Current Members
Kimberly Noble, MD, PhD - Principal Investigator
Kimberly Noble, MD, PhD, is a Professor of Neuroscience and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. As a neuroscientist and board-certified pediatrician, she directs the Neurocognition, Early Experience and Development (NEED) lab, where she and her team study how socioeconomic inequality relates to children's cognitive, emotional, and brain development. Her work examines socioeconomic disparities in cognitive development, as well as brain structure and function, across infancy, childhood and adolescence. She is particularly interested in understanding how early in infancy or toddlerhood such disparities develop; the modifiable environmental differences that account for these disparities; and the ways we might harness this research to inform the design of interventions. She has funding from NIH and numerous foundations, and she is one of the principal investigators of Baby's First Years, the first clinical trial of poverty reduction to assess the causal impact of income on children’s cognitive, emotional and brain development in the first three years of life. Dr. Noble received her undergraduate, graduate and medical degrees at the University of Pennsylvania, and completed her residency in pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center. She was awarded the 2017 Association for Psychological Science Janet Taylor Spence Award for Transformative Early Career Contributions, and the 2021 American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest. Dr. Noble is an elected Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science. Her TED talk has more than 2 million views to date, and her work has received worldwide attention in the popular press.
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Dayanara Sanchez-Bravo, MA Candidate - Lab Manager
Dayanara graduated from Rutgers University-Newark in 2022 with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Writing. She cultivated her interest in Developmental Psychology as a research assistant at the Child Study Center of Rutgers University, and is particularly interested in the impact of socioeconomic adversity on parent-child interactions and the links to cognitive development. Dayanara is pursuing a masters degree in Elementary Inclusive Education at Teachers College, and hopes to provide positive learning outcomes for underserved children.
Lauren Meyer, MA – National Project Director, Baby's First Years
Lauren Meyer is the National Project Director of the Baby’s First Years research, a groundbreaking random assignment study happening in four cities to assess the link between family income and children’s cognitive, emotional, and brain development in the first three years of life. She has a particular interest in data driven reform in the early childhood care and education landscape, and advancing policies to support young children and their families. Lauren comes to the NEED lab with experience overseeing and developing systems for large-scale data collection for early childhood initiatives, and experience working with young children and their families at the pre-K level. Lauren received her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin and holds a graduate degree from Columbia University Teachers College.
Luciane Da Rosa Piccolo, PhD – Research Scientist, Baby's First Years
Luciane is a psychologist with a PhD in developmental psychology and extensive experience in interdisciplinary and international research. Currently, she works as a research scientist at the NEED Lab, where she oversees the execution of the Baby’s First Years project, a multisite study investigating associations between poverty reduction and early childhood brain development. Her work integrates developmental psychology and cognitive neuroscience and focuses on investigating the disparities in child development associated with socioeconomic status and early experiences. She is particularly interested in studying long-lasting solutions that can positively impact children’s development in high-poverty contexts.
Ana Beatriz Vizcaíno, MA – NY Site Coordinator, Baby's First Years
Ana Beatriz Vizcaino is a Psychologist with a Master’s Degree in Education and a specialization in Child Development from Universidad de Monterrey (UDEM). Her graduate work earned her the “Cum Laude” award and she completed her thesis and dissertation with honors, focused on “Playful Learning Experiences for Children’s Development”. She has worked for 9 years in Early Childhood Education, as an educator and coordinator, creating intersectional projects between families and schools to benefit children’s experiences and development. Ana Beatriz is interested in understanding how early experiences affect children’s cognitive, emotional and brain development, and translate these scientific findings into practices.
Angie Narvaez, BA - Project Coordinator, Baby's First Years
Angie graduated from Skidmore College with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Education Studies. Before joining the NEED Lab she was an RA at the Social Cognition and Intergroup Dynamic Lab which focused on Social Psychology research and the ways in which stereotypes perpetuate inequities within institutions. She is planning on pursuing a PhD in Child Clinical Psychology and is interested in exploring the ways in which childhood adversities and intergenerational trauma affect child psychopathology, more specifically within BIPOC communities.
