Directors

Amy Gorin, Ph.D.
amy.gorin@uconn.edu | CV
Dr. Gorin is a Professor of Psychological Sciences and Director of the Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP) at the University of Connecticut. Her research focuses on developing and evaluating innovative treatment strategies to improve long-term weight loss and maintenance with an emphasis on environmental processes that impact weight management. Recent projects include a couples-based approach to weight loss and obesity prevention programs for children and emerging adults. Dr. Gorin’s research has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health.

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Tricia Leahey, Ph.D.
tricia.leahey@uconn.edu | CV
Dr. Leahey is a Professor in the Department of Allied Health Sciences and Co-Director of the UConn Weight Management Research Group. She completed her clinical psychology internship and post-doctoral fellowship at Brown University with specializations in behavioral medicine and lifestyle interventions for obesity treatment. Dr. Leahey is a leader in the field of behavioral interventions for management. Her research has been continuously funded by the NIH throughout her career. Dr. Leahey has received several awards for her work including The Obesity Society’s Excellence in Science in eHealth/mHealth Award and the Society of Behavioral Medicine’s Research Citation Award. She has also been recognized for both her teaching and mentorship, including receipt of UConn’s Teaching Excellence Award and Brown University’s Psychology Research Mentor Award. Her research findings have been featured by major news outlets including NPR, The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, ABC News, Forbes, and The Huffington Post.

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Lab Members

Zeely Denmat, B.S.
zeely.denmat@uconn.edu
Zeely Denmat is the Lab Manager at the WMRG. She oversees all staff and major operations of the ongoing research trials in the lab and provides clinical research support for individuals and groups within our programs. She is currently the Project Director of the BUILD study, and has managed the CHAMPS and PACE trials as well. She has over a decade of experience working in the field of behavioral weight research, both at Brown University and the University of Connecticut. She holds a degree in Psychology from Bridgewater State University.

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Denise F. Pierre, B.S.
denise.pierre@uconn.edu
Denise Fernandes Pierre is Project Director at the Weight Management Research Group. She currently oversees staff and operations of the ongoing research trial RISE (Research Intervention to Support healthy eating and Exercise) in the lab, as well as providing research participants with clinical research support. She holds a degree in Culinary Nutrition from Johnson & Wales University and Dietetics from Marywood University. Denise has worked years in behavioral weight research at Miriam Hospital in collaboration with Brown University across all lifespans as an interventionist and project coordinator. Her interests are in community health disparities, obesity and cultural sensitivity. In addition, she has years of experience working in food service management within a clinical setting.

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.Kyrstyn Jenkins, B.A.
kyrstyn.jenkins@uconn.edu
Kyrstyn graduated from the University of Connecticut with a degree in Biology. She worked in the Behavioral Neuroscience department as a research assistant during her undergraduate career. She is now a graduate assistant at the UConn Weight Management Research Group, pursuing a Master’s in Health Promotion Sciences.

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Julianna Calcaterra, B.A.
julianna.calcaterra@uconn.edu
Jules recently graduated from Wheaton College, MA with a degree in Neuroscience. She has worked as a research assistant for both human and animal behavioral research during her time at Wheaton. Her research interests include understanding what socio-economic, environmental, and neurological factors can contribute to behavior, as well as the various techniques in which behavior can be influenced and analyzed. She is currently a research assistant for the UConn Weight Management Research Group.

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.Georgia Falk, B.A.
georgia.falk@uconn.edu
Georgia is a recent graduate from the University of Connecticut with a degree in Psychology and a concentration in Human Development and Family Studies. She was previously a research assistant for UConn’s Department of Educational Psychology as well as UConn’s Cognitive Development Lab. She is currently a research assistant for RISE and BUILD with the UConn Weight Management Research Group.

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.Christiana Field, M.S.
christiana.field@uconn.edu
Christiana is a doctoral student in the Department of Psychological Sciences. She received undergraduate degrees in Psychology and Spanish from the University of Connecticut. Her interests include the development and implementation of equitable behavioral interventions for physical activity and weight management, as well as social and environmental influences on weight, diet, and physical activity.

