Our Team

Meet the research team in the CIRRCLE lab! 

Dr. Sungha Kang
Director
Click here to hear how my name is pronounced! 

Dr. Kang is an assistant professor of clinical psychology at Loyola University Chicago. She received her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Iowa and her M.S. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and completed her pre-doctoral internship at the University of Illinois Chicago Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Kang's research broadly aims to address mental health disparities among children of color. She is specifically interested in how childhood externalizing behaviors (e.g., hyperactivity, aggression, defiance) are identified and treated in Black and Brown children, and the disparate ways that our current systems of care disproportionately disciplines these children while failing to recognize their mental health needs. In her free time, Dr. Kang enjoys strength training, snowboarding, and traveling. 
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Olivia Nazaire, BA (she/her)
​2nd Year Graduate Student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. Program

Olivia is a first-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Loyola University Chicago. Her research interests are education equity, community-partnered research, and the implementation of school-based interventions that address disproportionate discipline towards racially marginalized learners. She is particularly interested in examining these topics at a systemic level, specifically in urban communities and early childhood education settings. Prior to attending Loyola, Olivia received her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and has worked in various organizations including Boston University’s Center on the Ecology of Early Development. Olivia is originally from Peabody, MA in the Greater Boston area. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music and spending time at the beach

Cameron Cooper, MPH (she/her)
​ 1st Year Graduate Student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. Program

My name is Cameron and I am a first year PhD student in the Clinical Psychology program. I am interested in the implementation of interventions in schools and community settings to improve youth mental and behavioral health. I am particularly interested in working with youth of color who have experienced or are experiencing trauma and/or adversity. I have a background in public health and am passionate about working with community stakeholders to effectively design, implement, and evaluate culturally responsive interventions. After receiving my MPH, I moved to Chicago and have worked at both Rush University Medical Center and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. Outside of school, I love to shoot film photography, go thrift shopping, and eat my way through the best city in the world (Chicago 😄)!​

Rylee Abaya, BS (she/her)​ 
Project Coordinator

Rylee is the project coordinator for the CIRRCLE Lab. She graduated from Loyola University Chicago in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with honors and minors in the Psychology of Crime and Justice and Social Work. Rylee is interested in how acculturative and systemic stressors impact treatment engagement among underrepresented youth. Rylee intends to pursue graduate training in clinical psychology and hopes to leverage community-based research to inform interventions that are culturally responsive, with the aim of reducing mental health disparities for marginalized families. She is originally from Fremont, CA in the San Francisco Bay Area. Rylee enjoys reading, crocheting, weightlifting, and trying new milk tea spots in her free time. ​

Mumtaz Sajwani (she/they)​ 
Undergraduate Research Assistant

Mumtaz is an undergraduate research assistant at the CIRRCLE lab, currently in her junior year at Loyola University Chicago, where she is majoring in Psychology and Global Studies with a minor in Middle East and Islamic World Studies. Mumtaz is interested in finding ways to make mental health care more accessible to Black and Brown youth within the Chicagoland area, eventually branching out worldwide and into countries in the global south. They are interested in ending the stigma behind mental health care while being considerate of different cultural backgrounds. Mumtaz is originally from Chicago, Illinois. In her free time she enjoys reading, drawing and visiting different thrift stores!
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Jetzemany Sanchez (she/her/ella)​ 
Undergraduate Research Assistant

Jetzemany is a fourth-year undergraduate student at Loyola University Chicago and is an undergraduate research assistant with the CIRRCLE lab. She is studying Psychology and double-minoring in Gender Studies and Latin American Studies. Jetzemany is passionate about addressing mental health disparities among children from marginalized backgrounds and improving access to services through culturally responsive care and community-based approaches to healing and research. She is also interested in exploring social determinants of health and how children of color navigate trauma through resilience and cultural strengths. Jetzemany plans to pursue graduate studies in Clinical or School Psychology to advocate for LGBTQIA+ youth, immigrants, Spanish speakers, and underserved youth of color through trauma-informed, culturally sensitive care. In her free time, she enjoys coffee shops, thrifting, tutoring, playing guitar, and exploring Chicago.​

Jazilie Perez (she/her)​ 
Undergraduate Research Assistant

Jazilie is an undergraduate research assistant at the CIRRCLE Lab. She is a third year Psychology and Cognitive/Behavioral Neuroscience major at Loyola University Chicago, with a strong interest in forensic psychology and the ways in which marginalized youth intertwine with criminal justice system. She is largely focused on how youth of color are more susceptible to harmful stereotypes and ways in which this can be combated. In her spare time, Jazilie enjoys reading, spending time with loved ones, and baking!

Ama Baffoe (she/her)​ 
Undergraduate Research Assistant

Ama is a senior majoring in Psychology at Loyola University Chicago. Originally from the North Shore suburbs of Chicago, she is interested in addressing mental health disparities among Black and Brown youth, especially first-generation Americans. Over the summer, Ama worked as a Behavioral Health Counselor with the Lake County Health Department, where she gained firsthand experience with the impact of mental health challenges on underserved communities. This role strengthened her commitment to exploring how cultural identity and intergenerational dynamics shape psychological well-being. Ama plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology. In her free time, she enjoys taking SoulCycle classes, shopping, and reading romance novels.
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Decha Perron (she/her)​ 
Undergraduate Research Assistant

Decha is an undergraduate research assistant at the CIRRCLE lab, currently in her junior year at Loyola University Chicago, where she is majoring in Psychology and Criminal Justice with a minor in Global Studies. Decha is interested in finding ways to address the mental health disparity among children of BIPOC backgrounds and refugee populations. Over the summer, she interned with an organization dedicated to providing high-impact tutoring for refugee students through a trauma informed lens, and she hopes to continue finding ways to best support and improve the mental health services for refugees. Decha is originally from Ipswich, Massachusetts and in her free time, she enjoys reading, trying out new cafes and making jewelry. 
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