Ana Dueñas-Crespo, MA - Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Ana graduated from Teachers College, Columbia University with an M.A. in Developmental Psychology. She received her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Education from Universidad San Francisco de Quito in her home country, Ecuador. After her graduation and, in the midst of the pandemic, Ana taught tiny humans at a local school for two years and became utterly fascinated by children's resilience and never-ending curiosity. She is passionate about studying the impact that early childhood school, family, and community interventions can have on shaping the developmental pathways of children who face early adversity.
Stephanie Martinez-Lopez, BA - Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Stephanie graduated from Barnard College with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in English. Her senior research project investigated the relationship between household size and early socialization in toddlerhood. In her undergrad, Stephanie worked as an RA at the Group Dynamics Lab, focusing on physical cues in virtual classrooms that signal inclusion or exclusion to marginalized students. Her interests lie in the socio-cultural and economical factors that influence developmental trajectories.
Natalia Hernandez Pardo, BS - Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Natalia recently graduated with a BS in Applied Psychology and minors in Studio Art, Global Education Studies, and Gender & Sexuality Studies at New York University. Before joining the NEED lab as a Research Assistant she was part of the Culture, Families, and Early Development Lab at NYU. There she worked in data collection, data inputting, transcribing, and coding, taking a strength-based approach while supporting Spanish-English bilingual immigrant families, and their young children's early learning. Natalia's interests lie among culture, education, and art, with a focus on marginalized communities.
Melissa Giebler, M.Ed - PhD Student
Melissa completed her BA in Art History at UC Berkeley and received an M.Ed with a dual focus on educational technology and educational neuroscience from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education. After finishing her master’s, she completed a research assistantship at MIT working on a project that investigated socioeconomic circumstances, academic achievement, and brain structure and function. As a developmental psychology PhD student, Melissa is interested in better understanding the underlying mechanisms that contribute to the relationship between socioeconomic circumstances and brain and cognitive development. She is additionally interested in investigating the protective factors that contribute to resilience against socioeconomic disadvantage. Her ultimate goal is for her research to inform the development of policies and interventions aimed supporting children’s development.
Emma Hart, BS - PhD Student
Emma is a Developmental Psychology PhD student and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow. She graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2020 with a BS in Child Development and Public Policy. Her research examines the extent to which early skills and contexts shape later development and the underlying causal mechanisms. She is particularly interested in the short- and long-term effects of interventions that experimentally change such skills and contexts. Much of her work has focused on programs designed to support children and families experiencing poverty.
Jessica Sperber, BA - PhD Student
Jessica is a doctoral student under the mentorship of Drs. Kim Noble and Tyler Watts. After receiving her BA in Psychology at Muhlenberg College in 2017, Jessica worked under Dr. John Bates at Indiana University as a lab coordinator. There, she coordinated several research projects studying the effects of sleep on children's behavior. In 2018, Jess joined the Center for Early Childhood Health & Development (CEHD) at NYU Langone to support the research and implementation of ParentCorps, a multi-pronged early childhood intervention found in preschools across NYC. At the NEED lab, Jess is interested in studying early interventions that support cognitive and social-emotional learning for children in poverty.
Mindy Rosengarten, MA - PhD Student
Mindy Rosengarten received her BA in Psychological and Brain Sciences from Washington University in St. Louis in 2018 and her masters in Child Study and Human Development from Tufts University in 2020. She then worked at Boston Children’s Hospital’s Brazelton Touchpoints Center as a Research Coordinator, supporting evaluations of early education programs and grants targeting child and family wellness. Mindy is interested in the role of the home environment, parenting, and early education in long-term child outcomes. She is moreover interested in understanding the potential of poverty alleviation policies (including early education programs) to support positive executive functioning and economic outcomes for young children and their families.
Casey Moran, MA – PhD Student
Casey is a PhD student in Developmental Psychology working with Drs. Kim Noble and Tyler Watts. She centers her work around understanding how systems and settings support or hinder children's early learning and development, and what interventions can be implemented to more equitably address the needs of all children. Holding a Masters degree in Human Development and Social Intervention from New York University, she has previously conducted intervention research in international settings, including the evaluation of an educational media program targeting young children's social-emotional learning in the Syria response region.
