Faculty:
Dr. Timothy D. Nelson
Dr. Nelson received his Ph.D. in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas in 2008 following a clinical internship at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. He subsequently completed his post-doctoral fellowship in pediatric psychology in the Stanford University School of Medicine before joining the UNL faculty in 2009.
Current Graduate Students:
Marla Vivero
Marla Vivero is currently completing her internship at UCLA, at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior in Los Angeles, California. She graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a bachelor's degree in psychology and social behavior. After graduating, she worked as a research project coordinator at the UCI Center on Stress and Health, and at the Culture, Relationships, and Health Lab. Marla's research interests center on pediatric health and the improvement of health outcomes in children. She is also interested in addressing health disparities in underserved youth. Marla plans to pursue a career in a university setting.
Eric Phillips
Eric Phillips is a sixth-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at UNL. He graduated from California State University, Sacramento in 2019 with a B.A. in Psychology and an emphasis in research methodology and multivariate statistics. Eric is interested in applying advanced methodologies to investigate modifiable factors in the development and maintenance of various mental and physical health outcomes, particularly in children and adolescence.
Emily Hamburger
Emily Hamburger is a sixth-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at UNL. She graduated from Coe College with a bachelor’s degree in psychology before completing a master’s degree in clinical psychological assessment at Vanderbilt University. After graduating, she worked as a project coordinator at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital. Emily’s research interests include factors impacting pediatric physical and mental health, such as sleep, family relationships, and technology use. She plans to pursue a career in research and clinical practice.
Saira Sarwar
Saira Sarwar is a fifth-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at UNL. She graduated from the University of Houston with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. After graduating, she worked as a project coordinator at the Children’s Nutrition Research Center in the Texas Medical Center. Saira’s research interests include the relationship between mental and physical health, factors impacting pediatric physical and mental health, and neural vulnerabilities for obesity. She plans to pursue a career in research and clinical practice.
Emily Goldberg
Emily Goldberg is a third-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at UNL. She graduated from Gonzaga University with a bachelor's degree in psychology with a research concentration and a minor in special education. During undergraduate school she concurrently worked as a research assistant at the University of Washington Medical Center in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine. Emily's research interests include biopsychosocial factors that impact pediatric physical and mental health. She plans to pursue a career in research and clinical practice.
Hope Thilges
Hope Thilges is a third-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at UNL. She graduated from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities with a bachelor's degree in developmental psychology and minors in integrative neuroscience and public health. Hope's research interests focus broadly on pediatric health outcomes and the intersections of cognitive processes, health behaviors, and stress physiology. She is a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow. She plans to pursue a career in research and clinical practice.
Meghan O'Brien
Meghan O’Brien is a first-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at UNL. She received her BS from Tufts University in 2019, where she double majored in Cognitive and Brain Sciences and Computer Science. After graduating, she worked for a year as a clinical research assistant in the Center for Neuropsychology at Boston Children’s Hospital, before completing a two-year post-baccalaureate clinical fellowship where she worked in an inpatient adolescent psychiatric unit at Franciscan Children’s Hospital in Boston. She then moved to Philadelphia to complete her MS in Psychology at Drexel University, and worked concurrently as a clinical research coordinator in behavioral oncology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Meghan is interested in studying cognitive and environmental factors that influence engagement in health behaviors in children and adolescents.
Graduate Student Alumni:
Cara Tomaso
Cara Tomaso graduated with her PhD in Clinical Psychology from UNL in 2023. She completed her clinical internship at Yale University – Child Study Center. She is currently the Postdoctoral Pediatric Psychology Fellow at the Yale Child Study Center. During her time at UNL she received a F31 Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to support her dissertation, which examined the role of executive control in pediatric obesity.
