People

Director

Zhenghan Qi

Dr. Qi’s research goal is to understand the neurobiological organization of language in the human brain, how that organization changes from childhood through adulthood, how it is disrupted in major neurodevelopmental language disorders, and how knowledge of that organization may enhance language learning and language intervention. She uses behavioral and neuroimaging techniques to study the relationship between language learning, cognitive skills, and brain development in both children and adults.

Graduate Students

Anqi Hu

Anqi (Jojo) is a PhD student in Linguistics and Cognitive Science at University of Delaware. She graduated from University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana in May 2018 with a BA degree in Linguistics. She is interested in child language acquisition, atypical language development, and second language acquisition. She is especially interested in using neuroimaging and other techniques to understand typical and atypical language acquisition.

Yi-Lun Weng

Yi-Lun (Rachel) is a PhD student in Linguistics and Cognitive Science at University of Delaware. She holds an MA in Linguistics and worked as a research assistant at National Taiwan University. She uses EEG, eye-tracking, and fMRI techniques to investigate the neural mechanisms of language acquisition and language processing. She is especially interested in the role of prediction in language comprehension and acquisition.

Dionysia Saratsli

Dionysia is a PhD student in the Linguistics and Cognitive Science department at University of Delaware. She is interested in exploring the pragmatic factors involved in language using behavioral and neuroimaging techniques. She also has a special interest in the neural characteristics of developmental language disorders. She is currently exploring the role of perspective taking in word learning.

Katherine Trice

Katherine is a PhD student in Linguistics and Cognitive Science at the University of Delaware. She holds a BA in Linguistics and a minor in ASL from the University of Rochester. Her main research interest is in language processing across different stages and the underlying mechanisms in place that support this, with particular focus paid to how neurodevelopment disorders such as autism impact this. She is also interested in how signed languages are processed, especially in regards to how this may differ for the population with neurodevelopment disorders.

Research Assistants

Leah Heisler

Leah, Class of 2021, is pursuing a BS in Cognitive Science with a specialization in Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology and a BA in Spanish Studies. She is also minoring in Disability Studies. Leah hopes to continue her studies in a graduate program for Speech-Language Pathology that has a bilingual emphasis. Her interests include language acquisition and the effect multiple languages has on cognition, especially for children with language disorders.

Grace Buckalew

Grace, class of 2022, is pursuing a BS in Cognitive Science with a concentration of Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology with minors in Disability Studies and Public Policy. She hopes to attend graduate school to become a Speech Pathologist, and use her Public Policy minor to advocate for patients and better treatment methods. Her interests include language acquisition and communication disorders.

Brooke Baiocchi

Brooke, class of 2022, is pursuing a major in Psychology with a Business Administration minor. She is very interested in cognition, neurological disorders, mental illness, as well as how drugs affect the brain, and how genetic conditions and illnesses affect the brain.

Katherine Ridoux

Katherine, class of 2022, is currently pursuing a BS in Cognitive Science with a concentration in Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology and a minor in Disability Studies. After graduating, she intends to pursue a PhD in Speech and Language Pathology. Her research interests include Cognition, language acquisition, and speech rehabilitation.

Abby DeJohn 

Abby, Class of 2021, is currently completing a BS in Neuroscience and a minor in Disability Studies while pursuing a pre-med track. Always curious about how others think, her research interests include cognition, language development, neurological disorders, and speech rehabilitation.

Sydney Peterson

Sydney, class of 2022, is currently pursuing a BS in Cognitive Science with a concentration in Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology. She is minoring in Disability Studies, Human Development and Family Sciences, and History. She hopes to attend graduate school to become a Speech Language Pathologist. Her interests include language acquisition, social cognition, and communication disorders.

Bella DiGennaro

Bella, class of 2022, is pursuing a BS in Cognitive Science and Linguistics with a concentration in Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology with minors in Human Development and Family Studies as well as Disability Studies. Bella hopes to attend graduate school and become a Speech Therapist for children. Her interests include language acquisition and language disorders in children.

Chase Dunlap

Chase is a sophomore majoring in Cognitive Science with a concentration in Computational Foundations. He also has a double minor in Management Information Systems and Business Administration. He is interested in furthering his understanding of language acquisition and what factors mainly influence it. Upon graduation, Chase has hopes to either continue his education/research in the field of cognitive science or applying his cognitive science skills in an industry setting.

Angela Tran

Angela, class of 2023, is pursuing a BA in Psychology and BA in English Literature. Angela hopes to attend graduate school and become an English teacher, utilizing her background in Psychology to advocate for mental health resources in public school education. Her interests include language acquisition, second language acquisition, and the effect multiple languages have on cognitive development within children.

