People

Dr. Nancy Jacquelyn Pérez-Flores was born and raised on the southwest side of Chicago, IL. She earned her Bachelor of Social Work in 2018 and her Master of Social Work in 2019 from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign School of Social Work. In 2024, she completed her Ph.D. in Social Work at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, MO. During her doctoral training, Dr. Pérez-Flores completed a three-year National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) T32 Predoctoral Fellowship in mental health services research (T32MH019960: PI Leopoldo J. Cabassa) at the Center for Mental Health Services Research. She was also awarded the NIMH Mental Health Research Dissertation Grant to Enhance Workforce Diversity (1R36MH134563-01) to support her dissertation project.

Currently, Dr. Pérez-Flores is a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) T32 Postdoctoral Research Scholar in the Department of Psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine. Her research focuses on understanding and addressing behavioral health service disparities among minoritized racial/ethnic populations, particularly within the Latinx population. She is especially interested in adapting and designing digital tools to create culturally and linguistically tailored, evidence-based interventions that improve access to behavioral health services. Dr. Pérez-Flores enjoys cooking, reading poetry, and spending quality time with her family and friends.

Marie-Laure Firebaugh is a clinical research specialist in the Center for Healthy Weight and Wellness. She received her Masters of Social Work from Washington University in St Louis in 2013. Marie-Laure has over 10 years of experience in managing research studies focusing on eating disorders and digital mental health. Additionally, in her position Marie-Laure serves as the Director of two initiatives through the Missouri Eating Disorders Council: Body U and 360 ED Trainings. Through these programs she is implementing a comprehensive online program for eating disorder screening as well as providing trainings for health and mental health providers on eating disorders across Missouri. Marie-Laure is passionate about increasing awareness of eating disorders and provide accessible evidence based treatment to treat them. In her spare time, Marie-Laure enjoys spending time with her family and practicing aerial arts.

Carli is a post-baccalaureate research coordinator at the ACCESS Lab. She received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Brigham Young University in 2023, and is originally from Portland, OR. Carli is interested in both increasing access to evidence-based care for eating disorders and women’s health issues, and in her future work hopes to investigate how to optimize digital technologies to bring evidence-based eating disorder treatment to women and mothers in historically underserved and underrepresented communities. She plans on pursuing a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, and in her free time enjoys coaching lacrosse, being active outside, trying new recipes, and spending time at the farmers market.

Nathalie is a post-baccalaureate research coordinator for the ACCESS lab. She received her B.S. And B.A. from Union College in 2021 and has worked in various research settings in the field of digital health and health behaviors. Nathalie aims to learn how technology can both help and hinder eating disorder recovery in various ways, and make evidence-based treatments more accessible to lower-income patients . She plans to pursue candidacy for a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. In her free time, Nathalie enjoys HIIT and being a pet-sitter.

Jake is a senior from Boca Raton, Florida majoring in Psychology and Anthropology with a minor in Jewish, Islamic, and Middle Eastern Studies. His academic interests include interventions for eating disorders and healthy lifestyles in children and adolescents, as well as the effects of food deserts. Jake is currently assisting with several studies across both the ACCESS Lab and the Center for Healthy Weight and Wellness in the Department of Psychiatry, and is conducting a senior honors project focusing on the initial stages of developing a chatbot to address eating and weight concerns and comorbid symptoms in adolescents. In the future, he hopes to obtain a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. Outside of the lab, Jake is a group fitness instructor and a member of Staam A Cappella.

Mia is a junior from Howell, New Jersey with a major in Anthropology: Global Health and Environment and minors in Psychological & Brain Sciences and Medical Humanities. She is interested in mental health stigma, psychiatric quality of care assurance, and mental health crisis management. In the future, she hopes to obtain her MPH and Ph.D. and work in the analysis and implementation of mental health services, law, and policy. In her free time, Mia enjoys directing theater, writing, thrifting, and playing with her cats.

Vanessa is a sophomore from Orange County, California who plans to major in Biochemistry with a minor in Anthropology on the pre-med track. Having been a competitive synchronized swimmer for nearly a decade, she is extremely interested in women’s health, especially in regard to the intersection of one’s emotional and physical well-being. She is also passionate about increasing awareness on and improving the accessibility of care for those that struggle with eating disorders, body dysmorphia, and other related mental health illnesses. In her free time, she loves watching ocean documentaries, going on sunset drives and picnics, and exploring new cafes and restaurants with family and friends.

Abid is a sophomore from Edina, Minnesota majoring in History with minors in Chemistry and Psychology. He is interested in exploring the relationship between verbiage and eating disorders, especially pertaining to underserved populations. He enjoys reading on medicine and hoped to attend med school in the future. In his free time, Abid enjoys playing basketball, watching movies and drinking coffee.

Genevieve is a sophomore from Eden Prairie, Minnesota. She is interested in psychology and pre-medicine. Her research interests lie in treating eating disorders in teens and young adults, especially when connected to athletics. In her free time, she participates in club rowing and enjoys reading.

Arielle Smith (she/her) is a Clinical Psychology PhD student at Northwestern University in the Feinberg School of Medicine. Working in the Lab for Scalable Mental Health directed by Dr. Jessica Schleider, Arielle designs, studies, and implements brief, digital interventions for youth with eating disorders with the mission of increasing treatment accessibility, especially for minoritized groups. Previously, Arielle received her BA in Psychological & Brain Sciences from Washington University in St. Louis in 2022. She has worked with members of the ACCESS lab since 2019 and continues to be involved in the team’s research on rule-based chatbots for body image and eating concerns. In her free time, Arielle enjoys doing ceramics and hiking with her dog, Moe.

Aggie is a second-year clinical psychology PhD student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, working with Dr. Katherine Schaumberg to improve the detection, prevention and treatment of eating disorders using implementation science. Before graduate school, Aggie was a research coordinator for Helping HAND, working closely with Dr. Fitzsimmons-Craft. She now continues to collaborate on various projects, including Helping HAND and the Digital Platform for Providers + Clients With Eating Disorders. In her free time, Aggie loves reading, camping, running, and live music!

Laura D’Adamo is a clinical psychology PhD candidate at Drexel University. Her research focuses on developing, evaluating, and implementing accessible technology-based mental health interventions. Laura was a T32 predoctoral fellow under Drs. Denise Wilfley and Fitzsimmons-Craft from 2021-2024 and collaborates with the ACCESS Lab on the Body U Teens study, the ED services use chatbot study, the teen digital ED treatment study, the iAIM study, and the digital platform for providers + clients with EDs study. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, trying new restaurants, and hanging out with her cat.