People

Minh Nguyen is a graduate student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at the University of Central Florida. Her research interests focus on behavior mechanisms of change that contribute to the development and maintenance of addiction. More specifically, she is interested in individual differences in behavior and environmental influences on behavior that can be targeted for intervention efforts in substance use. Before coming to UCF, she was a clinical research assistant in the Division of Drugs, Alcohol, and Addiction at McLean Hospital in Massachusetts. Minh completed her B.A in psychology from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA in 2019. 

Callie Wang is a graduate student in the Clinical Psychology program at UCF. Broadly, she is interested in leveraging technology to improve treatment for individuals with substance use disorders. More specifically, she is eager to explore the potential of digital and mobile technology to address treatment gaps and deliver individualized, accessible care to underserved populations. Prior to joining the DREAM lab at UCF, she was a Clinical Research Assistant at McLean Hospital in Boston, MA working within the Division of Drugs, Alcohol and Addiction, as well as the Division of Women’s Mental Health. Callie received her B.A. in Psychology in 2020 from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH.

Rashmi Ghonasgi (she/her) is a graduate student in the Clinical Program at UCF. Broadly, she is interested in studying opioid use and the use of other illicit substances from a harm reduction lens. More specifically, she is interested in examining the use and effectiveness of harm reduction strategies with and without treatment or organizational support (using in groups, using multiple injection sites, etc.). Prior to joining the UCF program and the DREAM Lab, Rashmi worked at the University of Missouri – St. Louis as a research coordinator for two research labs. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign with a BS in Clinical Psychology in 2022.

Apollonia E. Lysandrou is a student in the Clinical Psychology doctoral training program at UCF. Under the mentorship of Dr. Lidia Meshesha and Dr. Daniel Paulson, she is interested in applying a lifespan approach to better understand the needs of those impacted by substance use disorders (SUDs) and improve treatment outcomes. Specifically, Apollonia hopes to leverage longitudinal methods to identify vulnerabilities and/or comorbidities contributing to increased risk in older versus younger populations, and improve interventions that better serve the needs of individuals throughout the lifespan. After receiving her B.S. in Biology from the University of Florida in 2021, Apollonia worked as a Clinical Research Assistant at the UF Health Florida Recovery Center laboratory with Dr. Ben Lewis and Dr. Lisa Merlo’s laboratory in the UF Department of Psychiatry.

Kayla Norman is an undergraduate student at UCF. She is interested in a variety of research topics including the relationship between substance use, personality, and interpersonal violence, as well as how personality characteristics impact caregiving outcomes. In addition to serving as a research assistant in the DREAM lab at UCF, she is also an RA in the Applied Cognition and Technology lab. She recently defended her honors thesis titled “Investigating Perceived Control and Parenting” and graduated with a major in Psychology- clinical track and a minor in Statistics in spring 2024. She plans to take science coursework for two years in preparation for medical school and continue working in research.

Ella Schmidt is a post-baccalaureate research assistant at UCF. She joined the DREAM Lab after graduating from UCF with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology in May 2024. She also works as a research assistant in the Corrections Research Lab at UCF. She is interested in women’s mental health and the relationships between substance use, intimate partner violence, and interpersonal relationships. She plans to apply to PhD programs for Clinical Psychology in 2025.