Alex Colson
they/them/theirs

Hi! My name is Alex and I am a fourth year Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience major. I use they/them pronouns and identify as white, queer, and nonbinary with invisible disabilities. I am so proud to be a part of the beautiful WELLS family as we promote the wellness and healing of Queer and Trans People of Color. Through WELLS, I have developed a deeper pride in my identities and committed to holding myself accountable to the communities I serve as an aspiring ally. My current research interests include aspiring white allyship, healing through activism, and the wellness and resilience of Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming communities. Some of the research projects I have been involved with examine the traumatic experiences of People of Color who have been involuntarily hospitalized, healing for student activists, and accountability of white counseling psychologists to People of Color and Indigenous Individuals. I hope to pursue my Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology and fight for the collective liberation of marginalized communities, especially within academia. I will be applying to doctoral programs this coming fall and am searching for potential mentors. I also enjoy painting, watching bad reality TV, working with animals, and being around my people.

  

Alissa “Sunshine” Adam
they/them/theirs

Hello 🙂 I am Sunshine, a Black, queer, Afro-Latinx immigrant from São Paulo, Brazil. I am currently a graduate student at UF studying Women and Gender Studies, and doing research in psychology. Specifically, my research interest is on the wellness of Black and Afro-diasporic communities. I am particularly interested in how Black communities heal collectively from collective trauma. My goal is to move onto a Ph.D. in counseling psychology and continue to fight full time for the liberation of Black, queer, and/or marginalized communities. Joining WELLS has definitely been the best experience of my academic journey. It has been amazing to do liberation work alongside amazing people. In my free time, I enjoy therapy, group therapy, and trying to make art.

 

 

Amber Lewis
she/her/hers

Hey everyone! My name is Amber Lewis and I am a Psychology major in my second year of undergrad. I identify as a Black, straight woman who uses the pronouns she, her and hers. I am extremely excited to be a part of the WELLS collective as the work the collective does resonates with me on a personal level. I believe my purpose in life is to assist those who are marginalized and experience injustices due to their race and/or ethnicity in addition to their sexual orientation, gender and/or mental state; and the WELLS collective provides me with the perfect opportunity to do so. My hobbies include using Twitter excessively, watching anime and children’s movies, building various things and making/sharing memes with my friends!

Chiara Spina
she/her/hers

Hi, everyone! I am a rising third year undergrad majoring in Psychology here at UF. I am a white, cisgender, bisexual immigrant who was born in Belem, Brazil. My pronouns are she/her/hers. Working as a research assistant in WELLS has definitely changed my life for the better, and I love our collective with all of my heart! Seeing the world through the lens of Black Feminism and thinking critically about my identities allows me to become a much better activist than I used to be. I am passionate about ensuring the healing, liberation, and wellness of BIPOC, LGBTQ+ folx, and of those who hold other marginalized identities. My goal is to become a Clinical Psychologist, and be able to bring the knowledge that I have acquired so that I can give every single one of my future clients the culturally mindful help that they deserve. In my free time I love embroidering, taking care of my many houseplants, and attempting to pet the cats that live around UF.

 

Cindy Hernandez
she/ella

Hello! My name is Cindy and I use she/ella pronouns. I identify as a queer, Nicaraguan, cisgender woman who is a U.S. citizen. I graduated from the University of Florida in May of 2019 with a B.S. in Psychology and, while I am working full-time in the Clinical Psychology field, I am also currently contributing to multiple of WELLS’ research projects. I am passionate about working toward healing and wellness for queer people of color, a goal that WELLS’ values of collectivism and equity have shaped. I am interested in pursuing a PhD in Counseling Psychology in order to combat the notion of racial homogeneity in Latin America through a critical conscious and intersectional lens, as well as help the Latinx immigrant community find healing and wellness in the face of oppression. In my free time, I enjoy relaxing with Burglar (my cat), biking, and baking.

