Co-VP Academic - Jessica Lai
Jessica Lai is a second-year doctoral student in the School/Applied Child Psychology program at McGill University. She is supervised by Dr. Jacob A. Burack and is a member of the McGill Youth Study Team (MYST). Her research interests include identifying and understanding social, cultural and community determinants of academic performance among Indigenous youth in Canada. Jessica completed her BA in Psychology at the University of British Columbia and her MEd in Educational Psychology at McGill University. Jessica is looking forward to working with the SISP team this year!
VP Sponsorship - Matthew Baker
Matt is a second-year Master's student in School/Applied Child Psychology at McGill University. Under the supervision of Dr. Shanna Williams, Matt's current research primarily involves forensic interviews with children who have been maltreated and victims of commercial sexual exploitation. His master’s research is investigating healthcare providers’ knowledge and questioning practices of pain in children who have been maltreated. Matt's SISP responsibilities include advertising initiatives, seeking and engaging with prospective sponsors, and developing professional relationships with partnering organizations. He is excited to continue his responsibilities with SISP and by the prospect of hosting an in-person conference this year!
Chair of the Committee - Samantha Scholes
Samantha is a second-year doctoral student in the School/Applied Child Psychology program at McGill University. She is supervised by Drs. Armando Bertone (Perceptual Neuroscience Laboratory for Autism and Development) and Reut Gruber (Attention, Behavior, and Sleep Lab). Her doctoral thesis will be examining concurrent and longitudinal associations between sleep and academic performance in youth diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. This will be Samantha's third year with the SISP committee, and she is looking forward to working with the committee to organizing our first ever hybrid conference, along with the continued success of our yearlong podcasts and the beginning of the blog section!
Steven Shaw, PhD, is an associate professor in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology at McGill University in Montreal. He is the Graduate Program Director of the School/Applied Child Psychology Program. He earned a Ph.D. in School Psychology from the University of Florida in 1991. At McGill University he is director of the Resilience, Pediatric Psychology and Neurogenetic Connections Lab and co-director of the McGill Developmental Research Lab. Before entering academia, he had 17 years of experience as a school psychologist in school, university, hospital, medical school, and independent practice. From 1997 to 2004, he served as lead psychologist and associate professor of pediatrics at The Children's Hospital in Greenville, South Carolina and Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Shaw is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. In 2000, the South Carolina Association of School Psychologists recognized him for "Outstanding Contributions to Education" for his work on addressing overrepresentation of minority groups in special education, and development of teaching techniques for children with borderline intelligence. In 2010, he received the Distinguished Teaching Award from the Faculty of Education at McGill University. In 2012, he received the President’s Award from the National Association of School Psychologists for his innovative research-to-practice efforts. His clinical and research interests include pediatric school psychology, improving education of children with rare genetic disorders and autism, and development of resilience skills in children at risk for academic failure. He has over 160 scholarly publications and presentations and has published four books. He is on the editorial board of several international scholarly journals and is editor of School Psychology Forum.
VP French Representative - Rachel Michaud
Rachel est étudiante de deuxième année au doctorat dans le programme de psychologie scolaire/appliquée à l’enfance (School Applied/Child Pscyhology) de l'Université McGill. Elle est titulaire d'un baccalauréat en psychologie de l'Université Laval et d’un diplôme de maîtrise du programme de psychologie scolaire/appliquée à l’enfance de McGill. Elle fait partie du groupe de recherche Childhood Anxiety and Regulation of Emotions (C.A.R.E) et est supervisée par la Dre Tina Montreuil, psychologue. Ses intérêts de recherche portent sur l'anxiété, la régulation des émotions et leur impact sur l'apprentissage et le développement social-affectif des enfants d'âge scolaire. Dans son rôle de VP French Adaptation, Rachel est responsable de l'adaptation en français des communications et des publications de SISP. Elle collabore également avec les autres VPs à l'organisation des sections francophones de la conférence, de la balado et du blogue.
Co-Chair, Conference - Sierra Pecsi
Sierra is a first-year doctoral student in the School/Applied Child Psychology program. She received her undergraduate in psychology from Concordia University and completed her master's degree in counselling psychology at the University of Ottawa. She is supervised by Dr. Steven Shaw (McGill Connection's Lab). Her research interests are examining the long-term effects of COVID-19 on youth anxiety and post pandemic mental health outcomes. Sierra is excited to join the SISP organizing committee as Co-Chair of the conference and is looking forward to serving alongside her fellow SISP committee members!
VP Advertising Coordinator - Erika Infantino
Erika is a first-year Master’s student in the School/Applied Child Psychology program at McGill University. She completed her undergraduate degree at Concordia University, majoring in Honours Psychology with a minor in Multidisciplinary Studies in Science. Currently, she is being supervised by Dr. Steven Shaw. Her research interests include youth peer relations, the role of inclusive education, and the current research to practice gap in individualized education plans (IEP). Erika is excited to take on this new role as advertising coordinator and gain knowledgeable experience from her colleagues.
In Collaboration with the School/Applied Child Psychology Student Association
Co-Chair, Community Engagement - Hagit Malikin
Hagit Malikin is a second-year doctoral student in the School/Applied Child Psychology Program at McGill University. She received her undergraduate Honours degree in Psychology from Concordia University in 2018. She is part of the Childhood Anxiety and Regulation of Emotions (C.A.R.E) Research Group and is supervised by Dr. Tina Montreuil. Her research interests reside in parent-child attachment and the influence of such relationship on child development. Her masters research project examined the effect of parent-child relationship quality on the development of child emotion regulation.
Comité organisateur
Hosted by SISP student committee, McGill University
& Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology
Jeffrey L. Derevensky, PhD, is Professor and Chair of the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology. In addition to his administrative duties, he is currently the Director of Clinical Training in School/Applied Child Psychology and Professor, Department of Psychiatry at McGill University. He has published widely in the fields of child development, developmental psychopathology, gambling studies and education and is on the editorial board of numerous journals. He has developed a comprehensive research program investigating many facets of adolescent risky behaviors with a particular emphasis on understanding youth gambling behaviors. He remains actively involved in basic and applied research, prevention, treatment, training and social policy development. Dr. Derevensky has been a consultant to gaming corporations and governments throughout the world and has provided expert testimony before legislative bodies in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. He is the author of over 150 published refereed peer-reviewed journal articles, 60 book chapters, and 3 books. He is also the Director of the McGill University Youth Gambling Research and Treatment Clinic and Director of the International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviors.
VP Logistics Coordinator - Samantha Bouchard
Conseillers facultaires
VP Editor - Michael Naoufal
Michael is a first-year Master’s student in the School/Applied Child Psychology Program at McGill University. He completed his undergraduate degree at McGill, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Sociology. He is a part of the Childhood Anxiety and Regulation of Emotions (C.A.R.E) Research Group and is supervised by Dr. Tina Montreuil. His research interests include childhood and teenage resilience, and its’ impact related to emotion regulation and anxiety. As VP Editor, Michael will be responsible for editing the SISP podcast and assisting in the recruitment and interviewing of guests.
Co-VP Academic - Annie Shiau
Annie is a first-year Master’s student in the School/Applied Child Psychology program at McGill. She received her undergraduate degree in Psychology at McGill. Currently, she is supervised by Dr. Shanna Williams, and her research interests include peer disclosure and how children speak to their peers about sexual abuse. Annie is looking forward to joining SISP and learning from many others this year!
VP Internal & External - Shayla Chilliak