Caleb Vazquez
Caleb Vazquez (he/him) is a Class of 2029 student at Boston University's College of Arts & Sciences, earning a degree in Neuroscience with a minor in Applied Human Development at the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development, on the pre-medical track. Caleb is a Posse Scholar and a Boston University Sankofa Research Scholar. On campus, he serves as Chair of Accessibility and DAS Liaison on the founding executive board of the BU Disability Advocacy Club and is a brother of Alpha Chi Sigma, the professional chemistry fraternity at BU. He has also worked as a student observer and intern at Boston Medical Center's Value Based Care team and as a Patient Navigator with Link Health, reviewing patient eligibility for federal healthcare programs. As a research assistant on Project AVANT, Caleb is interested in the motivations behind the decisions LGBTQ+ youth make, particularly among trans and nonbinary individuals, and in the support systems and root causes behind suicidality in this population. His interest is rooted in the nature versus nurture debate, exploring how biology and environment interact to shape the choices people make around their own safety and identity. Further, his professional interests extend to exploring cognitive perspectives that shape how people understand identity, resilience, and wellbeing, with the goal of building safer, more affirming systems for LGBTQ+ youth.
Niko Quadri
Niko Quadri (they/them) is a sophomore majoring in Philosophy and Neuroscience with a minor in Applied Human Development on the Developmental and Educational Psychology Track at Boston University. Broadly, Niko is curious about the relationship between an individual’s conceptualization of self- and community-identity, socialization, and biological factors. Their research interests center around individualized, trauma-informed, and translational approaches to buffering against minority stress, especially at the intersection of queer and neurodivergent identities. Specifically, they are interested in how the shared, non-normative cultural frameworks of these communities can be used to foster resilience, community care, and identity development. Methodologically, they are drawn to dimensional frameworks such as the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) as a way to study the biological correlates of neurodevelopmental and cultural variation; clinically, they are interested in how psychotherapeutic, psychopharmacological, and nonclinical interventions can be combined to support and empower multiply-marginalized youth. As a research assistant, Niko hopes to gain valuable experience in the development and execution of research projects, develop informative and substantive relationships with mentors and collaborators, and further cultivate their own interests and ideas while working on project AVANT and others the lab may pursue.
Michaela Garofalo
Michaela Garofalo is a 2nd year Master's student at Boston University, majoring in Counseling Psychology with a specialization in Child & Adolescent Mental Health at the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. Prior to this, Michaela graduated from Queen's University and earned a Bachelor of Arts (Honors) degree in Psychology with a minor in Health Studies. Having completed her undergraduate honors thesis in social psychology, Michaela is interested in continuing research to investigate how peer relationships, family dynamics, and social environments shape identity development and the mental health of LGBTQIA+ youth populations.