 

Conjay Dahn
she/her/hers

Hello everyone. I am in my 4th and final year studying Public Health, Women’s Studies, and Health Disparities. I am passionate about understanding the different ways that political and social policy have influenced the lives of marginalized communities, especially poor black communities across the diaspora, and working to dismantle those structures. I am interested in exploring the knowledge produced by marginalized communities – and collected by groups like the WELLS Collective – and actualizing these perspectives into tangible policy and community programs. And I am open to whatever paths lead me to pursuing these passions as careers. As a poor, queer, cisgender black African woman, I am most eager to be a part of the WELLS mission of promoting the narratives of those with similar marginalized identities.

Garrett Ross
he/him/his

As a doctoral student in the counseling psychology program at the University of Florida, my research broadly focuses on critically examining and subverting the dominant social narratives in the United States that have historically and currently hindered, damaged, and killed people of color. Specifically, I am interested in 1) how these narratives can shape behavior and perception for both POC and non-POC, and 2) how to foster new ones that not only diverge from those limiting narratives, but also inspire flourishing among marginalized communities. For me, this critical moment in history represents a point of tension between an optimism for change and a cynicism of the systems’ inertia for that change. Here in the WELLS Healing and Research Collective, we are provided with a unique platform aimed at leveraging changes that can catalyze thriving despite the current societal landscape. Some of the ways I heal is through creating music and being with loved ones.

 

Haley Pegram
she/her/hers

Hi everyone! My name is Haley and I am a fourth year Psychology and Anthropology major at UF. My pronouns are she/her/hers and I identify as a white, cisgender, woman. I am passionate about social justice and healing communities that have been oppressed by the systems and policies in our society meant to discriminate against them. I am excited to continuing learning how to be an ally within my positions of privilege and how to effectively work to promote inclusion, representation, liberation, and healing among marginalized groups. In my free time, I love to travel, go to concerts, read, and watch Netflix.

 

Honey Tumbaga
she/hers/hers

Hello everyone! My name is Honey Tumbaga and I’m currently a fourth-year Psychology major with a minor in Japanese. I’m a Filipino American and use she/her/hers pronouns. WELLS means a lot to me as a collective that facilitates the spread of knowledge, visibility, and acceptance of marginalized groups and the intersectionalities that exist within them. I resonate deeply with our goal of healing and liberation and aim to continue learning and growing so as to empower others, especially those in POC and/or LGBTQIA+ communities. In my free time, I like to draw cute things, play video games, and write.

 

Jess Trochez
she/her/hers or they/them/theirs

A recent graduate of the University of Florida with a Bachelor’s in both Psychology and Women’s Studies, I am currently a rising first year graduate student in the Center for Gender, Sexualities, and Women’s Studies Research at the University. My pronouns are she/her/they/them. I am a pansexual, first-generation college student, first-generation Honduran-American with invisible disabilities. I envision myself as a counseling psychologist with an emphasis on social justice and Black and feminist of color frameworks to advocate for marginalized identities. I am also hopeful and motivated to bridge more Central American representation in Psychology and Women’s Studies scholarship by amplifying grassroots organizations that are dedicated to critical consciousness and dismantling anti-Blackness in Central American communities. My interests also include sex work, accessible trauma interventions, violence against women and gender nonconforming folks, immigration, and abolishing white supremacy. When I have free time, I love to roller skate, write, sing karaoke, watch anime, and play video games.

 

Jeannette Mejia
she/her/hers

Hey everyone, my name is Jeannette! I identify as a second-generation Black Dominican-American, cisgender straight woman who goes by the pronouns she/ her. I am a first-year Counseling Psychology Ph.D student at the University of Florida and I just graduated with a Master of Science degree in Transnational, Cultural, and Community Studies at UMass Boston, and got my bachelor’s in psychology. I’m passionate about social justice and working towards liberation of communities that have been marginalized and I hope to better understand the impacts of internalized oppression on the well-being of specifically, but not limited to, Afro diasporic communities to work towards developing prevention/intervention using Black/Critical consciousness, resistance, and strength. When I began this journey, I began to de-internalize/ heal/ learn/ love myself and my communities with so much power and resistance. I’m still in the thick of it all and learning how to be an active ally, work for and with my communities in this journey towards liberation and take care of myself in the process.

