New APSSC Board Members

Jeremy Ashton Houska
President
Jeremy Ashton Houska is a fifth-year doctoral student in experimental psychology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He conducts both basic and applied research in the areas of memory and cognition. In particular, Jeremy is interested in situation models, narrative-based persuasion, and the teaching of psychology. He has been recognized with several awards for his teaching. Most recently, Jeremy received the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s 2009 Wilbert J. McKeachie Teaching Excellence Award.

Kelli Vaughn-Blount
Past-President
Kelli Vaughn-Blount is a second-year doctoral student in history and theory of psychology at York University in Toronto. Her primary research areas include the history of women in psychological science, feminist psychology, social support of bereavement, and the teaching of psychology. Kelli’s current research projects include the development of a feminist psychology archive (feministvoices.com) and transformational learning in the classroom.

Peter Vernig
Communications and Marketing Officer
Pete Vernig is a fifth-year clinical student at Suffolk University in Boston. His research involves psychophysiological and self-reported emotional responding among alcohol dependent individuals, as well as treatment development and implementation for substance use disorders. He maintains active involvement in several professional organizations advocating scientific clinical psychology, and his clinical work centers on evidence-based treatment for substance users and dually-diagnosed patients.

Kelly Buckholdt
Graduate Advocate
Kelly Buckholdt is a third-year PhD student in clinical psychology at the University of Memphis. Her research focuses on emotion related family processes, emotion regulation, and psychopathology during adolescence. In 2009, she received the Morton Thesis Award for her research on deliberate self-harm and was awarded the University of Memphis Society Doctoral Fellowship. She enjoys advocating for her fellow students and was honored to receive the graduate student service award and graduate coordinator award in 2009 for service to her department.

Kris Gunawan
Membership and Volunteers Officer
Kris Gunawan is a second-year doctoral student in experimental psychology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He is interested in cognitive research pertaining to blocked and recovered memories, hypermnesia, text processing, and forensic science. He has been involved with APSSC as a campus representative at different institutions.

James Vaughn
RiSE-UP Coordinator
James Vaughn is a fourth-year student in the life span developmental psychology program at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, OK. His research interests are in facial comprehension, particularly in determining facial attractiveness. Currently, James is researching the effect of mortality salience on preferences of facial attractiveness. He is also interested in issues faced by middle-aged and senior adult LGBT persons.

Mandi White-Ajmani
Student Notebook Editor
Mandi White-Ajmani is a sixth-year doctoral student in the clinical psychology program at Suffolk University in Boston and is currently completing her clinical internship at Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY. Her research interests focus on exploring personality and situational predictors of violent extremism, and she used the Hot Sauce Paradigm in her dissertation to study the role of moral disengagement in violent behavior. Her other research interests include improving clinical assessment methods and using these methods to better match clients with appropriate empirically supported clinical treatment.

Kimberly Lowe
Undergraduate Advocate
Kim Lowe is a senior finishing her B.A. in psychology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is interested in pursuing a PhD in clinical neuropsychology. Although her research interests are broad, she has a special interest in clinical research on Native Americans and other underrepresented groups. Kim’s other research interests are in Autism Spectrum Disorders, sexuality, and LGBT issues. In addition to her APSSC duties, Kim serves as the Community Service Chair for UNLV’s chapter of Psi Chi.