Anna Johnson Dammann
Anna Johnson Dammann graduated with her PhD in Clinical Psychology from UNL in 2023. She completed her clinical internship at Children's National Hospital in Columbus Ohio. She is currently the postdoctoral fellow at the Solid Organ Transplant at Children's Hospital in Colorado. Anna's dissertation focused on associations between sleep problems in early childhood and elementary school developmental outcomes.
Chelsea Kozikowski Yancey
Chelsea Kozikowski Yancey graduated with her PhD in Clinical Psychology from UNL in 2022, with a Concentration in Children and Families. She completed her clinical internship at Munroe-Meyer Institute for Genetics and Rehabilitation, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship in pediatric psychology at Children's Hospital and Medical Center in Omaha, NE. Chelsea takes a culturally sensitive, developmentally-informed approach to her clinical practice and research, which has centered on the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based pediatric health interventions.
Maren Hankey
Maren Hankey is a graduate of the Clinical Psychology Training Program. She majored in psychology at Creighton University and completed her master’s degree in a clinical psychology program at the University of Southern Mississippi. Her interests were in pediatric health issues among infants and young children, including the interplay between intrapersonal and environmental influences on health. Her thesis examined the relationship between maternal feeding style, child eating behaviors, and childhood obesity.
Taylor Roth
Taylor Roth graduated from Baylor University with a major in psychology and a minor in French. Taylor was interested in matters of childhood obesity, especially looking at how family and peer systems affect these health behaviors and outcomes. Her master's thesis examined the role of maternal ADHD in the development of child health.
Katie Kidwell
Katie Kidwell graduated with her PhD in psychology from UNL in 2018. She completed her internship at Cincinnati Children's Hospital, followed by a fellowship conducting obesity research with Dr. Meg Zeller at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. She is interested in the many dimensions of pediatric health, including the intersection of mental and physical health and the promotion of health behaviors.
Tori Van Dyk
Tori Van Dyk graduated with her PhD in psychology from UNL in 2016. She has broad pediatric health interests focusing on the intersection between mental and physical health in children. She completed her internship at Cincinnati Children's Hospital, followed by a fellowship conducting sleep research with Dr. Dean Beebe at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Tori is currently an Assistant Professor of psychology at Loma Linda University.
Alyssa Lundahl
Alyssa Lundahl is a graduate of the Pediatric Health Lab. She received her bachelor's of science in psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2012, her master's degree in 2014, and her doctorate degree in 2016. Her master's project explored the accuracy of parental perceptions of children's weight. Her dissertation examined the relationships among child temperament, sleep problems, feeding styles, and weight outcomes.
Donna Flores
Donna Flores is a graduate of the Pediatric Health Lab at UNL. She graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a bachelor's degree in psychology and a minor in sociology. She received her master's degree in psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2016.
Current Lab Staff:
Maya Samal
Lauren Gregurek
Tess Barnes
Current Research Assistants:
Ashlyn McGhee
Hailey Cheek
Josh Miller
Jenna Wakefield
Ashley Reid
Past Research Assistants:
Lauren Cohn
Jordan Williams
Tara Stelling
Taylyn Lawrence
Krisha Regmi
Chloe Reeble
Megan Toney
Mckenzie Rowe
Mallory Gandy
Shelby Wachal
Patrick Brown
Amy Limke
Lauren Howell
Angelina Wright
Victoria Kranz
Kyle Sramek
Therin Baum
Andrea Kordik
Anna Eckstrom
Melissa Sondag
Melissa Riggs
Amanda Golden
Dani Moore
Kenny Do
Kassie Guenther
Jennifer Andersen
Claire Svec
Jordan Kugler
Jessica Wright
Andrea Clark
Taylor Buel
Maggie Healy
Hanna Grandgenett
Jennifer Blake
Jordan Beck
Mallory Netz
Chelsea Ermer
Marie Eickhoff
Stephanie Nelson
Kate Theimer
Andrea Kordik
Emily Little
Katie Sloup
Katie Walls
Lauren Schar
Tony Doherty
Vanessa Haberman