Dr. Vinci-Booher is the Principal Investigator of the LAND Lab. She received her Ph.D. in Psychology and Neuroscience from Indiana University. Her work focuses on understanding the brain changes associated with learning and using that understanding to establish biological predictors of future learning difficulties and developing effective interventions. In her spare time, she likes to run and keep up with her book club. You might also see her at your local yoga studio or walking around town with her husband.

CV | Google Scholar | ORCid | GitHub

Caroline is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the LAND Lab. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh in Cognitive Neuroscience, and a joint program of CNBC between Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh. Her research focuses on employing new statistical methods to analyze learning-associated brain patterns. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, running, and watching movies.

Andrea is the Lab Manager and Brain Camp Director, as well as a Child Studies M.Ed. student. She plans to pursue a Clinical Psychology Ph.D. to study how children develop independent, goal-directed, and self-regulatory skills during transitional life stages, how behaviors are shaped by the environment, and how individual differences are reflected in brain structure and function. Outside of research, she loves travel and music!

CV

Elton is the Project Coordinator for the Sesame Street MRI Study. She graduated from the University of Connecticut, where she majored in Psychological Sciences. In the future, she plans to get her PhD in Developmental Psychology. She is interested in cognitive development studied through eye-tracking technology and MRI, especially that of handwriting development. In her free time, she enjoys reading and writing while listening to music, and yoga.

CV

Karol is the Project Coordinator for the Sesame Street Image Corpus and a recent Vanderbilt graduate with a Master's in International Education Policy & Management program. He is excited to collaborate with team members to create an original dataset for computer vision model training! In his free time, he enjoys jigsaw puzzling; it’s a great way to unwind.

Portfolio

Samantha is the Project Lead for the Explore-Exploit Study, as well as a Child Studies M.Ed. student. She is interested in learning about how young children learn, pay attention, and how how this information can be used to inform early learning interventions. In her free time, she reads, plays with her puppy, and explores Nashville.

Jack is the Project Lead for the Sesame Street Eye Tracking Study and an undergraduate in the College of Arts & Sciences majoring in Psychology and Medicine, Health, and Society with a minor in Data Science. He is excited to merge his passion for Psychology and Data Science. In his free time, Jack enjoys exercise, hiking, and cooking.

VUSRP Fellow

Shelby is a Research Assistant in the Cognitive Psychology in Context Program. Coming with an undergraduate major in Computer Science, she is excited to be exploring the intersections of these fields in a hands-on way! In her free time, she plays the piano, guitar, and sings! She frequently tries her hand at new hobbies.

Ashley is a Graduate Research Assistant in the Cognitive Psychology in Context Program. Originally from China, she completed her undergraduate studies in Psychology & Neuroscience at Syracuse University. She is excited to explore children's mind-wandering and enjoys plying with cats, volunteering, and trying new hobbies in her free time.

Chi is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in Peabody College majoring in Cognitive Studies, completing her honors thesis in the lab. She is interested in how children learn and the effects on brain development. She is excited to learn more about MRI neuroimaging. For fun, she likes drawing, calligraphy, and traveling.

VUSRP Fellow

Sidney is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in the College of Arts & Sciences majoring in Neuroscience and Molecular and Cellular Biology. She is looking forward to collaborating with the LAND Lab team and exploring the ways in which learning informs neuroscience and development. Outside of school and research, she enjoys reading, spending time with animals, and finding new places to eat.

Ava is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in Peabody College double-majoring in Child Studies and Psychology, completing her honors thesis in the lab. She is very excited to work with an amazing team focused on studying child development from an educational standpoint. In her free time, she enjoys dancing and traveling.

Cresere Aude Summer Scholarship Recipient

Farhan is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in Peabody College double-majoring in Child Development and Medicine, Health, and Society. He is interested in seeing the process of learning in children, as well as gaining hands-on experience with MRI scanning. He is excited to work as a team and discover the intricacies of human development. For fun, he likes to listen to music and try new food.

Aiste is an Undergraduate Research Assistant and SyBURRE Fellow in Peabody College, majoring in Child Studies. She is passionate about psychology and education, dedicating her free time to writing short stories, reading case studies, and creating ceramics pieces.

Via is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in the College of Arts & Sciences majoring in Neuroscience. She is interested in brain development and how people learn and retain information. In her free time, she enjoys baking, rock climbing, puzzling, and listening to music.

Matthew is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in Peabody College majoring in Cognitive Studies and Neuroscience, with a minor in Special Education. He is particularly interested in understanding how different parts of the brain respond to various stimuli. In his free time, he enjoys mountain biking, reading, and playing pool.

Yimeng is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in Peabody College and a VUSRP Fellow majoring in Cognitive Studies and Computer Science, with a minor in Japanese. She is excited to join the team and gain a deeper understanding of learning development. She enjoys music, games, and animation.

Eva is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in the College of Engineering, majoring in Computer Science with a minor in Data Science and Human and Organizational Development. She is thrilled at the chance to expand her research skills in the LAND Lab and apply her data science skills to psychology. In her free time, she enjoys reading and dancing.

Emily is an Undergraduate Research Assistant at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville studying Biological Sciences. She has a strong interest in how external factors affect the brain and body! In her spare time she loves reading, painting and taking care of her plants.

Kaden is an Undergraduate Research Assistant working as part of the Sesame Street Archive project. He is excited to work with the LaND Lab to investigate the changes in the brain that can be attributed to learning, specifically when watching Sesame Street. In my free time, I love to both run and cook.