Current Members
Kimberly Noble, MD, PhD - Principal Investigator
Kimberly Noble, MD, PhD, is the Virginia and Leonard Marx Professor of Child and Parent Development and Education and Professor of Neuroscience & 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 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 and their families.
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.
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.
Yelisbeth Garcia, BA - Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Yelisbeth is a recent graduate from Barnard College with a Bachelors of Arts in Neuroscience and Behavior. She is particularly interested in how early childhood experiences may influence changes in the brain and in the development of cognitive domains such as memory and executive functioning. Yelisbeth has previous experience, coding and analyzing parent-child interactions for Baby's First Year, a research project investigating the influence of unconditional cash gifts on cognition during early childhood. Additionally, she was a Research Assistant for the BUDDY study and is now working on the Bab'ys First Years study as a full-time research assistant. Her future goals include attending medical school and working in underserved communities.
Alexandra Burgos Batista, BA - Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Alexandra is a recent graduate from Baruch College with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She is passionate about working with children and strives to be a source of help and comfort for those she interacts with. She previously worked at the NEED Lab as an interviewer and research volunteer on the Baby's First Years study. After spending a year working in a Human Resources office, she found herself drawn back to the lab as a full-time research assistant. Alexandra is passionate about working with families, learning about child development, and aspires to be someone who makes a meaningful and lasting impact in the lives of children and their families.
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.
Sunan Sun - Volunteer Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Sunan is pursuing a Master's degree in Developmental Psychology at Teachers College. She received her dual B.A. in Psychology and Education Studies from Brandeis University. At Brandeis, she worked in Dr. Margie Lachman’s Lifespan Lab, contributing to research on cognitive aging and Alzheimer’s disease risk. She later worked in Dr. Hannah Snyder’s Cognition, Psychopathology, and Environment Lab, where she completed an honors thesis on metacognitive beliefs, intolerance of uncertainty, and internalizing symptoms. She also gained clinical research experience at McLean Hospital, studying mood, cognition, and emotion regulation in adulthood and aging. Sunan’s research interests focus on children’s executive functioning, emotion regulation, and mental health development.
Emily Garcia - Volunteer Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Emily is a second-year graduate student at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she is pursuing an Ed.M. in Mental Health Counseling with a bilingual (Spanish/English) concentration. She earned her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience from UNC Chapel Hill in 2023. Emily has worked with children, adolescents, and families across a variety of clinical settings, including as an RBT in an Applied Behavior Analysis clinic, at a youth inpatient behavioral health hospital, and currently as a therapist intern at a community mental health clinic. These experiences have informed her interest in examining the developmental, familial, and contextual factors that influence mental health and well-being across childhood and adolescence. She is particularly interested in how social and environmental factors, including access to services, socioeconomic context, and language, shape developmental and mental health outcomes. Emily hopes to integrate research and clinical practice throughout her career and is excited to contribute to projects that focus on the care and well-being of children, youth, and families.
Jena Mamdani - Volunteer Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Jena is a junior at Barnard College pursuing a BA in Psychology with a minor in Education. Her interest in developmental and clinical psychology grew during a gap year at an international school, where she conducted an independent research project examining second-language learning and its impact on child socialization. She is particularly interested in how educational and environmental experiences shape children's cognitive and social development and is passionate about translating psychological research into practices that support students and schools. After completing her undergraduate studies, Jena hopes to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology.
Diana Gabriela Alvarez - Volunteer Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Diana Gabriela is a rising junior at Barnard College majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior on the pre-law track, where she is also a proud CSTEP scholar. Deeply committed to leadership and campus advocacy, she serves as the Co-Chapter Leader for Barnard’s chapter of Project Sunshine, to help organize recreational support for children facing medical challenges. She is also a member of the Barnard College Honor Board and volunteers with the student-led organization, Students For Sanctuary. Gabriela is highly interested in the intersection of science and the legal system, with a specific focus on how legal structures and environments impact development, health, and behavior. In the future, she aspires to attend law school to leverage her analytical background in legal advocacy, fighting for systemic change and community well-being.
Kimberly Ortiz - Volunteer Research Assistant, Baby's First Years
Kimberly is a senior at Hunter College majoring in Human Biology. She volunteers with Blood Cancer United, where she supports patient outreach and care coordination by managing patient data and connecting individuals and families with available resources. Her interests include neuroscience, child development, and health equity. Through her academic and research experiences, Kimberly hopes to contribute to research that advances equitable healthcare and educational opportunities for underserved communities. In the future, Kimberly plans to attend medical school and pursue a career that combines clinical care, research, and advocacy.