of Information Technology (Computer Science Engineering),

M.S, 2021 ,Arizona State University (Computer Science),

Hi everyone! I’m Nithiya Uppara, a second year PhD student in the Cognitive Science area. I completed my undergrad in Computer Science Engineering (CSE) with Honors in Cognitive Science from International Institute of Information Technology, India (IIIT-H) and Masters’ in Computer Science from ASU. I’m interested in understanding the cross-cultural differences in cognition and perception across different populations. In my free time, I love to read, paint and indulge in any outdoor activities. 

Hannah Wang

Graduate Student

Hello! My name is Hannah. I am a third-year master’s student in the Psychology MS program at ASU. My research interests focus on children’s early learning experiences and their language and cognitive development in both bilingual and monolingual contexts, particularly how internal and environmental factors (e.g., parental beliefs, home learning environment, media experiences, sensory experiences, parenting practices, and parent-child interactions) relate to children’s language and cognitive development. I believe children have a strong potential to learn, and I hope to find methods that parents can use in their daily lives to support children’s language and cognitive development. 

Isabelle Sauerman

Undergraduate Student

Hello, my name is Isabelle Sauerman, and I am a third-year undergraduate student here at ASU. I am pursuing a B.S. in Neuroscience with hopes of attending medical school. Growing up in New Mexico and being of Cuban descent, I was exposed to Spanish-speaking communities from a young age, which sparked my desire to become bilingual. While I am still working to improve my abilities, I am fascinated by the language acquisition process, especially during the formative years. My experience as a Patient Care Technician in a pediatric clinic deepened my love for working with children and strengthened my interest in developmental science. I am excited to be a part of the Learning and Development Lab, as it provides the opportunity to expand my knowledge in a field that is both academically and personally meaningful to me

Yesenia Martinez

Undergraduate Student

Hi! My name is Yesenia Martinez and I am a second year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in Psychology. After my undergraduate studies, I plan on going to medical school in order to practice psychiatry. I am have always been fawn of children but especially with how they learn. As a bilingual speaker, I am interested in learning how languages impact our development. This led me to join the Learning and Development Lab in which I hope to gain a greater understanding of the development of children and be apart of something so exciting.

Briggs Connell

Undergraduate Student

Hi, my name is Briggs Connell I am a Sophomore here at ASU. I am currently majoring in Biological Science (Biomedical Science). I plan on attending Medical School and becoming a physician, I currently have not decided what specialty I’d like to follow but I do know that I’d like to specialize in Pediatric and Infant patients. After completing a Psych 101 class I had realized that Psychology was an interest of mine, and knowing that in the future I wanted to work with children I knew developmental psychology would be a great way to combine these two interests. I am extremely excited to be a part of this Lab in hopes of learning new information on developmental psychology and priceless skills I can forever carry with me! 

Kiemora Browning

Undergraduate Student

Hello! My name is Kiemora Browning and I am a senior here at ASU. I am currently majoring inPsychology with a minor in Counseling and Applied Psychological Sciences. After I graduate, Iplan on goingto graduate school for school psychology to continue working with children intheir learning environment! I absolutely love working with children and I have experience as aRegistered Behavior Technician doing ABA therapy for children with Autism. My experiencesin ABA led me to pursue the Learning and Development lab to better understand how childrenlearn from their environment. I am super excited to expand my knowledge and skills while growing with this lab!

Lily Allen

Undergraduate Student

Hello, my name is Lily Allen! I am a second-year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a minor in Sociology at Barrett, the Honors College. I am so excited to be a part of the Learning and Development Lab at ASU. I have always been interested in research so this opportunity truly caught my eye. After finishing my undergraduate degree, I have strong aspirations to continue my education to eventually pursue a career in Clinical Psychology, specializing in children and young adults. I absolutely love working with kids! Their enthusiasm for learning is fascinating and I cannot wait to explore this interest further while working in the lab!

Delaney Witmer

Undergraduate Student

Hello, my name is Delaney Witmer! I’m a third year undergraduate Psychology major, with a minor in counseling and applied psychological sciences and pursuing a certificate in law and human behavior. After obtaining my BS, I plan to attend graduate school and receive a PhD in Forensic Psychology. After studying French all throughout high school and partially into my undergraduate career, I became fascinated with how language shapes our experiences and learning. This interest, alongside being a summer camp counselor for children, has led me to the Learning and Development Lab. I hope to expand my knowledge on how language affects and interacts with children’s learning, alongside how children interact with novel objects.

Kristyna Navarro

Undergraduate Student

Hello! My name is Kristyna Navarro, I am a senior at ASU pursuing a B.S. Psychology. I plan to attend graduate school for a PhD in clinical psychology. As a first-generation student, Spanish was my first language, so I was very interested in studying how children learn different languages under the Learning and Development Lab. Working in this lab, I hope to further my skills in research and decide whether working with children is something I want to pursue in the future.

RESEARCH ASSISTANTS

Luka Smolens

Undergraduate Student

Hello, my name is Luka Smolens. I’m a senior undergraduate student pursuing a BA in Psychology. Within developmental psychology, I’m particularly interested in the effects of language backgrounds and bilingualism on early childhood cognition and growth, which led me to join the Learning and Development Lab. After graduating, I hope to attend graduate school and eventually become part of the Developmental Psychology Ph.D. program at ASU.

Adriana Echevarria-Mejia

Undergraduate Student

Hello my name is Adriana (Ria) Echevarria-Mejia. I am a senior undergraduate student majoring in Psychology. After receiving my BA, I hope to go to graduate school to pursue a degree in Clinical Psychology. Although I hope to pursue a career in the field of Clinical Psychology, I have always been interested in different languages, how they have developed over time, and how individuals learn them so I thought that the Learning and Development Lab would be a great fit for me. In my free time, I like to read, watch video essays, and learn different languages.

