Baby Brain & Behavior Study at The Waisman Center

Study Personnel

Nicci Schmidt, M.S.

Nicci is a Research Program Manager and coordinates the investigative team, research design, and data collection. She has coordinated similar large scale developmental studies for over 15 years and has thousands of contact hours with children and families. Nicci has co-authored more than 30 manuscripts and conference presentations. She mentors trainees on independent projects and trains staff. In addition, Nicci serves as Vice Chair for the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education Committee on Academic Staff Issues, chairs the Professional Development subcommittee, and serves on the Office of Vice Chancellor for Research’s Academic Planning Council. Nicci earned her MS in counseling psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and completed an additional certification as a lactation counselor. Nicci received the Waisman Center Academic Staff Award presented by the Friends of the Waisman Center for exceptional performance supporting the mission of the Waisman Center. Nicci is a mother and in her free time, she enjoys exploring Madison's bike paths and paddling scenic waterways. 

Cory Schmidt

Cory is a Senior Research Specialist and coordinates all behavioral assessments and behavioral coding. He is one of the friendly faces you will meet during laboratory visits and one of the staff who interviews participants. He also manages data and supervises undergraduate students. Cory graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a B.A. in Sociology and has worked in research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 2000. He is an expert in microfacial coding and brings fourteen years of experience in behavioral research that span a diverse set of studies including Dr. Goldsmith's twin research testing young children in their homes and Dr. Joseph Newman's research testing adults. He has been deeply involved in all aspects of large longitudinal studies and has visited over 350 families, conducted over 1,400 interviews and coded over 6,000 behavioral episodes. Cory enjoys the outdoors. Some of his hobbies include camping, hiking, kayaking and running. He has completed over 30 marathon and ultramarathon distance races.

William Wooten

Will is an Associate Research Specialist and coordinates all neuroimaging sessions. He is the friendly face you will see for both one month and 24 month sessions and works closely with parents throughout study. Will received his BS in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in 2012 and his MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Marquette University in 2015. He has worked with a variety of clinical populations in both clinical and research settings. He previously worked in three different labs that investigated trauma and emotion regulation, interpersonal personality, and human memory, with measures including emotion ratings, behavior tasks, EEG, heart rate and blood glucose. His research interests include mood disorders, emotion regulation, stress, trauma, and neurophysiology. Outside of the lab, he enjoys reading, writing, and video games.

Corrina Frye

Corrina is a Recruiter with the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds.  She oversees recruitment and interacts with families throughout the study.  She will be the friendly voice on the phone whenever you have a question.  Corrina graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a B.S. in Psychology and a Certificate in Women’s Studies.  She has over ten years of research experience collecting physiological, imaging, neurological and behavioral data with participants that span the lifetime from infants to retirees.  She also has over twelve years of experience as a doula and enjoys being a part of the major life experience of birth!  In her spare time, she enjoys the outdoors as well as traveling with her husband and children.

John Koger

John is an Information Programming Consultant who helps manage data collection activities and software development in our laboratory. A typical day for John may go from testing eye-tracking equipment to helping redesign a web page to writing software that analyzes heart-rate data.

Ian Carrol

Ian is a second year graduate student in Clinical Psychology. He received his B.A. in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He currently uses different functional neuroimaging techniques to investigate emotion regulation, the development of internalizing disorders, and adolescent development. In his free time, Ian enjoys DJing and producing music.

 

Monika Dargis

Monika is a graduate student in the clinical psychology program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She received her B.S. in Psychology from UW-Madison in 2013. Her research interests include juvenile delinquency, psychopathy, and environmental influences contributing to the development externalizing disorders.

 

Rachel Bencic Hamilton

Rachel Bencic Hamilton is a fifth year Clinical Psychology graduate student from Cleveland, OH. She graduated summa cum laude from Northwestern University in 2007 with a B.A. in Psychology. She received her M.S. in Psychology in 2012 after completing her thesis on electrophysiological correlates of early attentional abnormalities in psychopathy. Her research interests include clarifying theoretical, neurobiological, psychophysiological mechanisms associated with psychopathic dysfunction, as well as specifying how irregularities in early cognitive processes shape information processing style and quality.

 

Mollie Moore

Mollie Moore is a graduate student in Clinical Psychology. She received her B.A. in Psychology with honors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2008 and was awarded an MS in Psychology in 2011 after completing her thesis on how parent mental health and parenting affect children’s risk for mental health problems. Her current research interests include genetic and environmental influences on risk factors for anxiety and depression, with a focus on rumination, stress reactivity, and early emotionality. 

Madeline Pflum

Madeline Pflum is a graduate student in Clinical Psychology. She received her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2008 and was awarded an MS in Psychology in 2011 after completing her thesis on social cognition in individuals at risk for severe psychopathology. Her current research interests include individual differences in personality functioning, interpersonal pleasure, and the relationship to severe psychopathology.

Katherine Sarkisian

Katherine is a graduate student who graduated summa cum laude from Indiana University in 2013 with a Psychology B.S. and a minor in biology. Her areas of interest include many aspects of children’s emotional and social development, including temperament, social information processing, and empathy, as well as the development of externalizing disorders. This is her first year in the lab and she enjoys running and biking in her free time.

 

 

 

 

Imaging Technicians

One of our friendly and talented MRI technicians will be present at each MRI session. They will assist you and research staff with positioning your baby and running the MRI machine. They have experience conducting MRI with a wide range of populations. Michael Anderle is also the manager for the Waisman Brain Imaging Core.

Michael Anderle	Ron Fischer	Scott Mikkelson

 

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