Haleigh Brown - PhD Student
Haleigh is a first-year PhD student in the Developmental Psychology program working under Dr. Sonya Troller-Renfree and Dr. Kimberly Noble. Haleigh received her Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and Psychology with a concentration in Neurodevelopment and Neurodevelopmental Disorders. She is interested in studying how early-life adversity becomes biologically embedded in the developing brain, influencing behavioral and cognitive outcomes. She is excited to gain proficiency in EEG analysis and have the opportunity to work with diverse global populations. Her additional interests include adversity-related inflammatory markers, fetal programming, and mother-child synchronicity.
Montserrat Lopez Orozco - BUDDY Study Coordinator
Montse graduated from Universidad Panamericana (UP) in 2021 with a BA in Psychopedagogy. She nurtured her interest in child developmental outcomes as the research assistant of the Dean of Psychopedagogy School at UP. While working in a marginated preschool, she became interested in boosting learning in vulnerable children by understanding how the environment influences them. Her research protocol, “Parenting styles and children's cognitive and behavioral development,” received UP’s grant. Montse is currently pursuing a masters degree in Cognitive Science in Education at Teachers College, and hopes to intersect art with socio-emotional learning.
Benjamin Bravo- Research Assistant, BFY PCI CODING TEAM
Ben received his MS in Neuroscience and Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in 2021. At the NEED lab, he has been primarily involved in coding parent-child interactions videos, as well as helping establish the golden standard for coding using the Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO) tool for the BFY study. Outside of the lab, Ben works as a Research Manager for Mount Sinai Million, managing a study that aims to sequence the DNA of 1 million patients to help improve knowledge of what health means at a genetic level. Ben also works at NYSPI-Columbia University in a Stress and Wellbeing study analyzing biological and psychological factors affecting adolescent wellbeing. Ben is interested in how stressful environments may exacerbate underlying genetic vulnerabilities that affect children’s development. Ben plans to pursue a MD/PhD in Developmental Psychology.
Krystal Vidal Alvarenga- Research Assistant, BFY PCI CODING TEAM
Krystal completed her MS in Neuroscience and Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. In the lab, she is primarily involved in coding parent-child interaction videos (PCI). Outside of the lab, Krystal leads parent workshops, focusing on fostering emotional availability and helping parents connect with their children, with an emphasis on supporting underserved communities. Krystal is interested in exploring the relationship between childhood environment and the development of age-related neurodegenerative diseases. Krystal plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology with a focus in neuropsychology.
Nicole Cisneros Gonzalez - Research Assistant, BFY
Nicole is a junior at Barnard College majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior. She is currently a member of Bellevue's Reach Out & Read, a nonprofit that gives young children a foundation for success by incorporating books into pediatric care and encouraging families to read aloud together. She loves working with kids and she spent the summer of 2023 reading books aloud to them, forging meaningful connections. Her interests include neurocognition and its profound impact on child development, as well as the complexities of the human mind including neurological disorders. In the future, she aspires to go to PA school to become a pediatric physician assistant, fostering the well-being and development of children, especially those from low-income communities.
Tanairi Graciano - Research Assistant, BFY
Tanairi recently graduated from Columbia College with a BA in Psychology. Certified as an EMT, she has a diverse skill set in research, data entry, and project management. In her free time, she likes to dance and volunteer at the Zuckerman Institute for Saturday Science Days. Tanairi is dedicated to supporting underserved communities and advancing healthcare accessibility. She hopes to further her education and pursue a career in medicine.
Jazmin Garcia Tapia - Research Assistant, BFY
Jazmin is currently pursuing a Masters degree in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College. She graduated from Brooklyn College in 2020 with a BA in Psychology. She previously worked at a speech and language center and obtained hands-on clinical experience working with speech language pathologists. Jazmin has years of experience working with students with autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, intellectual developmental disability, childhood apraxia of speech, social communication disorder and selective mutism. She also has previous experience working as a research assistant at a private practice where she helped measure the effectiveness of various treatment programs using CBT and DBT models. At the NEED lab she aids with data management and participant visits. Jazmin is looking to further her education and obtain a PhD in Clinical Psychology. Her research interests revolve around language acquisition and selective mutism in lower income families.
