Faculty and Staff

Megan has been a part of the iGrow team from the very beginning. She now oversees the iGrow, iGrowUP and iGrowCARES Studies.  She has worked at UNCG since 2010, starting as a research assistant on the Triad Child Study. She moved into a project coordinator position for the School Transition and Academic Readiness (S.T.A.R.) Project for 4 years, until the grant ended, then moved ito her role on the iGrow Study. In her time at UNCG she served as the Assistant Coordinator for the Child and Family Research Network at UNCG for over a year, and is currently on the N.C. Research Administrators Alliance (NCRAA) Conference Planning Committee. She graduated with her M.S. in Child Development and Family Relations from East Carolina University in December 2009, and her B.S., also from E.C.U., in Family and Community Services in May 2008. In her free time, she enjoys attending her kids’ sporting events, playing softball, photography, spending time with family and friends, shopping for a good book and traveling. Her family loves to visit new places and find something unusual to do in each location. She has 2 kids, 3 step-kids, 3 dogs and a cat!

Meghan graduated from UNCG with a degree in Anthropology and a minor in Human Development & Family Studies (HDFS). Afterward, she attended the Child & Family Studies graduate program at the University of Tennessee – Knoxville, where she had the unique opportunity to conduct field research in Ethiopia. During her undergraduate studies, Meghan worked on another of Dr. Esther Leerkes’ research projects (Triad Child Study – TCS) and is thrilled to have returned to her alma mater as a member of the iGrow research team. In her free time, Meghan enjoys spending time with family and friends, teaching private violin & fiddle lessons, singing and playing music, and traveling whenever possible.

Juliana graduated from NCSU in 2022, earning her degree in Psychology alongside a minor in Middle Eastern Studies to pursue her passion for behavioral research while remaining connected to her Palestinian heritage. Since 2020, she has worked in the Social Development Lab at NCSU as a research assistant, contributing work to several projects centered around topics including gender-based cyber bullying, adolescent peer interactions, and young-adults’ perception of microaggressions. Juliana is personally interested in understanding the ways socio-emotional regulation strategies are modeled in parent-child relationships and researching ways to positively impact that dynamic to help build stronger families in the future. She is absolutely thrilled to be welcomed onto the iGrow team to be able to contribute to the important research being conducted every day. In her free time, Juliana loves to spend quality time with her friends and family, watch good movies, read thrillers, and is currently learning the saxophone.

Emily is a recent graduate of UNCG’s Kinesiology master’s program, where she concentrated in Sport and Exercise Psychology. In 2022, she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Goucher College. Emily has contributed to research that looks at the association between total physical activity, domain-specific physical activity, social support, the built environment, stress, and mental health across various populations, including adolescent girls, older adults, student-athletes, and military personnel. During her time in the Physical Activity and Lifetime Wellness Lab, as well as through her roles at the Center for Women’s Health and Wellness and the Middle College, she developed both quantitative and qualitative research skills. These include participant recruitment, data collection and cleaning, coding, and analysis. Through her involvement with iGrow, Emily looks forward to gaining hands-on experience with a new form of data collection and expanding her understanding of developmental and behavioral psychology, aiming to be well-prepared to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical or counseling psychology in the future. In her free time, she enjoys running, cooking and baking, reading and writing, and couch time spent with reality television.