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Kayla O’Connor, M.S.
kayla.f.o’connor@uconn.edu
Kayla is a recent graduate of Trinity College, with Bachelor of Science degrees in Psychology and Anthropology. She has worked as a research assistant for the Trinity College Psychology Department and is currently a Research Assistant for the Physical Activity Choices Everyday (PACE) NIH-funded clinical trial with the UConn Weight Management Research Group.

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Grace Hand, M.S.
grace.hand@uconn.edu
Grace Hand is a recent graduate of Connecticut College, with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Psychology and Spanish. She has worked as a research assistant for the Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory and is currently a Graduate Assistant with the UConn Weight Management Research Group. Her research interests include obesity prevention, weight management, and reducing health disparities.

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Katherine McManus-Shipp, M.A., M.A.
katherine.3.mcmanus@uconn.edu
Katherine is a clinical psychology doctoral student in the Department of Psychological Sciences at UConn. She received an undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Notre Dame with a minor in Business Economics. She then went on to receive a Masters of Sport and Performance Psychology from the University of Denver and a Masters of Psychology from American University. Her interests include the development and implementation of equitable behavioral interventions for physical activity and weight management. She also has interests in health psychology, excessive exercise, eating disorders, and improving quality of life through improved social support, health behaviors, diet, and physical activity.

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Korina Hahn, M.S.
korina.hahn@uconn.edu
Korina graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology. She then went on to work as a research assistant in the field of behavioral weight research at Brown University. Now, she is a graduate assistant at the UConn Weight Management Research Group while pursuing a Master’s in Health Promotion Sciences.

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Olivia Baker, M.S.
olivia.baker@uconn.edu

Olivia is a doctoral student in the Department of Psychological Sciences at UCONN. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Dance from Rutgers University. Her research interests include disordered eating, body image, and the success of weight loss management interventions for people of color.

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Amanda Montanari, M.S.
amanda.montanari@uconn.edu

Amanda is a clinical psychology doctoral student in the Department of Psychological Sciences at UConn. She earned an undergraduate degree in Psychology from Stonehill College and a Masters degree in Clinical Psychology from Loyola University Maryland. She then went on to work as a research coordinator at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Her research interests include health psychology, interventions for weight loss and weight loss maintenance, and barriers to weight loss.

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Affiliated Faculty

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Tania B. Huedo-Medina, Ph.D
tania.huedo-medina@uconn.edu
Dr. Huedo-Medina is an Associate Professor of Allied Health Sciences with affiliations in the Department of Statistics and Community Medicine at UConn Health. Her expertise is in applied statistics using causality and meta-analytic models extensively to examine behavioral and biological mechanisms of prevention across a range of diseases. Dr. Huedo-Medina has done extensive research on HIV, nutrition, exercise, obesity, and mental health. Dr. Huedo-Medina’s research has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health and other National and International institutions.

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Loneke T. Blackman Carr, PhD, RD
loneke.blackman_carr@uconn.edu
Dr. Blackman Carr is an Assistant Professor of Community and Public Health Nutrition at the University of Connecticut. Her expertise is in behavioral weight control interventions and obesity health disparities. She develops and evaluates interventions that leverage social relationships to improve weight loss and related diet and physical activity behavior change. A recent project includes a culturally-relevant, physical activity barrier reduction intervention for weight loss with black women.

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Lab Alumni
Talea Cornelius, Ph.D., Social Psychology
Megan Clarke, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology
Dominica Hernandez, Ph.D., Personality
Erin Lenz, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology
Anna Schierberl Scherr, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology
Tosca Braun, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology
Katelyn Gettens, Ph.D, Clinical Psychology
Nana Yaa A. Marfo, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology
Carnisha Gilder, Ph.D., Health Promotion Sciences
Emily Wyckoff, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology