People
Caitlin Clements, PhD leads the BRAIN lab and is passionate about understanding and supporting autistic individuals and their families. Dr. Clements is an assistant professor in the Notre Dame Psychology Department. She earned her doctorate in clinical psychology (child track) at the University of Pennsylvania at the CHOP Center for Autism Research. She completed clinical internship at SUNY Upstate Medical Hospital, and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Labs of Cognitive Neuroscience at Boston Children's Hospital.
Administration
Mikayla "Kaylee" McEllin graduated from Indiana University- Bloomington with her BA in Psychology in May of 2023. She began her career in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis where she discovered her passion for supporting children on the Autism Spectrum. She began her role as the Lab Manager for the BRAIN Lab in January of 2024. Outside of the lab, she enjoys listening to Taylor Swift and playing with her cat.
Graduate Students
Danielle Sterling earned her BSc in biopsychology and completed her MSc in child and adolescent developmental psychology, with a special interest in autism spectrum disorder. Danielle's research interests center on the study of neurodevelopmental disorders, emotional dysregulation, and suicidality within child and adolescent populations. She examines these factors from an intersectional perspective, with a special interest in sociocultural factors and disparities in access and treatment affecting Black populations. Danielle also has a special interest in utilizing neuromodulation and neuroimaging in her research studies. In joining the BRAIN lab, Danielle aims to examine the behavioral, cognitive, and neural substrates that underlie neurodevelopmental disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder. When she is outside of the lab, Danielle enjoys painting, working out, and traveling with her dog Ozzy.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Julia Savino is a junior majoring in neuroscience with a minor in science computing. Inspired by her triplet brother Joseph (in picture!) who has autism, she’s always been intrigued by the inner workings of his mind. Joining the BRAIN lab allows her to merge her interests in technology and neuroscience, and she is enthusiastic about contributing to autism research. Outside the lab, Julia enjoys cooking and exploring creative outlets like painting!
Nichele Abeyesundere is a sophomore majoring in Neuroscience & Behavior and is from Shaker Heights, Ohio. Her research interests include understanding the neurodevelopment of autistic individuals. She enjoys hiking, baking and playing the cello.
John Kaste is a junior at Notre Dame studying neuroscience and theology. He is originally from Washingtonville, New York; but his home on campus is Knott Hall. For the past year, John has spent his breaks working as a paraeducator with young children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. For this reason, he is very excited to participate in research being conducted in the BRAIN lab. Outside of school and work, John loves spending time playing guitar and watching movies with his friends.
Ellie Wade is a sophomore Neuroscience and Behavior major with a minor in linguistics. She is very interested in neurodevelopment and in autism spectrum disorder. She is originally from Winchester, Massachusetts and she enjoys roller skating and doing puzzles.
Debbie Obiajulu (2023 - ) is a senior at Harvard concentrating in Neuroscience with a secondary in Computer Science completing her senior thesis with Dr. Clements and Dr. Charles Nelson.
Former Student & Research Assistant Collaborators
Molly Vedra (Spring 2024) worked as a research assistant in the BRAIN Lab where she played a major role in the transition to South Bend. She graduated from Notre Dame in May of 2024.
Mehrael Atkins (2023-2024) worked as a part-time research assistant in the BRAIN Lab and successfully completed and defended her senior thesis with Dr. Clements. She graduated from St. Mary's college in May of 2024 and will begin her PhD at the University of Virginia that fall.
Marine Nimblette (Spring 2023) worked as a student assistant to set up and run the TREAT study with Dr Clements at the Labs of Cognitive Neuroscience at Boston Children's Hospital. Marine was an all-star at recruiting participants! She is a co-author on the poster presenting the TREAT pilot data. Marine graduated from Northeastern University in 2023 and plans to become a physician.
Sarah Krystkowiak (Spring 2023) worked as a student assistant to set up and run the TREAT study with Dr Clements at the Labs of Cognitive Neuroscience at Boston Children's Hospital. Sarah was a wonderful presense in the lab and created countless personalized stimuli for participants. She was a co-author on the FIT'NG poster presenting the TREAT pilot data. Sarah is majoring in psychology at Northeastern University.
Karina Ascune (2021-2022) reviewed literature on typical and autistic early development and co-authored a manuscript on the developmental model of reward processing during her junior and senior years at Harvard. Karina was a brilliant thought partner and produced beautiful graphics! Karina is currently pursuing her PhD in neuroscience at Yale.
Jennifer Bertollo (2017) worked part-time with Dr Clements while a research assistant on other projects at the Center for Autism Research at the Children's Hospital Of Philadelphia. Jen recruited and coordinated study visits, and was a welcoming presence for families with 22q11.2 deletions or duplications who traveled far to participate at the lab. Jen is finishing her PhD in clinical psychology at Virginia Tech!
Alisa Zoltowski (2015-2017) worked closely with Dr Clements as a research assistant at the Center for Autism Research at the Children's Hospital Of Philadelphia. Alisa had amazing programming skills and conducted sophisiticated Item Response Theory analyses, in addition to helping with the 22q11.2 study and a million other things. Dr. Zoltowski earned her PhD in neuroscience in 2023 and is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the Laboratory of Affective and Sensory Research.