Alejandra Perez Botero - Research Assistant, BFY
Alejandra graduated from Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, with a BA in Literature and later specialized in Public Policy and Development, focusing on the impact of literature in early childhood education. With over four years of experience in elementary education, she is passionate about fostering a love of reading and curiosity in young learners. Alejandra is currently pursuing a Master’s in Neuroscience and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she aims to integrate research-based strategies into her practice to enhance learning outcomes for all students, particularly those from underserved communities.
Jessica Aragon – Research Assistant, BFY
Jessica is an undergraduate student at Barnard College majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior. She has a passion for the intricate workings of the brain and aspires to attain an M.D. in Pediatrics. Beyond her academic pursuits, Jessica takes on the role of Co-Chapter Leader at Columbia University's Project Sunshine Chapter, a non-profit organization enriching the lives of pediatric patients and their families at Harlem Hospital. Her research interests extends to exploring the profound effects of childhood socioeconomic adversity on cognition and neurodevelopment to better understand the complexities of child development.
Alexandra Burgos Batista – Research Assistant, BFY
Alexandra is a junior at Baruch College with a major in Psychology, and a minor in communications. The summer before joining the NEED lab as an RA, she worked as a camp counselor with children under 5 and 6, conducting activities and helping in planned events. She is currently interested in research, and eventually would love to go into therapy and behavioral studies.
Julia Peralta – Research Assistant, BFY
Julia is a master's student in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. She earned her B.S. in Biology and Psychology from Texas A&M University in 2022. After graduating, she worked as a lead research assistant at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, where she contributed to two projects: one implementing STEM programs in schools serving low-income communities to increase STEM interest and identity while reducing gender stereotypes, and another developing evidence-based practices to enhance children's oral language skills. Her research interests include child socioemotional development and risk factors for psychopathology in early childhood. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, with a focus on supporting perinatal individuals and children from marginalized communities, especially Latine populations.
Melanie Esterine - Graduate Research Assistant, BUDDY
Melanie is a first year Masters student in the Clinical Psychology program at Teachers College. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S in Biopsychology, Cognition, & Neuroscience in April of 2023. At Michigan, she partook in research which examined how children learn to speak and read, specifically how being exposed to more than one language at an early age impacts these abilities. She plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology after TC and is especially interested in studying how early childhood experiences and different sociocultural factors impact development. She has a passion for developmental psychology and hopes to work with kids in the future, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Yelisbeth Garcia - Research Assistant
Yelisbeth is a junior at Barnard College majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior. She is a current member of Project Sunshine, a non-profit organization that allows you to volunteer in hospital settings for pediatric patients and their families. She is also the 2026 class representative of QuestBridge, an organization that aims to make college accessible for low income, first generation college students. Her interests include learning about how growing up in low income communities affects early childhood development, as well as the ways in which certain neurological disorders affect functions such as language and memory. Her future goals are to go to medical school to become a pediatrician and make an impact on the lives of children and their families in disadvantaged communities.
Claudia Irizarry- Research Assistant, BUDDY
Claudia graduated from Florida State University in 2023, double majoring in Theater and Psychology. She is currently a master’s candidate in the clinical psychology program at Teacher’s College. She is also a research assistant for NYU Steinhardt’s Culture, Family, and Early Development Lab as well as a board member for The Coalition of Latinx Scholars at Teacher’s College. In the future, she would like to conduct research concerning media targeted for Latine or bilingual children and how it affects learning, creativity, and certain disorders.
Carson Heward - Research Assistant, BUDDY
Carson is pursuing a Masters degree in Developmental Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. She graduated from Tulane University in 2023 with a BS in Public Health and a minor in Psychology. She has previously worked as an ABA Therapist, Patient Care Representative, and an RA for the Learning and Brain Development Lab at Tulane, gaining hands-on clinical and research experience working with children of all ages. After graduation, Carson spent a year continuing to work for the LBD Lab as a research technician and ran participant sessions for a longitudinal study looking at how infants’ relationships with their caregivers change over the first year of life. Her passion for working with children coupled with her interest in researching and understanding the psychological impacts of adverse childhood experience (ACEs) and their effects on development led her to join Dr Noble’s NEED Lab. Carson has years of experience working with children in various settings, and in the future hopes to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology.
