Mills Cognition Lab Members

Director

Dr. Christie Chung is an Associate Professor of  Psychology at Mills College. She received her Honours BSc as a Psychology Specialist from University of Toronto, her MA and PhD in Applied Cognitive Psychology from Claremont Graduate University, and postdoctoral training in Behavioral Neuroscience at Massachusetts Institute of technology (MIT). When Dr. Chung is not busy thinking about how memory changes with age, she enjoys baking, traveling around the world, going to the gym, playing music on her piano, and singing (PlayStation karaoke games!).

Research Assistants

Frishta Sharifi, Lab Manager, has graduated from Mills College, in 2008, with a BA in psychology and a minor in women studies. Her goal is to enter a PhD program in clinical-cognitive psychology or neuro-psychology. She is very interested in research in humans' physical health and its relations to cognitive aging. In the field of women studies, Frishta is interested in exploring the conflicts that modern day women (in particular women of the east) experience in terms of reconciliation of their faith/traditions with the necessities of modernity. In her free time, she is busy with personal training and teaching group exercise classes in a gym.

Ziyong Lin, Senior Research Assistant, has been an undergraduate student at Mills College since August, 2008. She is working on her double-major in psychology and music. Ziyong joined the Cognition Lab in the summer of 2009. She went back to China and helped Dr. Chung collect data for the positive effect project. Since she is interested in both music and psychology, she is trying to find a way to combine these two fields. In her spare time, she enjoys playing flute and studying ancient Chinese poetry.

Avalon Baldwin is currently an undergraduate student at Mills College. With a Biopsychology major, Avalon intends to go to medical school with the intent to play with brains. She is interested in the history and present issues of psychology and how humans relate to each other in the modern world. Outside of school, Avalon has a black belt in Shaolin Kempo and a newborn baby brother. She enjoys listening to music and surfing the interwebs.

Monica Bower is an undergraduate student at Mills College. She is majoring in Research in Psychology. She plans to continue her education to obtain her doctoral degree and work with law enforcement to become a forensic psychologist. While not working in the lab, Monica is a member of the Executive Board in the ASMC as Academic Affairs Chair. Monica has an obsession with Oliver Sacks, a love of cheese, and a phobia of jewelry.

Soo [Yeonsoo] Choi is currently an undergraduate student at Mills College, Class of 2013. She is majoring in Research Psychology and minoring in Child Development. She is interested in school psychology, especially in the role of play in social and cognitive development and adolescent identity formation in children from multicultural background. Soo loves to cook, create and play board games with her friends during her free time. She hopes to enter a PhD program in clinical or school psychology. Eventually, she wishes to travel around the world working with as many children as she can (because they are amazing!). She strongly believes in the words of Tolstoy, "I have learned that all men live not by care for themselves but by love in a passer by."

Shannon Ryan graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 2010, taking her degree magna cum laude in Psychology. She developed an interest in working with people before college, and realized that academically, research in psychology fueled that goal. Her background is in educational psychology, with prior research focusing on the predictive validity of standardized fluency tests used in elementary schools across the United States. She is very interested in research in clinical psychology, particularly the development of adolescent girls and self-esteem. Shannon is also a staff member at Mills in the Admission Office. In her free time, she likes quirky British television and eating out at fine restaurants.

Devon Thrumston graduated from Mills College in 2012 with a B.A. in music with a concentration in cello performance. While at Mills, she double-minored in child development and psychology. She is currently working with multiple labs on campus, and her research interests include child language acquisition, the effects of culture on bilingualism, and the development of prosody and early music and rhythmic acquisition.

Abby Yip is an international undergraduate student from Hong Kong who has been studying at Mills College since 2010. She has always been fascinated by the field of psychology, and she is often intrigued by how the intricate human brain functions. Abby has a variety of interests, ranging from playing and listening to music to traveling and learning about the cultures of other places. In her free time, Abby also enjoys writing short stories and spending time with her family and friends.

Past Members

May Chen is currently working as a Research Technician at the National Center for PTSD at the Boston VA Healthcare System. She is assisting in a longitudinal study on the neuropsychological and mental health outcomes of the Iraq war (among several other research projects).

Tonya Coney Transferred to Mills in 2006 after graduating from Merritt College (AA in Behavioral Science) in 2005. Graduated from Mills College in 2008 on the Research Psychology track. Currently a graduate student in my last semester at Holy Names University; working on a Dual Master's program in Counseling and Forensic Psychology. As part of my graduate traineeship I lead a Domestic Violence women's group and counsel K-5 elementary school students in Oakland's inner city. Joined Mills Cognition lab as a Research Assistant in December 2010.

Sara Harris is a now Ph.D. Student in Applied Cognitive Psychology at Claremont Graduate University.

Nicole Harrison is in her senior year at Mills College completing a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Research Track. She plans to pursue graduate studies in Psychology and to continue developing as a scientist. In her spare time, Nicole enjoys reading research papers, fine art fabrication, and spending time with family and friends.

Jennifer Johnson is a Fall 2008 Mills graduate in Psychology and in 2010 earned her Master's in Cognitive Science and Language at the University of Barcelona where she studied verb recognition. She also has special interest in memory and aging, emotion, early relationships, and physical health and well-being. She is now perfecting her Spanish and teaching English in Barcelona and plans on pursuing her PhD in the next few years. In her spare time, Jennifer volunteers with under-privileged youth and practices yoga.

Ekaterina Mahinda is now a PsyD student in Clinical Neuropsychology at John F. Kennedy University.

Laura Samuelsson is now a Ph.D. Student in the Clinical Psychology (Biological and Health Program) at University of Pittsburgh.

Lou Ann Smith Berardi graduated from Mills in 1952. She then obtained her General Secondary Teaching Credential at SFSU and Master of Arts at UC Berkeley. Lou Ann worked in education for 45 years, the last 17 as the Skills Assessment and Development instructor for Loyola High School and College Preparatory in Los Angeles. She is now retired and is working to encourage seniors to write their stories and memoirs.

Ana Ruth Tejada Castillo, BA

Kimiko Tsuchiya

Amelia True is now the Aquatic and Park Coordinator at Francis Ford Coppola Winery. She is currently working on developing some swim lesson programs for the winery and has been training for triathlons. Amelia plans for go to graduate school in the next couple of years.

Sarah A. Wong, BA, Senior Research Assistant, graduated from Mills College with a Bachelor of Art in Psychology, Research and a minor in Asian Studies in May, 2008. While initially vowing that neuroscience just wasn't for her, through her work with Dr. Chung's Cognition Lab, Sarah developed an interest in the connection between attachment theory and emotional memory in cognitive behavioral and neurocognitive brain activity. (Turned out she liked brains/psychological research too much.) While she is currently working full time for City Hall of San Francisco, she hopes to pursue further graduate studies in cognitive psychology with an emphasis on lifespan development and integrative cultural studies and eventually wishes to travel to Japan and the vastness of Asia for further research opportunities.