2025 SRI Closing Booklet

Page 1


College

June 2 — July 25, 2025

Order of Events

10:00 AM Viewing of Research Posters

11:30 AM Celebratory Remarks

Noon SRI & REACH Certificate Ceremony

Acknowledgements

Support for this program was provided by the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, the BSOS Dean’s Research Initiative, the Office of the Provost, the Graduate School, and the Division of Research at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Also, we thank the BSOS Dean’s Office, the faculty mentors, and the presenters (too numerous to list here) for giving their time and efforts, and sharing their expertise to make the SRI a success.

Finally, we thank the program coordinator, Brittney Robinson, for her superb coordination of the SRI activities.

College of Behavioral and Social Sciences Summer Research Initiative

The Summer Research Initiative was created in 1999 by the Office of the Dean in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences (BSOS) and is supported by the Office of the Provost, the Graduate School, the Division of Research, and BSOS. This program is designed to encourage and enhance the diversity of scholars working in the behavioral, social, and economic science fields. The goals of the Initiative are to:

 Increase the knowledge of, and interest in, doctoral-level training in the social, behavioral, and economic sciences;

 Provide rising juniors and seniors an opportunity to learn about graduate studies and the range of research and scholarship in the social, behavioral, and economic sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park;

 Provide a laboratory experience that enhances basic research knowledge and skills;

 Provide lectures, workshops, didactic exchanges, etc., to enhance students’ knowledge of the graduate application process, the academic rigors associated with graduate school, and the professional and personal challenges encountered in graduate school;

 Provide mentoring and networking opportunities for students to advance their training in the social, behavioral, and economic sciences.

The Initiative is part of BSOS’s longstanding commitment to increasing the diversity of students who pursue graduate degrees in the social, behavioral, and economic sciences. According to data from the National Science Foundation, the University of Maryland ranks among the country’s top colleges and universities for the number of Ph.D.’s awarded to minority students. The Summer Research Initiative is an integral part of our efforts to award doctoral degrees to underrepresented minorities in behavioral, social, and economic sciences. For more information, please visit: https://bsos.umd.edu/diversity/summer-research-initiative

College of behavioral and social sciences

The College of Behavioral and Social Sciences is the largest college at the University of Maryland, College Park. It has more than 6,000 undergraduate students and 800 masters and doctoral students, and is comprised of 10 academic departments as well as 10 stand-alone research and service centers. The disciplines and fields encompassed by the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences explore issues that are central to our political, economic, social and cultural lives. At the core of these sciences is a drive to understand human beings both individually and collectively. By studying human behavior and the relationship between behavior and the environment, we gain insight and knowledge that enhances our development as individual members of social communities and, in so doing, enhance the development of those social communities themselves.

List of Presentations

The Beckett Family and the Re-Signification of Widowhood Post -Emancipation

Emily Boria-Figueroa, University of Puerto Rico, Ponce

Faculty Mentors: Dr. Barnet Pavao-Zuckerman, Department of Anthropology; Lae’l Hughes-Watkins, University Libraries; Douglas McElrath, University Libraries (The 1856 Project)

Parenting on Edge: Exploring the Role of Parental Stress in Children’s Executive Functioning

Mya Brown, Morgan State University

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Rachel Romeo, Program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science (NACS)

Structural Racism Index for Hispanics in the United States

Carmela De Llano Hernandez, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Julia Chuang, Department of Sociology

Structural racism, Racial Identity Beliefs, and Adverse Health Outcomes: Examining Predictive and Moderating Relationships

Kynnedi Giles-Watkins, Howard University

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Henry Willis, Department of Psychology

List of Presentations

From Cribs to Code: What Pediatricians Think About Artificial Intelligence in Pediatric care

Laila Gwathmey, Bowie State University

Faculty Mentors: Dr. Melissa Duchene-Kelly, BSU Department of Psychology and Dr. Nicholas Smith, UMD Department of Sociology (BSU-UMD Social Justice Alliance)

Mining Regulation on the Extractive Sector: A Comparative Study of Ghana and Nigeria

Hadassah Marshall, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Virginia Haufler, Department of Government and Politics

Political, Economic, and Social Influences on the Size of the Informal Sector

Trung Nguyen, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Peter Murrell, Department of Economics

Historical Philosophy of the Pan-African Founders and their contributions to African Independence

Francis Phillip, Johns Hopkins University

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Geroge Kintiba, Department of African American and Africana Studies

List of Presentations

Saltwater Intrusion Vulnerability Assessment of Aquifers in Maryland using the GALDIT Framework

Kyle Pumphrey, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Allison Bredder, Department of Geographical Sciences

Individual Differences in Mental Imagery: The relationship between aphantasia and false memory intrusions

Ella Shanava, Lewis & Clark College

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Bob Slevc, Department of Psychology

Seeing Justice Clearly: How Racial Attitudes Affect Support for Restorative Practices

NaShaun Sheffield, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Terrill Taylor, Department of Psychology

Decoding Health Disparities: A Social Epidemiology of BlackWhite Health

Charlotte Singh, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentors: Dr. Nicholas Smith, UMD Department of Sociology and Dr. Melissa Duchene-Kelly, BSU Department of Psychology (BSU-UMD Social Justice Alliance)

List of Presentations

Perceived Protection, Experienced Neglect : Black Women and Girls on Police Presence and Apathy

Trinity Smith, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Brooklynn Hitchens, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Stress in the City: When Segregation Hurts...and Sometimes Helps

Erin Smith, University of Maryland, College Park

Faculty Mentors: Dr. Nicholas Smith, Department of Sociology, and Dr. Melissa Duchene-Kelly, BSU Department of Psychology (BSU-UMD Social Justice Alliance)

A Parallel Consciousness: Kinship & Spirituality

Zamariah Strozier, Xavier University of Louisiana

Faculty Mentors: Dr. Barnet Pavao-Zuckerman, Department of Anthropology; Lae’l Hughes-Watkins, University Libraries; Douglas McElrath, University Libraries (The 1856 Project)

Emily T. Boria-Figueroa

University of Puerto Rico, ponce

The Beckett Family and the re-Signification of Widowhood Post-Emancipation

Biography:

EmilyT.Boria-Figueroa is a senior at the University of Puerto Rico, Ponce. She is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in psychology and mental Health, with a concentration in rehabilitation counseling. Her research interests center around gender studies, minority populations, and human development. Emily’s most recent research project focuses on fishermen and their eth notaxonomy. Previously, she explored the non-medical use of ADHD medication among students and the attitudes and knowledge about menstruation among Puerto Rican adolescents. Through participation in the Summer Research Initiative Program, Emily aims to strengthen her re search skills and prepare herself for a PhD in social sciences. Her goal is to further understand inequalities related to gender and minority groups.

FacultyMentors:

Dr. Barnet Pavo - Zuckerman, D epartmentofAnthropology

Lae’l Hughes-Watkins, University libraries(The1856Project)

Douglas McElrath, University libraries(The1856Project)

Abstract:

The 1856 Project is a University of Maryland initiative that investigates the ties between slavery and the founding of the Maryland Agricultural College. Just three miles south of campus is the historic Bostwick House in Bladensburg, the town’s oldest surviving building (1746). It is also a house in which hundreds of people were enslaved until the late 1860’s. The last family that held enslaved people were the Stephens, with Nichola C. Stephen as the last enslaver. After the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 many enslaved people in Maryland ran away to seek their freedom to the District of Columbia. One of the families that likely chose this route, were the Becketts. They were mentioned in the ‘Runaway Servants’ list submitted by Stephens in 1864. This list contained 35 enslaved people's names and at least 6 families. Due to the presence of Beckett’s at the Riversdale Plantation, owned by Charles Benedict Calvert, the founder of the Maryland Agricultural College, this research project aims to tell the story of the Beckett family in Bladensburg. Highlighting the critical role of Black women in shaping post-emancipation life. To conduct this research, census, historical newspapers, genealogy methodologies, archival research, and data bases like Ancestry.com and Family Search were used. The findings revealed that the post-emancipation life of the Becketts was built, and maintained by three widowed Black women-Alice, Marcellina, and Minerva Beckett. Women who were born enslaved, or from enslaved parents, yet became matriarchs of their households and lived independently until their deaths. This research portrays the narratives of three Black women who change the perspective of what widowhood meant by becoming leaders of their families and in their communities.

Mya Brown

Morgan State University

Parenting on Edge: Exploring the Role of Parental Stress in Children’s Executive Functioning

Biography:

Mya Brown is a rising senior at Morgan State University. She is a psychology major on the research track. Originally from Newark, Delaware, she is passionate about understanding how trauma manifests both psychologically and bio logically; particularly its effects on memory and behavior. Mya is currently exploring several career paths, including psychotherapist, clinical psychologist, speech-language pathologist, and researcher, all rooted in her commitment to serving underserved communities. Her long-term goal is to pursue a PhD or PsyD in clinical psychology. This summer, Mya is participating in the Summer Research Initiative to deepen her research skills and learn to effectively communicate findings across disciplines. Mya hopes this experience will support her academic and professional development as she prepares for graduate studies.

FacultyMentor:

Dr. Rachel Romeo

Abstract:

Executive functions (EFs) are key cognitive skills that support goaloriented behaviors (Diamond, 2012). Children’s EF development is largely shaped by caregiver interactions, which vary across circumstances. Parenting stress encompasses daily hassles and major stressors that parents face while raising children (Crnic & Greenberg, 1990), and is often high among socioeconomically disadvantaged families (McDorman et al., 2025). High parenting stress is associated with decreased parental sensitivity during child interactions, which can impact EF development (Oxford & Lee, 2011; Abidin, 1995). Conversely, quality parent-child relationships (PCRs) characterized by warmth and responsiveness support EF development (Ward & Lee, 2020; McDorman et al., 2025). However, we have limited understanding of how parenting stress directly relates to PCRs, and how these factors jointly influence children’s EF development. We address this gap by examining if PCRs either mediate (i.e., explain) or moderate (i.e., change) the relationship between parenting stress and children's EF among a sample of socioeconomically diverse 4-to-7-year-old children (N = 78). Caregivers completed standardized questionnaires to measure parenting stress, PCR quality, and their child’s EF skills. Analyses revealed that PCRs significantly mediated the effect of parenting stress on children’s EF, such that higher parent stress led to reduced relationship quality, which in turn led to lower EF. The lack of moderation indicated that the negative relationship between parenting stress and children’s EF remains consistent across all PCR quality levels. Together, these findings show that while PCRs explain the link between parenting stress and children's EF, stress consistently harms EF development regardless of PCR quality. These results highlight the need for future research exploring effective parenting stress reduction approaches to support children’s EF development.

Kynnedi Giles-Watkins

Howard University

Structural Racism, Racial Identity Beliefs, and Adverse Health Outcomes: Examining Predictive and Moderating Relationships

Biography:

Kynnedi Giles-Watkins is a rising junior at Howard University in Washington, DC. She is a psychology major who minors in African-American studies. Her research interests include media and racial identity formation, community development, and intergenerational trauma. Her goal is to publish research on the relationship between mass media and structural racism and how this dynamic impacts marginalized communities in America. Kynnedi is looking forward to participating in the 2025 Summer Research Initiative, where she is eager to deepen her knowledge of psychological research and develop a path towards graduate education.

FacultyMentor:

Abstract:

Prior research has shown that the racial identity beliefs of Black emerging adults play an important role in their maturation. Additionally, experiences with structural racism have been linked to adverse health outcomes in this population. Although there is information on how public regard, private regard, and racial centrality are shaped by environmental factors, there is little research on how structural racism can predict these identity beliefs. This study explores the moderating and predictive relationships between racial centrality, racial regard, structural racism, and adverse health outcomes among Black emerging adults. In total, 967 participants completed the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity (MIBI) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) to assess stress, racial centrality, public regard, and private regard. Regression analyses and the PROCESS macro for SPSS (Model 1) were used to test the theorized moderating effects. Results showed that structural racism did not predict racial centrality, public regard, or private regard. However, racial centrality moderated the relationship between structural racism and stress, as did private regard. These findings suggest that both centrality and private regard serve as protective factors against stress. Participants with higher levels of centrality and regard experienced lower stress as structural racism increased. This study highlights the importance of analyzing individual racial identity beliefs when examining black emerging adults’ experiences with racism in the United States. Further research is needed to examine how this relationship may differ across the Black diaspora.

Laila Gwathmey

Bowie State University

From Cribs to Code: What Pediatricians Think About Artificial Intelligence in Pediatric Care

Biography:

Laila Gwathmey is a graduating senior at Bowie State University. She is a psychology major and plans to go to graduate school to pursue a career in neuropsychology. Her research interests include children with abnormal disabilities, brain injuries, and Guillain-Barre syndrome. Laila is from Tappahannock, Virginia, and is the vice president of the Bowie State University Gospel Choir. She is also a member of, and serves as, Miss 1935, for the National Council of Negro Women. Laila looks forward to working in a children’s hospital and continuing her research in her graduate studies. Laila hopes that the Summer Research Initiative will equip her with the necessary research skills to earn a doctoral degree.

FacultyMentors:

Dr. Nicholas Smith

Abstract:

According to Children’s Hospital Association (2025), artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to help providers produce better health outcomes and provide more efficient care delivery for pediatric patients through tools that streamline tasks, personalized treatment, and enhance diagnostic accuracy. While AI has demonstrated success in targeted clinical applications (Demirbaş, 2024), less is known about how frontline pediatricians perceive its role in everyday practice. This study aimed to explore pediatricians’ views on the integration of AI in pediatric care. Semistructured interviews were conducted with two pediatricians. Participants acknowledged the value of implementing AI into their workspaces and clinical decision-making, but expressed their concerns regarding their personal interactions with their patients and their families, as well as the accuracy of diagnosing their patients. These insights suggest that for an effective integration of AI in pediatrics, AI tools could be used to assist pediatricians in making assessments and creating questionnaires. Additionally, AI may serve useful in summarizing sessions to develop adequate support service for their patients.

Biography:

Carmela De Llano Hernandez

University of Maryland, College Park

Structural Racism Index for Hispanics in the United States

Carmela de Llano Hernandez isarisingsenioratthe University of Maryland, College Park. She is a sociology major with a minor in demography. Currently, her primary research interests include racial interactions and racialization surrounding the Latin American community. Carmela is a member of Alpha Kappa Delta and the University of Maryland Honors college, as a member of the Honors Global Challenges and Solutions program. In addition, she is an alum of the UMD Global Fellows Program, through which she completed an internship with the U.S Census Bureau, working for the School Pulse Panel to provide an up-to-date view of the state of education in the United States. Carmela hopes that the Summer Research Initiative will help her develop the necessary quantitative research skills to prepare for graduate school, where she would like to pursue a PhD in sociology.

Abstract:

FacultyMentor:

Recently, efforts have been made to quantify structural racism. Notable is Tyson H. Brown and Patricia Homan’s article “Structural Racism and Health Stratification: Connecting Theory to Measurement,” in which they created an index measuring structural racism against Black Americans by collecting data on various manifestations of Black/White structural racism across all fifty states. Brown and Homan use this index to analyze the relationship between structural racism and health outcomes. However, this work has not expanded to studying Hispanics. The goal of this research is to address the need for research on the effects of structural racism on the Hispanic population by replicating Brown and Homan’s method, aiming to create a structural racism index for Hispanics across the United States. Due to structural racism being considered a latent variable, data was gathered on its symptoms. These variables were combined through a ConfirmatoryFactor Analysis. The selected model produced a structural racism index score for each state, which was then mapped. The results signal that Hispanics experience a significantly higher level of structural racism in northern and midwestern states, while border states had the lowest levels of structural racism against Hispanics. One possible explanation for this includes a protective effect from being around coethnics. Another explanation is that the states with lower structural racism have a longer legacy of a Hispanic presence, allowing for the development of strong Hispanic political organizations. Future steps include testing to see if there is a significant relationship between structural racism against Hispanics and health outcomes.

Biography:

Hadassah Marshall

University of Maryland, College Park

Mining Regulation on the Extractive Sector: A Comparative Study of Ghana and Nigeria

Hadassah Marshall attends the University of Maryland, College Park. She is a government and politics major and is also pursuing a Master of Public Policy (MPP) through the 4 + 1 program. She is originally from Maryland and graduated with honors from Eleanor Roosevelt High School in 2023. Her future plans include pursuing both a JD and a PhD in political science or international relations, with a specialization in international development, economic policy, and social justice. She aspires to become a legal expert and policy analyst who contributes to the formulation of equitable global policies through work with international organizations, think tanks, and government agencies. Currently, her research interests lie in public policy and international relations with a focus on how global governance structures, and sustainable development.

FacultyMentor:

Abstract:

This study investigates the relationship between mining sector regulation and local stability in West Africa, focusing on Ghana's Ashanti Region and Nigeria's Plateau State between 2000 and 2025. It examines how labor rights, environmental safeguards, and anti-illicit finance policies influence conflict dynamics in resource-rich areas. A central focus in this study is the role of foreign companies in the extractive sector and how regulations governing their participation influence a state’s stability. Nigeria and Ghana are postcolonial, resource-rich democracies, but differ in regulation and conflict outcomes. While international investment can bring capital and expertise, weak oversight of foreign buyers and operators, particularly in artisanal mining, can contribute to illicit trade, exploitation, and instability. Drawing on regulatory policies, conflict event datasets, and institutional quality indicators, the study finds that sub-national enforcement capacity, rather than the existence of regulation alone, is the critical factor determining whether mineral extraction exacerbates or mitigates instability. This research also highlights gaps in global regulatory oversight when foreign actors source minerals, posing challenges to conflict prevention.

Trung Nguyen University of Maryland, College Park

Political, Economic, and Social Influences on the Size of the Informal Sector

Biography:

Trung Nguyen is a senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is a social data science (SDSC) major on the economics track. Trung has worked on several SDSC projects as an undergraduate-including analysis of factors that affect ranked choice voting, and design database systems. Trung hopes these projects will provide him with programming and research skills to be successful in the Summer Research Initiatives. He is also co-treasurer for Terps Against Hunger, an organization dedicated to combat food insecurity in the D.C/Maryland/Virginia community. His ultimate goal is to be the first person in his family to pursue a PhD and conduct research on economic institutions. Trung hopes to pursue a career at the Federal Reserve.

Abstract:

FacultyMentor:

This research analyzes the political, economic, and social influences on the size of the informal sector across 172 countries from 1990 to 2020. The informal sector is defined as economic activities that are not formally registered or regulated by the government. A large informal sector is detrimental to a country’s development by lowering productivity. Using panel data from VDem and the World Bank, this study explores the influence of GDP per capita, women civil liberties index, accountability index, education equality, rule of law, political violence, and democracy on the size of the informal sector (measured as a share of official GDP). Both Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Fixed Effects (FE) models are used to test theories. The OLS results show that most variables are statistically significant, but the FE model shows the opposite is true. This means that the between-country differences that are reflected in the OLS estimates are subject to omitted variable bias. When country-specific factors are introduced in the FE estimates that bias is removed. Democracy remains statistically significant, suggesting that within-country changes in democratic participation may influence informality. The findings highlight the importance of unobserved country-specific variables such as religion, history, and culture. The research suggests that reducing the size of the informal sector requires more than standard institutional development or education reforms but deeper reforms that address the specifics of individual countries. Future research should study measurable country-specific variables like religion, culture, and history to further understand the informal sector. This research demonstrates the limitations of cross-country analysis when the idiosyncratic characteristics of countries are most important in affecting a phenomenon such as informality.

Biography:

Francis Phillip Johns Hopkins University

Historical Philosophy of the Pan-African Founders and their Contributions to African Independence

Francis Phillip is a rising senior at Johns Hopkins University. He is majoring in moral and political economy (MPE). In the spring of 2024, he graduated from the Community College of Baltimore County with an AA in general studies. Initially transferring as an economics major, Francis switched to MPE at Hopkins for an interdisciplinary education and more support for independent research. In the fall of 2025, Francis will begin his senior thesis as a graduation requirement for the program. Following the footsteps of African activist-intellectuals like Walter Rodney and W.E.B DuBois, he will focus on the underdevelopment of West African countries in the 21st century. Francis hopes to pursue a PhD in economics and support efforts to broaden diversity in the field.

Abstract:

FacultyMentor:

Pan-Africanism can be understood as “the efforts to promote the political, socio-economic and cultural unity, emancipation and selfreliance of Africa and its diaspora” (Adebajo, 2021, p. 4). This movement was a response and a solution to the oppression inflicted on Africans and African-descended people by European slavery and colonialism (Adebajo, 2021, p. 4; Clarke, p. 28-9; Esedebe, p. 20). Pan-African thought originated in the “New World” and transformed into concrete political movements/organizations struggling for African independence, such as Nkrumah’s Gold Coast Nationalist Party and the Organization for African Unity. Using historical and internal criticism coupled with contextualization and historical argumentation, this poster traces the evolution of Pan-Africanism by analyzing five key figures across the U.S., the Caribbean, and Africa: Henry Williams Sylvester, W.E.B. Du Bois, Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamdi Azikiwe, and Jomo Kenyatta. We learn that Pan-Africanism evolved from an idea to a movement through the first Pan-African Conference and the subsequent Pan-African Congresses, and that the movement eventually went from the diaspora to the continent. Women made substantial, though overlooked, contributions to PanAfricanism, which were typically outside of these large Pan-African conventions. We can conclude that the freedom of African-descended people in the diaspora connects to the freedom of African people on the continent. Understanding this history is crucial for ending the collective misery of Africans that continues today through racist colonial structures of domination. Future research could investigate (1) connections between early Pan-Africanism and modern-day versions (e.g., the Alliance of Sahel States); (2) the impact of PanAfricanism on African youth in the 21st century, and (3) connections between Pan-Arabism and Pan-Africanism.

Kyle Pumphrey

University of Maryland, College Park

Saltwater Intrusion Vulnerability Assessment of Aquifers in Maryland using the GALDIT Framework

Biography:

Kyle Pumphrey is a rising senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is currently on the combined BS/MS track to complete both his bachelor’s and master’s in geographical sciences. He is originally from Baltimore County, Maryland, and graduated from Archbishop Curley High School in Baltimore. Kyle’s research interests include using GIS and remote sensing methods to quantify and provide solutions to issues related to climate change and its human causes and impacts. Kyle has used remote sensing date in the past few years to analyze the climate change-induced drought in the Amazon River Basin in Amazonas, Brazil. He has also recently used GUS to analyze the impacts of segregation in Baltimore county by using U.S census data on race, population, crime, median household income, and the proportions of residents living below the poverty line to discern any lasting spatial patterns that persist in the 21st century. He foresees that his experience in the Summer Research Internship will be instrumental in preparing him for his scholarly product required for his master’s degree and helping him decide if he will pursue a doctoral degree after completing the BS/MS program.

Abstract:

Saltwater intrusion (SWI) the landward encroachment of saline water into freshwater aquifers poses an escalating threat in coastal regions due to the interplay of natural processes and human activities. In Maryland’s coastal plain, SWI is of particular concern, driven by accelerated sea-level rise and the region’s dependence on groundwater-irrigated agriculture. Salinization of agricultural soils alters biogeochemical properties, which can lead to diminished productivity and can ultimately render land unsuitable for cultivation. Given that agriculture constitutes Maryland’s largest commercial industry, understanding and mitigating SWI impacts is crucial. This study employs the GALDIT method to assess aquifer and farmland vulnerability to SWI across Maryland. GALDIT parameters include groundwater occurrence (aquifer type), aquifer hydraulic conductivity, groundwater level elevation relative to sea level, distance to shoreline, existing SWI impact (chloride content), and aquifer thickness. Utilizing data from the Maryland Geological Survey and U.S. Geological Survey, we integrated Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques including inverse distance weighted interpolation, distance accumulation, raster calculations, and overlays with cropland areas to assess the vulnerability of every farm in Maryland to SWI. 720,000 acres of farmland, or over 60% of the total farmland across the state are vulnerable, including over 14,000 acres facing high risk of SWI. In several coastal counties including Dorchester, Worcester, Wicomico, and Somerset, every acre of farmland is at least moderately vulnerable to SWI. Key crops like corn and soybeans are under threat, with thousands of acres vulnerable to SWI The resulting maps and data products provide a valuable tool for state, county, and farm-level planning and serve as a foundation for future research addressing SWI, sea-level rise, groundwater sustainability, and climate resilience in Maryland.

Biography:

NaShaun Sheffield University of Maryland, College Park

Seeing Justice Clearly: How Racial Attitudes Affect Support for Restorative Practices

NaShaun Sheffield is a rising senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is a human development major in the College of Education. He is originally from Maryland and has worked in a variety of student support roles, including as a resident assistant, orientation advisor, and teaching assistant, where he’s helped first-year students transition into college life. He is also a member of the professional business fraternity, Phi Chi Theta (Alpha Mu chapter). His experiences have fueled a passion for educational equity and student advocacy, especially for first-generation college students and students of color. After graduation, he plans to pursue a graduate degree in psychology to become a clinical psychologist. He is particularly interested in the intersection of mental health, identity, and academic performance in underrepresented student populations. Currently, his research interests focus on the social development of students of color in predominantly white, K-12 institutions.

Abstract:

FacultyMentor:

While restorative justice (RJ) has gained attention in some educational spaces as an alternative to traditional punishment, there is limited research on how individuals’ thoughts about racial dynamics may influence their support for RJ practices. This study explored the relationship between color-blind racial attitudes and support for restorative justice practices in a university setting, while also examining the degree to which this relationship differs between college students and faculty/staff. 771 participants (ages 18–77; M = 35.08, SD = 12.37) completed an online survey that included the Color -Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (CoBRAS) and the Restorative Justice Attitudes Scale (RJAS. Results of a correlation analysis suggested that there was a significant negative relationship between color-blind racial attitudes and support for restorative justice (r = –.441 for faculty, r = –.347 for students), in support of our hypothesis. Moderation analysis, using Hayes PROCESS Macro Model 1, found that institutional affiliation (faculty/staff vs. student) did not significantly moderate this relationship. However, results from a subsequent ANOVA showed that faculty/staff reported significantly lower levels of color-blind racial attitudes than students, and there was no significant difference between groups in their RJ support. These findings highlight the role of racial awareness in shaping support for restorative practices and may suggest that implementing RJ effectively requires direct engagement with underlying racial beliefs. Limitations include uneven group sizes, self-report bias, and the inability to draw causal inferences due to the cross-sectional design. Future research should include more diverse samples and explore interventions that increase racial awareness to strengthen RJ implementation in education.

Charlotte Singh University of Maryland, College Park

Decoding Health Disparities: A Social Epidemiology of Black-White Health

Biography:

Charlotte Singh is a rising senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is a psychology major with a minor in entrepreneurship. She was born and raised in New York and she has always been passionate about understanding people and building community. Last summer, she interned with William Morris Endeavor, where she worked in the Impact, Inclusion, and Advocacy Department. That experience deepened her commitment to ensure that underrepresented voices are valued and heard. She plans to pursue a master’s or doctoral degree in psychology. Her research interests focus on mental health of Black and Brown communities and how culturally responsive practices can be used to promote healing, equity, access to care, and long-term well-being, She is excited to work closely with her mentors this summer to learn more about the field of research and gain the skills that will help prepare her for graduate school and beyond.

Abstract:

Faculty Mentors:

Dr. Nicholas Smith

Dr. Melissa Duchene-Kelly

Ample research shows that Black Americans experience poorer physical health outcomes relative to their White counterparts. Socioeconomic status (SES) and stressors have been identified as key mechanisms underlying Black-White health disparities; however, past research has often relied on a narrow set of SES indicators and stressors, and has rarely quantified the relative contributions of these factors to racial disparities in health. Drawing on the stress process model and data from a stratified probability sample of Indiana residents (N = 2,469), we provide a more comprehensive analysis of SES and stress exposure as mediators of Black-White health disparities. In particular, we ask and address two research questions. First, what is the nature and magnitude of the Black-White disparity in self-rated health? Second, to what extent do SES and stressors mediate any observed Black-White disparities in self-rated health? Consistent with prior studies, we find that Black respondents have poorer self-rated health compared to White respondents. In the restricted models that individually adjust for SES and stressors, the magnitude of the Black-White disparity in self-rated health attenuated by 73% and 82%, respectively. In the full model that concurrently adjusts for SES and stressors, the Black-White health disparity was fully reduced, and both SES and stressors contributed to the overall mediating effect. Findings of this study highlight the need for interventions that expand opportunities for upward social mobility among Black Americans and reduce their exposure to stressful experiences across the life course. Future work should extend this research to a broader range of racial/ethnic groups and replicate this study in diverse geographic regions to assess the generalizability of these findings.

Ella Shanava Lewis & Clark College

Individual Differences in Mental Imagery: The relationship between aphantasia and false memory intrusions

Biography:

Ella Shanava is a junior at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon, majoring in psychology and minoring in neuroscience. Ella is originally from Sunnyvale, California. She has competed on the Lewis and Clark rowing team for two years, and is part of Hillel Student Leadership. Her primary research interests include the neural mechanisms of mental imagery extremes and how neurodivergence is related to memory and learning. Ella’s future career goals are to pursue a graduate degree in the cognitive sciences and conduct research on aphantasia, the inability to generate mental imagery.

FacultyMentor:

Abstract:

Mental imagery is an essential aspect of cognition. However, the recent rediscovery of aphantasia the inability to generate mental imagery has led to increased understanding of the variability in individuals’ mental imagery experience. The lack of mental imagery in aphantasia is often assumed to result in deficiencies in memory, learning, and emotion. However, we are interested in individual differences in mental imagery, and the ways that aphantasia is a variation in human experience, rather than a disorder. To explore this, we recruited participants both with and without aphantasia to complete an online study consisting of a visual memory task, verbal memory task, and questionnaires to evaluate imagery vividness. In the visual task, participants viewed images, described them from memory, and then saw lists of items and indicated which they recognized from the images, and which were new. Similarly, for the verbal task, participants heard lists of thematically related words, recalled as many as they could from memory, and then saw a list of words and indicated which they recognized, and which were new. While data collection is still ongoing, preliminary analyses of the recognition tasks show no significant differences in overall accuracy in aphantasic and nonaphantasic groups. However, more vivid visual imagery is correlated with an increased proportion of false memory intrusions memory for items that were not present on the original stimuli. This highlights that while mental imagery is a useful memory tool, it is also associated with costs. The act of generating mental imagery likely facilitates memory but also increases the frequency of false memory intrusions. This work contributes to a growing understanding of how variability in mental imagery impacts cognitive processing.

Biography:

Erin Smith

University of Maryland, College Park

Stress in the City: When Segregation Hurts...and Sometimes Helps

Erin Smith is a rising junior at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is a sociology major with a minor in anti-Black racism. Erin is an alumni of the College Park Scholars Program (Justice and Legal Thought program). Her goal is to pursue a PhD in sociology and work in domestic violence advocacy and policy. Erin is a member of The Petal Project organization, which raises awareness for victims of relationship based violence. She has also maintained a three-year partnership with My Sister’s Place-DC, which is a shelter for victims of relationship violence and their families. Eril is also a Lakeland STARs tutor and a Terp Community mentor. Her research interests include examining the effects of affirmative action decisions on the educational experiences and outcomes of Black and Brown students. She hopes that this experience will prepare her to transition smoothly into graduate school.

FacultyMentors:

Abstract:

Scholars have identified racial residential segregation as a fundamental cause of disease among Black Americans. Although a substantial body of empirical research has linked segregation to an array of physical health outcomes, comparatively less attention has been devoted to exploring the impact of segregation on Black Americans’ mental health. The limited number of studies that have examined the mental health effects of segregation have produced mixed findings, which may stem, in part, from cross-study differences in the geographic scale at which segregation has been measured. Notably, few studies have operationalized racial residential segregation at the neighborhood level, creating a disconnect between theoretical frameworks which focus mainly on neighborhood effects and empirical approaches. Drawing on the stress process model and data from the Person-toPerson Health Interview Study (N = 2,645), we address two research questions. First, what is the nature of the association between neighborhood racial segregation and depression severity among Black individuals? Second, to what extent do mastery and neighborhood poverty mediate or suppress this relationship? Results suggest that Black respondents residing in more racially segregated neighborhoods have lower depression severity. Individually adjusting for mastery and neighborhood poverty were associated with a 53% decrease (effect mediation) and 23% increase (effect suppression), respectively, in the magnitude of the association between neighborhood racial segregation and depression severity. In the full model that included all study variables, there was a counterbalancing effect of mastery and neighborhood poverty in the association between neighborhood racial segregation and depression severity. We discuss the implications of these findings for research on racial residential segregation and health.

Biography:

Trinity Smith University of Maryland, College Park

Perceived Protection, Experienced Neglect: Black Women and Girls on Police Presence and Apathy

Trinity Smith is a risingjunior at the Universityof Maryland, College Park. She is a double major in psychology and criminology/ criminal justice. She has served as the first vice president of the UMD chapter of the National Council of Negro Women, and vice president of the UMD Black Student Union. Her primary research interest center on patterns of criminal behavior, particularly how environmental factors influence youth involvement in crime and gang activity. Trinity plans to pursue a master’s degree from UMD and an addiction studies certificate from John Jay College of Criminal Justice. She aspires to earn both a JD and a PhD in psychology. Trinity is looking forward to deepening her understanding of criminal behavior and contributing to the field. Passionate about collaborative research, Trinity is eager to join a research team and dive deeper into the field of criminology.

FacultyMentor:

Abstract:

Led by Dr. Brooklynn Hitchens, this research examines in-depth qualitative interviews collected in Wilmington, Delaware, and Baltimore, Maryland. In Wilmington, Hitchens utilized Street Participatory Action Research (Street PAR) methodology to examine experiences of health, opportunity, and violence among Black streetidentified individuals. The larger project collected over 100 in-depth interviews. In Baltimore, Hitchens and fellow UMD faculty collected 93 in-depth interviews from local men and women. Dr. Hitchens sought to understand how police interacted with bystanders at the scene of a crime and how those interactions shaped residents’ opinions of the police. My project specifically focused on female residents’ experiences with and perceptions of violence and policing. Using thematic coding, I examined a subset of 20 interview transcripts 10 from Wilmington and 10 from Baltimore–developing two new research questions. First: What factors have shaped Black women’s perceptions of apathy among police officers toward low-income Black communities? Second: How have their lived experiences with local law enforcement shaped Black women’s desire for a police presence in their neighborhoods? A recurring theme was the experience of police neglect coupled with a continued desire for police presence. However, very few (n=2) endorsed current policing methods; instead, there was strong support for a shift toward community-style policing. Future research should focus on identifying and developing policing methods that help residents feel connected to and protected by their local officers and, in turn, foster officers' connection to the communities they serve.

Zamariah Strozier

Xavier University of Louisiana

A Parallel Consciousness: Kinship & Spirituality

Biography:

Zamariah Strozier is a rising senior at Xavier University in New Orleans, Louisiana. She is a mass communication major and an African American diaspora studies minor. Her primary research interests include educational insecurities and the lack of cultural preservation of the African American community in the South and archival and curatorial practices. She hopes to one day create and own her own archival museum that preserves the present culture and legacies of African Americans. Zamariah plans to attend graduate school to s degree in strategic communication

Lae’l Hughes-Watkins, Universitylibraries(The1856Project)

Douglas McElrath, University libraries(The1856Project)

Abstract:

My research, A Parallel Consciousness: Kinship & Spirituality project, analyzed and examined primary and secondary sources of documentation to curate micro-biographies from individual and family information of 19th century enslavement. The project focused specifically on the ties of enslavement to the prominent Sothoron family of the Plains Plantation located in St. Mary’s County near Benedict Charles County and the Patuxent River. John Henry Sothoron was on the board of Trustees of the Maryland Agricultural College which became the University of Maryland. He was an enslaver of about 82 slaves during his time as well. From those 82 people in enslavement, Abraham(Abram) Harris was an individual embodying spirituality while the Morris family exemplified kinship. From qualitative data and document analysis, kinship and spirituality were concluded to be consistent themes explored through ethnographic and genealogy methods. Both themes, being extensions of ancestral veneration, guidance from ancestors to exemplify in the living world. Ultimately, this research reframes the historical narrative of enslaved people to portray the parallels of the souls and mindsets of those enslaved and the enslaver. Abraham Harris’ story is a testimony of the faith, morality, and education he possessed to his freedom. The Morris family is an early representation of dismantling the broken image of Black families and their dynamics.

College of Behavioral and Social Sciences

2025 SRI Scholars & Program Administration

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