Audria Vestal

Undergraduate Student

My name is Audria Vestal and I am a senior undergraduate student majoring in Psychology with a minor in Sociology. I am still not sure exactly what field of Psychology I want to pursue, but I really enjoy Developmental Psychology which is what led me to the Learning and Development Lab. I am excited to explore the field of Developmental Psychology more through this lab because I love working with kids. Getting to see their brains develop in real time is amazing and I can't wait to get more experience with kids through research. I'm so glad I get to be a part of the lab this semester!

Joanna Pina

Undergraduate student

Hello, my name is Joanna Pina. I am a third year undergraduate student double majoring in Psychology and in Family and Human Development. After graduating, I plan to go to graduate school to specialize specifically in helping children and adolescents. I have and currently work as a mentor for elementary students all the way to college students here at Arizona State University. These experiences led me to joining the Learning and Development lab, especially due to their focus in language development. Coming from a bilingual background, that has been a topic I am extremely excited to learn and understand. I get to see how bilingualism plays into a child’s development and also be part of that research for my community. By joining the Learning and Development lab, I hope to gain experience for my future career as well as build my interest in psychology.

LAB ALUMNI

PhD Student Alumni

Marissa Castellana, PhD, Research Scientist, Office for Public Engagement and Scholarship, Michigan State University

Ye Li, PhD, Assistant Professor, School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University

Undergraduate Student Alumni

Tiarra Barnes, Biological Science

Reyan Giron, Psychology

Tanvi Malhotra, Psychology

Leslie Quijada, Psychology

Cathryn Murella, Psychology

Rosie Vargas, Political Science & Spanish

Aryan Bellani, Psychology

Virginia Ticay, Psychology

Beatrice Pasqual, Psychology

Selena De Santiago, Psychology

Nataly Alcala, Psychology

Elianna Aberra, Psychology

Renee Kang, Graduate Student, Auditory and Language Neuroscience (Master’s), Psychology

Jillian Kuo, Graduate Student, Auditory and Language Neuroscience (Master’s), Biology

Mackenzie Kies, Health Sciences, minor in Family & Human Development

Crystal Morrison, Psychology

Mariela Jacinto, Psychology

Skyler Keefer, Psychology

Lia Rocha, Psychology

Rebeca Alvarado Ortega, Psychology, certificate in Evolutionary Medicine

Madeleine Stewart, Psychology and Spanish, minor in Germany

Jordan Kolakowski, Psychology, minor in Criminology & Criminal Justice

Roy Vasquez, Psychology, minor in Structural Engineering

Kevin Redifer, Psychology

Kaitlin Mulvaney, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Cassandra Leedom, Psychology and Biomedical Microbiology

Elaina Corbin, Psychology

Claire Mulholand, Psychology, minor in Sociology

Susan Weber, Neuroscience and Philosophy

Sophia Gerken, Community Health and Spanish

Gabriel Scott, Psychology, minor in Education

Harrison Westerfield, Computer Science

Hanna Lalani, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development 

Sara Quinones, Psychology and Spanish, minor in Business

Dyan Urias, Psychology and Family & Human Development, minor in Social Welfare 

Emily Smith, Psychology and Family & Human Development, minor in French

Marianna Kaneris, Psychology and Biochemistry

Ginta Daulys, Biomedical Sciences, minor in Spanish

Sage Esposito, Psychology

Vanessa Ly, Psychology

Kiley Cronin, Psychology

Gillian Bryant, Psychology

Emily Fatula, Forensic Psychology

Kyli Greenhalgh, Psychology

Emily Wescott, Master of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages

Kaede Hattori, Psychology, minor in Theatre

Alejandra Garcia, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Eliana Stuart, Psychology

Allya Hull, Biological Sciences (Biomedical Sciences), minor in Psychology

Karina Chimal, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Emily Hinsberger, Psychology and Nutrition

Daisy Genzoli, Psychology and Family & Human Development

Chantelle Robinson, Psychology

Diana Stabile, Psychology and Nutrition (Dietetics)

Noemi Rodriguez, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Maria Rodriguez, Psychology and Family & Human Development

Benjamin Kussmann, Computer Science and Psychology

Zixin Hu, Psychology and Business

Imtithal Noor, Neuroscience, minor in Applied Biological Sciences and Human Systems Engineering

Molly Mansker, Psychology

Areli Soria, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Rudy Raffa, Psychology

Marisa Karbowski, Psychology

Mario Soto, Psychology

Edaly Gutierrez, Psychology

Charlene Kweme, Psychology

Amanda Sather, Psychology and Political Science, minor in Childhood Education

Lillian Ramirez Vasquez, Psychology and Family & Human Development, minor in Spanish

Jenna Midgett, Psychology, minor in Biochemistry

Elizabeth Altic, Psychology

Evelyn Cardona, Psychology and Neuroscience

Ema Angulo Rodríguez, Psychology and Spanish Linguistics, certificate in Cross-Sector Leadership & Political Economy

Elana Redfern, Neuroscience and Psychology, with a concentration in Psychological Science

Riley Herrera,  Psychology

Echo Lim, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Surbdhi Mendhe, Auditory & Language Neuroscience (Master’s), Chemistry Majors and Clinical Research

Ana Briones, Psychology, Sociology, and Anthropology

Jada Randall, Psychology

Yamilet Garcia Velazquez, Psychology, law and human behavior certificate

Faith Keist, Psychology

Sela Zakula, Psychology, minor in Family & Human Development

Valerie Wang, Psychology