Jessica Harrison

Jessica, class of 2022, is pursuing a BS in Neuroscience and a BA in Psychology. She is following a pre-medical track at the University of Delaware, and hopes to continue her studies in cognitive and neurological treatments. She is very interested in neurological development, cognition, and genetic illnesses and their influence on the brain and language acquisition.

Illustrator

Krista Webster

Krista is a Visual Communications major in the Class of 2020. Although she works in a variety of art contexts, she mostly specializes in illustration and graphic design. In her free time, she also enjoys writing, running, and photography. Krista has contributed illustrations for our website and studies!

Alumni

An Nguyen — Former Lab Manager

A founding member of the QLAB, An is now pursuing a PhD in Cognitive Science at Johns Hopkins University, continuing her enthusiasm for language acquisition. She holds BS degrees in Psychology and Cognitive Science from Truman State University, Missouri.

Violet Kozloff — Former Lab Manager 

Violet was the QLAB coordinator from 2017 to 2018 and lab manager from 2018 to 2019. She holds a BA in Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences and French from Wellesley College. Violet is currently pursing an MA in Speech-Language Pathology at Northwestern University.

Parker Robbins — Former Lab Manager 

Parker graduated from Northeastern University in 2019 with a BS in Linguistics and a minor in French. His interests include morphology and syntax, first language acquisition and attrition, and documenting understudied languages. He is currently a postbaccalaureate research assistant in the Language Learning Lab at Boston College. 

 Julie Schneider  – Former Post-doc Fellow

Dr. Schneider holds a PhD in Psychological Sciences from the University of Texas at Dallas focusing on how children learn and use language, two essential abilities for social and academic success in children of all ages. She takes a comprehensive approach to research by investigating how both biological and environmental factors influence language development. She was awarded an NSF Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship and is currently combining measures of parent-child conversations, implicit language learning, and MRI in an effort to identify protective factors against the well-established vocabulary gap during the school years.

Jennifer Legault – Former Post-doc Fellow

Dr. Legault received her PhD in Neuroscience from Pennsylvania State University, where she focused on brain structure changes in response to second language experience, specifically learning context. She takes a multimodal neuroimaging approach to examine relationships between brain and behavior, focusing on the relationships between linguistic and non-linguistic learning and brain changes for individuals with autism spectrum disorders as well as typically developing populations.

Stefan Bartell – Former Graduate Student

Stefan is a PhD student in Linguistics and Cognitive Science at the University of Delaware. His main research interests are in theoretical and experimental semantics. He is also interested in the linguistic manifestations of disorders including autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia.

Andrew Luu — Former Research Assistant

Andrew graduated from California State University, Dominguez Hills in May 2019 with an Honors BA degree in Psychology. He is interested in examining the neural mechanisms behind cognition, memory, and foreign language processing to improve learning outcomes. He is a University of Delaware 2019 Undergraduate Research Scholar. Andrew is currently a PhD student in Cognitive and Behavioral Sciences at Auburn University where he uses behavioral and brain imaging techniques to further his research interests.

Christopher Robinson – Former Research Assistant

Christopher, class of 2023, is currently pursuing a BS in Biomedical Engineering. He intends to apply his developing skill set in the fields of neuroscience and genetics, specifically, researching and treating psychiatric disorders and cell/tissue engineering. His interests in neuroscience and language learning, as he intends to become fluent in multiple languages, are what drew him to QLAB.

Advith Sarikonda – Former Research Assistant

Advith, Class of 2022, is pursuing a BS in Honors Neuroscience and a BA in Honors English. Advith is following a pre-medical track at the University of Delaware. He is interested in the intersection of science and the arts, particularly as it pertains to the representation of mental health and behavior in popular culture.

Marina Hernandez – Former Research Assistant

Marina, class of 2021, is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). She hopes to obtain her Master of Arts in TESOL. She is interested in language acquisition and second language acquisition and hopes to apply her knowledge of cognitive processes of language learning in language learning pedagogy.

Sharon Basil — Former Research Assistant

Sharon, Class of 2020, is pursuing a BS in Biomedical Engineering. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a career in industry, specifically in the medical imaging and devices field. Her interests include learning how children develop through neuroimaging, as well as data processing with imaging software.

Alexandra Franchi

Lexi, class of 2022, is pursuing a BA in Psychology and BS in Cognitive Science, as well as a minor in Women and Gender Studies. After this, Lexi will be getting her MA in Cognitive Science and Linguistics through the 4+1 program here at UD and hopes to get her PhD one day. She has interests in mental health advocacy, language acquisition and disorders in special populations, and social cognition.

