Students in the Department of Psychology earned top honors at the 2026 Student Research and Community Engagement Symposium, showcasing innovative research across a wide range of topics in psychological science.

Psychology Assistant Professor Sarah Merrill studies the tags that trauma and other adverse experiences can leave on children’s genes – and whether interventions can buffer the effects of stress. Her research is part of the rapidly expanding field of epigenetics.

Psychology doctorate student successfully defends her dissertation.

Amina Ibrahim and Hannah M. Johnson lead keynote conversation on supporting students at the margins of higher education at the New England Conference for Teachers of Psychology (NECTOP).

Jack Blake wins the Student Paper Award, while Leyla Fanning Tacoaman takes home the Best Poster Award for their groundbreaking research in behavior analysis.

Congratulations to Rocío Rosales, Ph.D. on her recent promotion to Full Professor

Psychology Professor Jiabin Shen has been awarded tenure.

With graduation now behind them, many college seniors are setting their sights on graduate school. Psychology majors are heading into programs in clinical psychology, counseling, and public relations as they take the next step toward their career goals.

These awards honor the exceptional achievements of UMass Lowell faculty who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to teaching, mentoring and community engagement. Awardees were nominated by their colleagues and students, and selected through a competitive review process by the Faculty Excellence Awards Committee.

The department of Psychology hosted its inaugural research symposium department-wide research symposium on Tuesday, May 6.

Psychology award recipients at university-wide competition

UMass Lowell student teams, including Mock Trial, a cyber security team, Model United Nations (U.N.) and an investment class, are on a winning streak this year.

Just like students, every faculty member has a “first day” in a new classroom. Here’s what the first day was like for Asst. Prof. of Psychology Sarah Merrill, who is continuing a family legacy at UMass Lowell.

Students can customize their studies to meet their personal interests and goals through the Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree. They choose two concentrations among 27 options in UML’s flexible, interdisciplinary program.

Asst. Prof. Yun-Ju Lai of the Solomont School of Nursing is leading a study that uses virtual reality to help UMass Lowell students improve health and well-being.

The “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement in Iran is much more than a struggle over whether women must wear the hijab, said exiled feminist activist, poet and scholar Fatemeh Shams, the 2024 Greeley Scholar for Peace Studies.

A theatre arts collaboration between Haverhill High School and UMass Lowell, led by alumna Melissa Allen ’15 and Prof. Shelley Barish, serves as a bridge to college for young students.

Asst. Prof. of Psychology Jiabin Shen will study the effects of injuries on children with autism, analyzing the disparities between risk factors, health care and financial costs.

A new program aims to support transfer students so they can hit the ground running during their first semester at UML. The Transfer Alliance Program employs peer allies who are also transfer students.

A multigenerational group of UML alumni created the Lowell Youth Leadership Program, a nonprofit that runs a free summer camp for underserved kids designed to help them become self-confident, socially connected community leaders.

A health sciences professor is the new director of the ADVANCE Office for Faculty Equity. A researcher specializing in cardiovascular disease, Assoc. Prof. Mahdi Garelnabi brings extensive experience working on diversity within the American Heart Association and other groups.

Students in the Introduction to Gerontology course interviewed retired faculty about their lives and careers.

Psychology major Chioma Opara was among 10 students worldwide who were accepted to the Future Nobel Laureate Scholarship Program last year. Her journey culminated with a week in Sweden in December, learning and hearing from Nobel Laureates.

Students in health sciences are gaining research experience in Lowell, working alongside an adult advisory group and local agencies to help make the city an “age-friendly” community.

The city of Lowell is working in partnership with university researchers to get people with opioid use disorder into services and out of the criminal justice system. New grants are expanding the city’s diversion efforts, including for police calls involving people experiencing a mental health crisis.

Psychology Assoc. Prof. Urmitapa Dutta and her students do community action research together with Miya people in Northeast India who are being stripped of citizenship by the government.

Professors in music and psychology are running EcoSonic Playground music camps for children with autism spectrum disorder. UMass Lowell students are getting hands-on teaching. experience, too.

