2024- 2025 EPIC Lab Team
Carrie Masia Warner, PhD
LAB DIRECTOR
Dr. Carrie Masia Warner received a PhD in Clinical Psychology from West Virginia University, followed by an NIMH postdoctoral research fellowship at Columbia University, Department of Child Psychiatry. She is currently a Professor of Psychology at Montclair State University. Dr. Masia Warner is an expert in the implementation of evidence-based interventions for anxiety in children and adolescents in community settings. With community partners and research collaborators, she has systematically developed and conducted several NIH-funded clinical trials evaluating treatments for anxiety disorders in schools and pediatric medical settings.
Doctoral Students
Taylor Walls, MA
DOCTORAL CANDIDATE
Taylor is a sixth-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program at MSU.
Research interests: Affective mechanisms related to internalizing disorders and suicidality among children and adolescents; development and use of suicide risk assessments.
Dissertation topic: Using qualitative data to understand the perspectives of students of color about cultural factors related to social anxiety and their views of school-based services.
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Fox, J.K., Martin, G., Walls, T., Perrone, L., Francois, M., Saha, P., Lekas, H., Masia Warner, C. (in submission). Perspectives on Social Anxiety and Barriers to School-Based Mental Health Services Among Black American Adolescents.
Fox, J. K., Coyle, S., Walls, T., Kalver, A., Flax, M., Masia Warner, C., & Angelosante, A. (in press). School-based interventions for child and adolescent anxiety. In D. McKay & E. A. Storch (Eds.), Handbook of Child and Adolescent Anxiety. Springer
Avi Kalver, MA
DOCTORAL CANDIDATE
Avi is a sixth-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: mechanisms related to school-related stress and internalizing symptoms among children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Dissertation Topic: Investigating social support as a possible moderator of the relationship between ADHD symptoms and academic self-efficacy in middle school students.
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Fox, J. K., Coyle, S., Walls, T., Kalver, A., Flax, M., Masia Warner, C., & Angelosante, A. (in press). School-based interventions for child and adolescent anxiety. In D. McKay & E. A. Storch (Eds.), Handbook of Child and Adolescent Anxiety. Springer.
Coyle, S., Vagos. P., Masia Warner, C., Silva, J., Xavier, A., Martin. G., Wimmer. J., Kalver, A., Jeyanayagam, B., Lekas, H. M., Ganho-Ávila, A. Lima, L. & Santos, A. (in press). A qualitative study of social anxiety and impairment amid the COVID-19 pandemic for adolescents and young adults in Portugal and the US. European Journal of Education and Psychology.
Melissa Escobar, MA
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Melissa is a fifth-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: Understanding the how environmental and cultural factors influence the etiology of pediatric anxiety and depression; Developing and implementing culturally-responsive interventions; Optimizing access to evidence-based treatments for racial minority youth
Dissertation topic: Using qualitative data from families of color to understand their perspectives of social anxiety, cultural factors, and barriers to treatment.
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Fox, J.K., Escobar, M., Thomas, H., & Masia Warner, C. (2024). Shyness and social anxiety. In G. Koocher & A. LaGreca (Eds.), The Parents’ Guide to Psychological First Aid: Helping Children and Adolescents Cope with Predictable Life Crises, 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.
Masia Warner, C., Escobar, M., Thomas, H., Ahmed, T., Ndubuisi, I., Perrone, L., & Coyle-Eastwick, S. (2024). A university-community partnership to develop a culturally responsive school intervention for Black adolescents with social anxiety. School Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-024-09658-6
Hannah Thomas, MA
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Hannah is a fifth-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: Optimizing evidence-based interventions for children and adolescents; impact of parenting styles and parental influences on youth and risk; protective factors in the development of internalizing disorders in children and adolescents.
Dissertation topic: Open pilot evaluating the initial feasibility and acceptability of the ICON program in 10 Black American high school students
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Fox, J.K., Escobar, M., Thomas, H., & Masia Warner, C. (2024). Shyness and social anxiety. In G. Koocher & A. LaGreca (Eds.), The Parents’ Guide to Psychological First Aid: Helping Children and Adolescents Cope with Predictable Life Crises, 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.
Thomas, H.M., Escobar, M. B., Perrone, L., Ahmed, T., Martin, G., Ndubuisi, I., Saha, P., Walls, T., & Masia Warner, C. (2023, November 16-19). An open pilot of a culturally-adapted, cognitive-behavioral intervention for black high school students with social anxiety. (Poster Presentation). Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies 57th Annual Convention, Seattle, WA, United States.
Talita Ahmed, MA
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Talita Ahmed is a fourth-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: Optimizing evidence-based and peer-mediated interventions for racial minority youth; mechanisms of school-based social support, impact of social support on internalizing symptom risks for adolescents
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Masia Warner, C., Escobar, M., Thomas, H., Ahmed, T., Ndubuisi, I., Perrone, L., & Coyle-Eastwick, S. (2024). A university-community partnership to develop a culturally responsive school intervention for Black adolescents with social anxiety. School Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-024-09658-6
Thomas, H.M., Escobar, M., Perrone, L., Ahmed, T., Martin, G., Ndubuisi, I., Saha, P., Walls, T., & Masia Warner, C. (2023, November 16-19). An open pilot of a culturally-adapted, cognitive-behavioral intervention for black high school students with social anxiety. (Poster Presentation). Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies 57th Annual Convention, Seattle, WA, United States.
Safia Elyounssi
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Safia Elyounssi is a second-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: Early childhood adversity; peer and mentor support; symptoms of anxiety and externalizing behaviors; school-based interventions; child and adolescent psychopathology
Priya Saha, MA
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Priya Saha is a second-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: Understanding and assessing factors contributing to the development and maintenance of internalizing disorders in youth; development and implementation of culturally sensitive school-based interventions; understanding mental health barriers in underrepresented youth.
Lauren Fleming, Ma
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Lauren Fleming is a third-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research Interests:
understanding the influence of parental factors and the parent-child relationship on development, maintenance, and treatment of internalizing symptoms in youth; implementation of evidence-based, culturally sensitive interventions in schools and community settings
Amy So, MA
DOCTORAL STUDENT
Amy So is a third-year doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at MSU.
Research interests: identification, prevention, and treatment of adolescent depression; suicide prevention; improving minority youth access to mental health services in school and community based settings
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Young, J. F., Jones, J. D., Schwartz, K. T. G., So, A., Dysart, G. C., Kanine, R. M., Gillham, J. E., Gallop, R., & Davis, M. (2025). Telehealth-delivered depression prevention: Short-term outcomes from a school-based randomized controlled trial. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 93(4), 213–225. https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000913
So, A., Davis, M., Kanine, R., Jones, J.D., Bush, M., & Young, J. F. (2022, September). Increase in adolescent suicide risk during the COVID-19 pandemic in the context of a school-based depression prevention study. Society for Research on Adolescence Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA.
Masters Students
Luke Kozas
MASTERS STUDENT
Luke is a second-year masters student in the School Psychology program at MSU.
Research interests: Understanding the effectiveness of standard bullying prevention methods in schools considered to be lower in socioeconomic status; The relationship of emotional intelligence with academic student success.
Undergraduate Students
Sami Bloom
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT
Sami is a third-year undergraduate student in the BA Psychology program at MSU.
Research interests: Understanding how Childhood Trauma Impacts Mental Health in Early Adulthood. Improving Prevention techniques and treatment options.