Psychology students and faculty present at the Southeastern Psychological Association Annual Meeting

Ten Elon students and three psychology faculty members attended the Southeastern Psychological Association (SEPA) 2026 annual meeting in March in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Student presenters included Fatmata Bah (mentored by William Schreiber); Gia Cullens, Olivia Guarino; Jessica Garcia-Bastida, Anna Grace Gilbert and Ella McGlynn (mentored by Sabrina Perkins); Kailey Stark and Soriah Rodriguez Smith (mentored by Ilyssa Salomon); and Clare Petznick and Natalie Peeples (mentored by Maureen Vandermaas-Peeler).

SEPA is the largest psychological organization in the southeastern United States, aiming to advance psychology as a science, a profession, and a means of promoting human welfare.

Students in attendance presented their research as posters or talks on a variety of topics ranging from operant conditioning in harvester ants to infant behavior. Their presentations reflect many of the core disciplines of psychology, including behavioral neuroscience and developmental psychology, as well as the scholarship of teaching and learning in psychology.

For many students, this was the first professional conference they had ever attended. Presenting their research at a professional conference is an important milestone and the culmination of years of hard work.

“Presenting at SEPA was a meaningful way to conclude my research experience at Elon,” said Kailey Stark ’26. “Through the Elon College Fellows program, I have had the opportunity to design and carry out a research project with the support of my mentor, Dr. Ilyssa Salomon. As my first professional conference, SEPA gave me the opportunity to present what I have been working on for the last two years, as well as the chance to learn from my peers across the field of psychology.”

Senior psychology students Clare Petznick ’26 (Odyssey Program) and Natalie Peeples ’26 (Honors and Lumen Scholar) and their mentor, Maureen Vandermaas-Peeler, presented three related research studies in a symposium entitled “The Good Childhood: Exploring preschoolers’ perspectives through the Mosaic Method.” Each study explored how preschoolers conceptualize “a good childhood,” a Nordic construct emphasizing children’s rights and freedoms, through multiple modalities of expression including play, drawings, and photovoice. All three studies were conducted during Elon’s Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) in 2025 and 2026, and two explored cultural differences between the United States and Denmark. Psychology faculty member Sabrina Perkins served as a discussant, integrating her experience with human development in multiple cultural contexts with the team’s research findings.

“Presenting at the SEPA conference allowed me to visualize my research that I have worked so hard on during my undergraduate career,” said Petznick. “The SEPA conference was particularly enjoyable as I was surrounded by other psychology students who share the same passion for research and discovery as I do. Presenting at a professional conference helped me feel more confident and knowledgeable in my area of research and I was able to learn from the questions the audience asked me.”

Travel for Perkins was supported by a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Grant from the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning. Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences supported Vandermaas-Peeler’s travel. Student travel was supported by generous donors who contributed to the Psychology Department Gift Account, a group travel grant from the Undergraduate Research Program, and funding from the Honors Program, Elon College Fellows, and the Lumen Prize at Elon University.

Readers who wish to further contribute to supporting Psychology students’ research opportunities and professional conference travel may contribute to the Psychology Department Gift Account: https://connect2.elon.edu/g/elon-college-the-college-of-arts-sciences