Meet the Team

Past Members

Many students have helped make the ACCESS lab a success! Below are students that have previously participated in the lab, for which we are grateful!

daniel Dieva

Dan is a veteran that has served in the United States Marine Corps and has deployed in support of both Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). After 8 years, earning the rank of Sergeant, Dan was honorably discharged and transitioned back to civilian life. He was a truck driver for 3 years before realizing his true purpose is being of service to others. Dan then quit his job, enrolled in school full-time and became an active member within the veteran community. He started the Stockton (CA) chapter of Team Red, White, and Blue (Team RWB), which is a nationally known Veteran Service Organization. Team RWB’s mission is to enrich the lives of America’s veterans by connecting them to their community through physical and social activity. Dan was able to grow the Stockton chapter to over 200 members within 2 years, and has been professional recognized by the city’s Mayor and local officials. Dan has been a volunteer mentor for Veterans Treatment Court and was s founding member of the United Veterans Council of San Joaquin County.

Dan moved to Tampa with his son in 2019 and earned his BSW at USF in May 2021. He has been involved with the ACCESS lab since January 2021 and worked on several projects. He is currently enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC) and pursuing his MSW with a concentration on Military Social Work. Dan’s professional goals include obtaining licensure as an LCSW and earning a PhD with specific interests in Adverse Childhood Experiences, childhood trauma, resiliency, and the developing concept around Positive Social Work.

Gabriella Sanabria

Gabriella Sanabria earned her MEd in Community Development, with a certificate in Global Health at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. Although originally a Florida native, Gabby has spent the last several years living in New York City working at Columbia University Irving Medical Center as a Research Coordinator specializing in mHealth interventions. Gabby recently moved back to Florida in the Fall of 2020 to begin her PhD at the University of South Florida, College of Public Health.

Her research interests include using eHealth technology for health interventions surrounding mental health and access to care. She is particularly interested in using eHealth to help provide equitable access to health services for Spanish-speaking community members. When not in lab or class, Gabby enjoys taking her English Mastiff, Niko, out on walks in the neighborhood and spending time with family.

George Appiah Danquah 

George A. Danquah earned an Associate Degree in Business Administration in 2011 from Northern Virginia Community College and a Bachelor of Arts, concentration in Organizational Administration from George Mason University in 2015. George is currently majoring in Social Work at the master’s level at the University of South Florida and holds CompTIA Security + CE and Alcohol and Drug Counselor ADC certifications. He has about 8 years of experience in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health fields, currently working as a certified Substance Abuse Counselor at Washburn House, the Promises, Inc. in Worcester, MA, and Mental Health Counselor II at the Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital (WRCH-UMASS). He’s highly skilled in conducting evaluations of clients’ bio-psychosocial assessment, diagnostic formulation, and initial treatment plans. George also facilitates psychoeducation, clinical education, and process groups and meets with clients to assist in attaining treatment goals. 

George is currently a member of Dr. Galea’s access lab at USF and is participating in a research project focusing on “Evaluating the impact of incentives on clinical trials participation” and “From ambivalence to action – using a conversational agent or ‘chatbot’ to support smoking cessation: a proof-of-concept study”. He’s a CEO and founder of a nonprofit organization, CCACEM, that partners with other organizations and agencies to serve impoverished communities by building infrastructures and providing pipe-borne waters in third-world countries globally. He’s passionate about addressing social justice issues and improving the quality of life among underserved populations and has an interest in behavioral research. George is hoping to pursue a Ph.D. in social work after completing his masters in the Fall of 2024.

JULIA HORNUNG

Julia Hornung is majoring in psychology at the University of South Florida. During her academic journey, Julia managed to earn her associates in arts degree while simultaneously attending high school. Throughout her time in high school, she presented presentations at research conferences regarding personality disorders and additional topics involving motives and behaviors. Julia’s passion for mental health has originated throughout her own personal experiences and wishes to apply her knowledge and personal experience into the field of clinical psychology. Julia gradually gained experience in the mental health field during her first years attending USF. Throughout her time attending USF she earned her certification as a behavioral technician, and she is eager to continuing aiding the community while earning her education.

Once Julia graduates with her bachelor’s degree, she aims to attend the clinical program at the University of South Florida and will continue to participate in research during her academic and professional journey.

Kevin Edward antwi

Kevin Edward Antwi is a second-year doctoral student at the University of South Florida’s School of Social Work. Kevin earned his MSW from the Joint Master of Social Work Program between North Agricultural and Technical State University (NCAT) and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG). Prior to this, Kevin earned a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Ghana. As a doctoral student, Kevin is interested in minority populations who are confronted with challenges in accessing treatment for substance misuse, as well as, the interplay between criminology, Juvenile gun violence, and mental health. Kevin currently intervenes with minority male teenagers at Safe and Sound Hillsborough, an organization involved in community violence prevention. 

KHUSBU PATEL

Khusbu is an undergraduate student at USF. She is majoring in Biomedical Science and minoring in Psychology. She has always been a very huge advocate of mental health and became more passionate about this field after taking Psychology classes. 

After obtaining her Bachelor's, Khusbu wants to apply to Medical schools and aspires to become a Physician one day. In her free time she loves to hang out with family and friends, travel to new places, photography, and eat new foods!

KIERRA CYDRUS

Kierra is an undergraduate student at USF working toward her Bachelor's in Social Work.  The mental health field has been a growing interest for her as she progresses through her academic career. While still new to research, she was helping with the ACCESS Lab and learning along the way.

Kierra hopes to one day become a mental health therapist. She plans to pursue her Master's in Social Work so she can further involve herself in the field of mental health and follow her passion. Her outside interests include creative and mindful activities such as painting and puzzles.

Mal lea

Mal Lea graduated with an Associate's Degree from Santa Fe College in Spring 2022 and is currently an undergraduate student at USF’s School of Public Health. In the summer of 2022, Mal completed the Maternal Child Health Care/ Research Initiatives for Student Enhancement- Undergraduate Program (MCHC/RISE-UP) at the Kennedy Krieger Institute, an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. In the fall, they also completed an advocacy internship with Planned Parenthood. Both internships focused on health advocacy for underrepresented communities. 
 
Mal's research interests include health equity and community health. They have completed projects pertaining to HIV/AIDS accessibility, social media ethics in health care, and local events advocating for sex destigmatization. While completing their undergraduate degree, Mal has been focusing on breaking barriers to transgender health- particularly in Florida. They're currently working on a research project about non-binary youth experiences when accessing mental, physical, and gender-affirming care. They hope to pursue their MPH/Ph.D after graduation to continue their work empowering LGBTQ+ and other minoritized communities with accurate, safe, and accessible health information. They currently live in Gainesville, FL, where they are an active member of the social justice community. 

maria salome velez

Maria Salome completed both her undergraduate and graduate studies at East Tennessee University, Johnson City, TN- in Social Work.  Salome holds a Licensed Clinical Social Work license in North Carolina and a Licensed Master Level Social License in Tennessee.  Salome has diverse work experience which includes Department of Children’s Services-Investigator of child abuse and neglect often partnering with local agencies in crisis situations, a crisis stabilization agency providing intensive in-home care with at risk youth to prevent hospitalization and custodial care.  Salome also worked as lead clinician in an Office of Refugee and Resettlement agency with unaccompanied minors from predominantly Central American countries, providing clinical supervision to clinical staff and completing assessments including screening for human trafficking of the minors.  Salome provided individual therapy for collegiate athletes at Tusculum University and worked in clinical settings providing child/adolescents/adult- individual therapy and couples’ therapy for clients with a broad range of mental health issues.  Salome has been a guest lecturer for courses in cultural diversity at Northeast Tennessee State College.  Salome Velez is currently a Research Study Coordinator for a NIMH funded project at USF and will also be starting the PhD program in Social Work in the fall 2023.  

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, being outdoors and cooking. Salome’s interest in doctoral research are working in identifying and addressing barriers for undocumented immigrants especially minors and family units accessing mental health resources once they are in the United States  and influence and advocate policy changes needed to service one of the world’s most vulnerable populations.  

Moya gordon

Moya is an undergraduate student at USF working towards her bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Her research interest includes the implementation of preventative measures for families undergoing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s) and the implementation of mental health interventions for people suffering from psychological disorders. Her goal is to become a Clinical Psychologist with concentration in Child Development and Psychodynamics.

Moya has spent majority of her time volunteering and interning during the summertime. In summer of 2022, she interned at Champions for Children in the Parent as Teachers program where she implemented evidence-based research and conducted various home studies. While at this program Moya gained more in-depth knowledge of understanding child development and the pros of valuing disorganization and disruption in child growth.

Moya has also been a part of the Guardian Ad Litem program for 10 months. As a guardian, she conducts singular case design research through information gathering, facilitation and advocacy. Her interest in advocacy stems from her job as a Certified Nurse Assistant. Moreover, she received training in SPSS and Excel through summer course, PSY 3213.

Moya is currently a member of Dr. Galea’s Lab and is working alongside researchers on project, CIPHER, which focuses on “Formative research to understand the views, opinions, and preferences of Adolescents living with HIV, their caregivers, and HIV program personnel regarding depression care,” through a program chatbot responsive system.

Once Moya graduates with her bachelor’s degree she would like to attend graduate school to Pursue her MSW and PhD in Psychology. By volunteering in the lab, she hopes to gain more research experience, publish articles and present at conferences in the rest of her academic and professional career. In her free time, she enjoys hiking with her mom, trying new foods, and spending time with her friends.

neil rupani 

Neil is a medical student at the University of South Florida Morsani college of medicine, interested in global mental health, integrated medicine, and empowering historically silenced communities. He graduated from Brown University in 2023 with a degree in Public Health, where he was involved in a variety of global health projects. He founded and led a student organization that worked with communities in Obuasi, Ghana and Loma Bonita, Mexico, with a focus on improving community health systems and water filtration through task-sharing and e-health tools. Alongside global health service, he conducted global emergency medicine and humanitarian research with the Division of Global Emergency Medicine and Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies at Brown. These studies focused on a vaccine for Ebola Virus Disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo and highlighting experiences of marginalized communities dealing with COVID-19 in Brazil. Neil is excited to bring his experiences to the ACCESS lab at USF and continue to shift the onus of power in global health from North America and Western Europe towards communities that have been historically silenced.   

RITA AMES

Rita is a psychologist and graduate of the San Agustin National University in Peru and holds a Master's Degree in Occupational Health and Safety from Monash University in Australia.
She is currently teaching at the undergraduate level in Peru. Her research is oriented to the promotion of mental health and awareness of social determinants. She does volunteer work with vulnerable groups, mostly women in Peru. She plans to pursue a PhD in mental health and wellness in the near future.

Sara romero 

Sara A. Romero, Ph.D. is a research fellow in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School under the mentorship of Dr. Vikram Patel, Pershing Square Professor of Global Health in the Blavatnik Institute’s Department of Global Health and Social Medicine. Dr. Romero contributes to the digitization of trainings for frontline workers to deliver psychosocial interventions via the EMPOWER Program, a Harvard Medical School’s initiative to expand the mental health work force by training front-line workers to deliver psychological therapies for mood, anxiety, trauma-related, and addiction-related mental health problems. In addition to her work on EMPOWER, Dr. Romero’s program of research integrates interdisciplinary and multi-method approaches to understand how the interplay of cultural values and psychosocial factors influence stress and trauma reactions for Latinos in the Americas. With this knowledge Dr. Romero aims to create an intervention to address stress and trauma reactions for Latinos. Dr. Romero received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Mount Saint Mary College, her Master of Arts in Psychology in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, and her Doctor of Philosophy in Clinical Psychology from Fordham University. 

SHELTON GILYARD

Shelton is a Ph.D. student in the Social Work program, and earned his BSW/MSW from the University of South Florida. His professional experiences include work as a funding Contract Manager for a local funder, an Autism Consultant at CARD-USF, and a Case Manager in USF Pediatrics. Shelton’s passion for social work started in during undergraduate studies, when he volunteered in the rehabilitation hospital which had provided comprehensive care and support for his grandmother. He is a former Olympic level athlete, competing at the 2004 Olympic Team Trials and broke multiple American records in the sport of Olympic Weighting.

Shelton’s research interest is in the area of community health outcomes and equitable access to mental health services for individuals with special needs. He has particular interests in the intersectionality of mental health and obesity among children impacted by autism spectrum disorder. When he’s not in classes, Shelton enjoys working out, mentoring and coaching youth athletic

TANNER BAEDER

Tanner is a USF MSW graduate. He received his bachelor’s degree in Social Work as well (BSW) and has experience serving individuals living with HIV by providing case management, advocacy, education and outreach. Tanner worked with the ACCESS Lab on a variety of projects, kickstarting his interest in Behavioral Research. Tanner is pursuing clinical licensure followed by a PhD in the mental health field. He hopes to utilize his experience in clinical work to inspire further research and assist in the development of the mental health field.

Tanner’s work with the ACCESS lab was on the accessibility and feasibility of chatbots as mental health resource navigators. Through focus groups, interviews and pilot testing, the projects investigated the impact that a chatbot has on first responders who are in direct contact with COVID-19. Led by Principal Investigators, Jerome Galea and Kristin Kosyluk, Tanner and the research team hope to address the stigma that first responders face in regard to their mental health and connect them to the appropriate resources based on the severity of their distress.