Diana Rios – Former Research Assistant 

Diana, class of 2021, is currently pursuing a BS in Neuroscience and a minor in Medical Diagnostics. Her interests within neuroscience include the relationship between brain structure and function, such as with language development, and neurological and psychiatric disorders. Diana hopes to attend medical school after graduation and subsequently pursue a career in neurology. Diana is a 2019 University of Delaware Summer Scholar.

Brady Robinson – Former Graduate Student

Brady is a PhD student in Linguistics and Cognitive Science at the University of Delaware. He is interested in the cognitive neuroscience of language, especially the association between individual differences in neural measures and behavior, as well how word learning works in the individual brain, and how this science can be used to help people. He uses tools from computer science, statistics, and machine learning to investigate data from behavioral experiments and neuroimaging techniques.

Riddhi Shah – Former Research Assistant

Riddhi, Class of 2021, is currently pursuing a BS in Neuroscience with a minor in Biological Sciences and Forensic Science on the pre-med track. After graduating, she plans on attending medical school in which she hopes to pursue her interests in different disorders while using her forensic science background to help.

Ellie Rosin – Former Research Assistant

Ellie, Class of 2022, is currently pursuing a BS in Electrical Engineering with a minor in Mathematics. After graduating, she is considering a career in bioelectronics or nanotechnology doing research and development. Her interests in machine learning and neuroimaging are what drew her to QLAB. 

Madison Stoupa — Former Research Assistant

Madison, class of 2020, is currently pursuing a BA in Linguistics and an Honors BA in Three Foreign Languages (Spanish, French, Mandarin Chinese). She is thrilled to have the opportunity to not only learn how to speak languages, but also to study how human languages work from a scientific standpoint. Her interests include phonetics and phonology, sociolinguistics, and language acquisition. 

Elyse Lamey – Former Research Assistant

Elyse, Class of 2022, is pursuing a BS in Biological Sciences with a Medical Diagnostics minor. Elyse is following a pre-medical track at the University of Delaware and is applying to be a part of the Medical Scholars Program at the end of her sophomore year. She is interested in research and neurological development and is excited to be a part of the QLAB family!

Krystal Mendez – Former Research Assistant

Krystal, Class of 2020, is currently completing a BS in Cognitive Science with a concentration in Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology and a minor in Spanish for Healthcare. She is currently pursuing an MA in Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Delaware. Her interests include language acquisition and development, specifically involving individuals with autism spectrum disorder, language disorders, and bilingualism. Krystal is a 2018 and 2019 INBRE scholar.

Qing Xu — Former Graduate Student   

Qing is a MA student in the Department of Linguistics and Cognitive Science. She’s interested in a diverse array of topics in exploring the workings of the brain and mind in language development and processing by using experimental techniques and modeling strategies, including sentence processing, the representation and organization of conceptual components of meaning, the relation between language and other cognitive and biological processes, bilingualism and second language acquisition.

Nicolo Bautista – Former Research Assistant 

Nicolo, Class of 2020, completed majors in Honors Biological Sciences B.A., Honors Philosophy B.A., and Honors Neuroscience B.S., with a minor in Biochemistry. He is currently pursuing his M.D. at Thomas Jefferson University. He has an interest in neurological development, especially in regards to autism.

Hannah Stetson – Former Research Assistant

Hannah, Class of 2020, completed a BS in Cognitive Science with a concentration in Pre-Professional Speech-Language Pathology and minors in Neuroscience, Disabilities Studies, and Women Studies. She is currently pursuing an MA in Speech and Language Pathology at Boston University. Her research interests include language disorders and their effect on language learning, language development, and brain structure and organization. Hannah is a 2019 INBRE scholar.

Collaborators

  UD Collaborators

  Dr. Austin Brockmeier – Computational Neural and Information Engineering Lab

  Dr. Diane Chugani – Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders

  Dr. Roberta Golinkoff – Child’s Play, Learning and Development Lab

  Dr. Francis Sayako Earle – Memory and Perception of Speech (MAPS) Lab

  Dr. Curtis Johnson – Mechanical Neuroimaging Lab

  Dr. Katie Franich – PhonLab

  Dr. Amanda Van Horne – Treatment Efficacy and Language Learning (TELL) Lab

  External Collaborators 

  Dr. John Gabrieli – Gabrieli Lab – MIT

  Dr. Tyler Perrachione – Communication Neuroscience Research Laboratory – Boston University

  Dr. Helen Tager-Flusberg – Center for Autism Research Excellence – Boston University

  Dr. Susan Whitfield-Gabrieli – Whitfield-Gabrieli Lab – Northeastern University

  Dr. Psyche Loui – Music, Imaging, and Neural Dynamics (MIND) Lab – Northeastern University

  Dr. Rachel Ryskin – Language, Interaction, & Cognition Lab – UC Merced

  Dr. Wei Tang – Imaging and Research Facility (IRF) – Indiana University