 

Jerahmeel Alli
she/her/hers

Hello everyone! My name is Jerahmeel a.k.a Jam and I am a psychology behavioral and cognitive neuroscience major and English minor at U.F. I identify as a Nigerian/South African, Black, cisgender, straight woman, and my pronouns are she/her/hers. It is my greatest pleasure to be a part of the WELLS Collective because my passions include delving into the intersectional aspects of individuals and working to make those parts benefit them as a whole, learning about trauma and ways to heal from it, as well as holding space for the expression and acceptance of self; these all align with the WELLS core values of collective liberation and healing. It is also one of my greatest joys to learn about and promote wellness, inclusion, and representation among ethnic minority, queer, trans and/or gender-expansive people and communities. In my free time, I love to read, sleep, or stare off into the distance imagining a better world.

 

 

Julianna Sostre
they/them/theirs or she/her/hers

Hey everyone, you can call me Jules! I am a rising first year Doctoral student at the University of Florida’s Counseling Psychology Program. I identify as a pansexual, gender-fluid, Latinx, Boricua with U.S. citizenship, and a first-generation college student. I am very grateful to be a part of the WELLS research and healing collective where I can engage in scholar-activism to promote the liberation and wellness of marginalized communities. I am devoted to continue working and advocating for Queer and/or Trans Communities of Color throughout my life.

 

 

Kevin Chi
he/him/his

Hi y’all! I’m Kevin and I’m a recent graduate with a B.S. in Psychology with a concentration in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience. I identify as a queer, Cuban and Chinese American, cisgender man. Through WELLS, I hope to not only gain a better understanding of the narratives of individuals with marginalized identities but to also gain a better understanding of my own identities. In the future, I plan on attending graduate school to pursue a PhD for counseling psychology in the hopes of helping individuals who suffer from oppression and marginalization.

 

 

 

Kurt Loiseau
he/him/his

Hello!  My name is Kurt Loiseau, and I am a first-year general Psychology major at UF.  I plan to continue my studies in graduate school to go into Family and Marriage Therapy.  I am a cisgender biracial (Romanian and Haitian) male. I joined the WELLS team to promote mental health amongst minority groups who are especially discriminated against, and I want everyone to feel proud of their identities.  I feel that WELLS is doing something very special because its ideas force people to expand their views on identities and the influence of race on our identity. In my free time, I love to dance, listen to music, oil paint, and watch thriller and comedy shows on Netlfix.

 

 

LaNya Lee
they/them/theirs or she/her

Hi there! I’m LaNya and I’m in my third year at UF majoring in psychology with a minor in sociology. I am Black, bisexual, from a low income household, and my pronouns are they/them or she/her. I am passionate about advocating for marginalized communities because I know firsthand many of the struggles (and joys) that come with being a part of those communities. I’ve spent my life looking for someone like me, wishing someone was fighting for me, and trying to be seen and heard. WELLS has given me a group of individuals who are and are doing those things and allow me to be seen. I plan on using my degree and everything I learn through WELLS to move my way through the systems formed against us to help my people. I have the goal to do work that is intentional and meaningful and brings wellness and healing to marginalized communities. I am honored to be a part of WELLS and get to do some of that work. In my free time, I enjoy painting, being around my chosen family, eating, and thrift shopping.