Noelia Martinez, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Noelia is an undergraduate at Barnard College, majoring in Cognitive Science with a specialization in cognitive development, and minoring in Sociology. She is passionate about studying the impact of socioeconomic status on cognitive development and its effects on learning. Noelia aims to integrate technology, backed by scientific research, into classrooms to enhance teaching methods and improve learning outcomes. Ultimately, her goal is to foster better learning environments, implement effective assessment strategies, and improve educational outcomes, particularly for those who face early adversities.
Eftihia Mazis, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Efi is a first-year Master's student in the Clinical Psychology program at Teachers College. In May 2024, she graduated from Montclair State University with a B.A in Psychology and minored in Family Science and Human Development. She plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology after TC. She is especially interested in studying how childhood adversities can impact an adolescent's development and how these adversities are experienced throughout the family. She is passionate about advocating for immigrant families and hopes to work with adolescents from underserved communities.
Delaney Simchuk, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Delaney received her BA in May 2021 from William & Mary in English Literature with a concentration in Biomedical Science. After graduating, Delaney worked as a Research Assistant for Howard University’s College of Medicine where she worked on a project that addressed health disparities and ways to improve intervention in Wards 7 & 8 of Washington, DC for individuals experiencing OUD. Delaney is currently getting her master’s at Teachers College, Columbia University in Psychology in Education. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and is particularly interested in pursuing maternal mental health research and how it impacts the mother-infant interaction.
Isabela Moreira, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Isabela is an undergraduate student at Columbia University, majoring in Cognitive Science with a focus on Psychology, and minoring in Visual Arts. Before attending Columbia, she was a professional ballet dancer with the National Ballet Company of Nicaragua, as well as American Repertory Ballet, an experience that defined her love for the human mind and expression. After her ballet career, Isabela gained extensive experience working with children of different ages and social backgrounds, developing a strong understanding of their diverse needs and growth stages. Outside of her academic work and her role at the NEED Lab, she also volunteers as an English instructor for recent immigrants. Isabela has a deep passion for both the arts and understanding human cognition. In the future, she aims to become an art therapist, working with children from diverse backgrounds, cultures and cognitive disabilities.
Simranjeet Dhillon, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Simranjeet is a freshman at Barnard College, where she is pursuing a prospective major in neuroscience and behavior while following the pre-med track. In her free time, she works with middle school students at a local public school in New York and helps them understand the math concepts they are learning in class. Additionally, she is involved in a clinical setting with the Bhagat Puran Singh Health Initiative that provides healthcare to underserved populations. Simranjeet is deeply interested in understanding the challenges faced by disadvantaged populations and how these challenges impact child development, particularly in relation to neurological and mental disorders. In the future, she hopes to become a pediatric psychiatrist or work in another subspecialty of pediatrics.
Olaedo Udensi, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Olaedo is a junior at Barnard College majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior. She is a journalist with Columbia Undergraduate Journal of Gynecology and Women's Health and a volunteer with Radio Lollipop, a program based at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital that aims to make children’s time in the hospital more fun. She is also a TEDx speaker who talked about the importance of honoring the pronunciation of non-Western names. Her interests include the correlation between household stability and childhood emotionality and how socioeconomic factors impact learning and memory abilities. She hopes to pursue an M.D. degree in the future.
Rachael Obi, Research Assistant, BUDDY
Rachael is a junior at Fordham University majoring in Psychology with a minor in Biological Sciences. She
has a strong interest in studying the development of personality disorders across the lifespan, particularly
how adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and other psychopathology serve as predictors in children
and adolescents. As a research assistant at Fordham’s Bronx Personality Lab, she analyzed the long-
term outcomes of different treatments for Borderline Personality Disorder. In the future, Rachael aims to
pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology to research early interventions and improve the diagnosis of
personality disorders in youth.