Hi, I'm Rebecca
I was born and raised in the Bay Area of California. After graduating with a bachelor's degree in Psychology from UC Santa Cruz, I moved to Spain to travel, research ADHD, and learn Spanish. I returned to New England (RI) in 2015 and started my career in addiction and HIV research at Brown University School of Public Health. I continued conducting research at the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies while completing my Master of Science in Behavioral and Social Health Sciences.
I am now pursuing my PhD in Prevention Science, a field that combines public health and developmental psychology from an ecological systems perspective. My research examines the intersection of early life stress, environmental factors, and health outcomes across development.
Throughout my doctoral studies, I have worked extensively with large-scale, NIH-funded, prospective, longitudinal datasets including the Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD), the Early Growth and Development Study, and the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) cohorts. Upon completing my doctorate in June 2025, I hope to continue my work in using quantitative methods to examine risk and protective factors during childhood in a postdoctoral research position. Ultimately, my goal is to pursue an academic research career that leverages large datasets to identify the mechanisms by which early experiences shape long-term outcomes, thereby informing targeted interventions to improve the well-being of children and families. When not doing science, I enjoy photography, cooking, travel, and art (web-based and physical).
rebeccag@uorgeon.edu