What are the best predictors that child sexual abuse cases will be investigated and prosecuted? Professors in psychology and criminology analyzed hundreds of cases and found that support from a child’s parent or other caregiver was the clearest factor.

Three criminology professors have a federal grant to study police who join far-right extremist groups that engage in domestic terrorism, while one has another grant to study former and active-duty military personnel in such groups.

Sean Ellis, who spent almost 22 years in prison before he was exonerated in the murder of a Boston Police detective, told students that they could be in his shoes.

Psychology Assoc. Prof. Rocio Rosales is leading a $914,000 grant that will train UML master’s students in applied behavior analysis and autism studies to collaborate with special education teams – and master’s students in special education at Lasell University to understand applied behavior analysis.

The new ADVANCE Office for Faculty Equity aims to change the culture across campus for faculty from underrepresented and marginalized groups. It builds on the programs and research of the five-year, National Science Foundation-funded Making WAVES program.

This summer, a UML support program for first-generation college students is piloting a “First to Launch” program on campus for incoming first-year students. With support from two recent grants, the River Hawk Scholars Academy is also expanding its services to sophomores, juniors and seniors.

Joseph Sheedy was a man who embodied lifelong learning. He earned his final degree in Psychology from UMass Lowell, posthumously.

Jiabin Shen's new $713,112 research grant from the National Institutes of Health will help him further his quest to improve the quality of life for children and adolescents suffering brain injuries.

Prof. Stephen Balsis is part of a $3.74 million National Institutes of Health grant to improve the diagnosis and treatment of traumatic brain injuries that can lead to CTE.

As Massachusetts officials advised everyone to stay at home to prevent further spread of the novel coronavirus, students are adapting to studying online – and adopting coping strategies to help manage the upheaval.

UML's Elissa Johnson-Green's EcoSonic Playground melds music with STEM and ends up being a whole new thing at the regional science fair.

A large gathering recently celebrated the unveiling of a student-painted portrait of late FAHSS Dean Nina Coppens. It is, say friends and family, exactly what she would have wanted.

When the Honors College dean put out the call for volunteers at a local food pantry, dozens of students stepped up, allowing Central Food Ministry to serve more families. Now, two honors student fellows are helping to sustain and grow the partnership.

The start of the spring 2020 semester brings the reopening of the university’s earliest academic building, Coburn Hall, as well as a new home for the Centers for Learning and Academic Support Services and progress on several other Facilities Management projects.

UML’s College of Education is working with the state and local school districts to recruit future teachers who represent the Merrimack Valley’s diversity. Lawrence High School students visited the campus recently to learn more about careers in education – and campus life.

Under a new partnership, 20 high school graduates from Washington, D.C., are studying at UMass Lowell this fall with merit scholarships. It’s part of the university’s mission to support students from all backgrounds in getting a great college education.

When criminal justice students intern for credit, they get real-world experience and a broader perspective on the careers available to them. And some internships lead to great jobs.

For his entire career, Psychology Prof. Robert Kunzendorf conducted research on human consciousness, from sensory consciousness and subconsciousness to consciousness of the self. He was just named editor of the leading journal in the field, “Psychology of Consciousness.”

More than 280 students finished the academic year by presenting their work at the annual Student Research & Community Engagement Symposium. Many of the students’ research projects aimed to solve or engage real-world problems, from public health to violent crime.

Education, psychology and art faculty worked with community groups to collect folktales from four Southeast Asian countries and turn them into a book that can be used in the Lowell schools.

Alum Nicole Falotico ’11 was one of five Tesla employees who recruited UML students for summer internships and co-op positions via a video conference presentation at Saab ETIC’s Perry Atrium.

Yusef Salaam, a member of the “Central Park Five” who spent years imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit, talked with students about the pressure to plead guilty even when you are innocent. He came to campus for a panel discussion on the notorious case of Kalief Browder.

Asst. Prof. Miko Wilford has won a five-year, $498,000 National Science Foundation CAREER grant to study an urgent issue for the justice system: Why innocent suspects plead guilty.

Students Nick and Elizabeth Raymond are siblings with completely different interests and personalities. In fact, the main thing they share is a genetic condition. They’re living proof that a disability doesn’t define you.