 

Maggie Moskal
she/her/hers

Hello everyone! My name is Maggie and I am a fourth year undergraduate double-majoring in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience as well as Spanish! I am a cisgender, straight, Filipino Polish woman and my pronouns are she, her, and hers. It is a privilege to be a part of the WELLS Collective as I have strongly come to believe that healing and wellness should be promoted across all groups including LGBTQ+, POCI, and LGBTQ+POCI. WELLS has strengthened my passion to serve others especially as an ally to those facing oppression and racial trauma. I hope to one day bring my passions and knowledge to the field of Clinical Psychology to create a more culturally competent and safe space for clinical mental health care patients. In my free time I love binge watching Marvel movies and traveling with my family!

 

Maria Saldana
she/her/ella

Hello! I am a rising first year graduate student in the Center for Gender, Sexualities, and Women’s Studies Research at the University of Florida. I am a bisexual, white, Indigenous Peruana. I am passionate about understanding how folks in the margins move towards healing and activism. My vision is to create culturally mindful intervention programs that raise critical consciousness and lead to collective liberation. My heart continues to be in Iquitos, Peru where my family resides.

 

 

 

Myles Lopez
they/them

My name is Myles (they/them) and I am in my final year of my undergraduate studies in Women’s Studies & Psychology. I am a disabled, gay, non-binary, Latinx person of color, and helping people like myself and of more marginalized experiences has always been my dream. I am so honored to be on this beautiful team of researchers that embodies collectivism and strives for liberation every single day. WELLS is the future and I’m so excited to immerse myself in our research, grow, and make an impact on the field of psychology & the world!

 

 

 

Teagan Murphy
she/her/hers

I graduated from the University of Florida in May of 2019 with a B.A. in Sociology and a B.S. in Family, Youth & Community Sciences. Some of my identities include white, cisgender, queer, and low-income. I’m excited to work with WELLS because I am deeply passionate about creating space for the contributions, needs, and wellness of marginalized communities; especially those that lie at the intersection of various marginalized identities. In the Fall of 2020, I hope to enroll in a sociology PhD program and pursue research on social justice and collective action – specifically the roles of marginalized racial communities and perspectives within social movement activism, e.g., Black feminists in women’s rights movements, Black vegans in food justice movements, QTPOC (Queer and Trans People of Color) in LGBTQ+ movements, etc.

 

Ollie Trac
they/them

I identify as a queer, non-binary, light-skinned Vietnamese American. I am working as a full-time domestic violence youth advocate prior to applying for doctoral programs in counseling psychology. I am passionate about the work done in the c/s/x movement working towards the liberation of psychiatric survivors (and other individuals who have experienced injustice and harm due to mental health systems) with a focus on uplifting the voices and experiences of BIPOC (and the many intersections alongside being BIPOC). I aim to critically engage what it means to become a mental healthcare professional and the power that holds in relation to the psychiatric survivor/peer movements.

 

 

Pearis Bellamy
she/her/hers

Hello! My name is Pearis Bellamy. I am a Counseling Psychology PhD student at the University of Florida. My research interests are interventions that promote healing from trauma specifically racial trauma, sexual trauma, and intimate partner violence. I am a proud alumna of Hampton University and my ultimate goal is to become a professor at a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). WELLS is such an amazing space and the research we do is not only informative but is healing for so many. It is an honor to be a graduate student in this collective. In my free time, I like to paint and go for walks

 

 

Victoria McNeil
she/her/hers

Hi everyone! My name is Victoria McNeil, and I am a doctoral candidate in the Counseling Psychology program at the University of Florida. I identify as a Black, cisgender, straight woman, and my pronouns are she/he/hers. Prior to pursuing my doctorate, I received my bachelor’s degree in psychology and African American studies from UF and completed master’s coursework in clinical mental health counseling at the University of Central Florida. I currently teach UF’s first Black Psychology course, and engage in clinical work at both the University of Florida’s Counseling center as well as the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Affairs Hospital. My research interests include liberation psychology and the mental and physical health impacts of racism related stress on the well-being of marginalized groups, specifically Black women. My dissertation examines the impact of shifting, and gendered racial-ethnic socialization on the well-being of Black women. In my free time I like to brunch, watch Netflix, read, and connect with friends.