2021-2022
Co-Presidents: Elizabeth Chan and Kay Sun
Secretaries: Marco Mai and Tiffany Tse
Treasurer: Kyle Xue
Academic Coordinators: Alexandra Udachina and Anastasia Liu
Conference Coordinators: Joanne Choe and Sophia Blaikie-Sloan
Seminar Coordinators: Alisina Fatemi and Yusra Shafi
Social Coordinators: John Cui and Rachel In
Volunteer Coordinators: Anna Savic and Sophia Zhang
2020-2021
President: Isabella Kuo
Year of Study: 4
Program: Psychology specialist
Interest/hobbies: Kickboxing/Muay Thai, re-watching shows that I’ve already watched, sewing (all my projects turn out wonky and my lines are never straight but it’s fun!), and desperately trying to keep my plants alive
A fun fact about me: I have a tattoo of a dragon! Haven’t seen the movie though
Favourite psych phenomenon: The Dunning-Kruger effect: incompetent people tend to overestimate their abilities. Very relevant in the current climate *side eye*
“I’m stoked to serve as the PSA President this year and look forward to seeing you (yes you) at our virtual events and office hours! This is undoubtedly a difficult year, so we’re doing our best to help alleviate any challenges you may be facing with a number of academic events + seminars + conferences that pick your brain, social events and office hours that help you stay connected, and more! We’re here for you 😌”
Vice-President: Elizabeth Chan
Year of Study: 3
Program: Psychology research specialist
Interest/hobbies: Jigsaw puzzles, yoga, watching basketball, traveling
A fun fact about me: I’ve volunteered to clean a gravestone
Favourite psych phenomenon: Sleeping with a romantic partner’s shirt improves sleep quality, and this effect is comparable to the effects of melatonin (Hofer & Chen, 2020)
Secretary: Kay Sun
Year of Study: 3
Program: I’m doing a program in indecision: psychology research specialist, criminology major, sexual diversity studies minor
Interest/hobbies: Watching YouTube, swing dancing, Minecraft, heavy metal, sleeping
A fun fact about me: I played the tuba!
Favourite psych phenomenon: People can identify narcissists by looking at their eyebrows 🤨
Secretary: Christie Lai
Year of Study: 4
Program: Psychology specialist
Interest/hobbies: I enjoy hiking, cooking, watching true crime documentaries, bringing my dog to dog parks, trying out new restaurants and going to spin classes (before COVID)
A fun fact about me: I forgot to bring my phone when I travelled across Europe for 2 weeks lol. My friends thought I was dead
Favourite psych phenomenon: Convincing yourself you slept well tricks your brain into thinking it did
Treasurer: Kyle Xue
Year of Study: 4
Program: Psychology major and mathematics specialist
Interest/hobbies: Collecting cards! I mostly collect playing cards and Pokémon cards
A fun fact about me: I don’t wear jackets in winter (I like the cold)
Favourite psych phenomenon: Erikson’s stages of development — his theory is what showed me that development doesn’t end when you become an adult but rather, you continue to develop throughout your life
Academic Coordinator: Sophia Zhao
Year of Study: 4
Program: Psychology and physiology double major
Interest/hobbies: Finding new restaurants to try, watching cute animal videos
A fun fact about me: When I first watch a show I like starting from a random episode
Favourite psych phenomenon: An interesting fact I like is that deception detection accuracy is similar for the average person and trained experts, both between 45-60%
Academic Coordinator: Sophia Qiu
Year of Study: 4
Program: Psychology specialist, cognitive science major, statistics minor
Interest/hobbies: cuddling my kitty, drawing
A fun fact about me: I named my cat after Albert Camus
Favourite psych phenomenon: I love to practice classical conditioning to see if I can train my cat to speak (maybe not).
Conference Coordinator: Isabel Bowman
Year of Study: 5
Program: Psychology specialist, cognitive science major, philosophy minor
Interest/hobbies: Watching video essays on film and games, learning about interaction design and UX, drawing
A fun fact about me: Favourite colour to wear is a slightly darker, mustard yellow
Favourite psych phenomenon: I don’t think I have one, but I’d really recommend ‘The Design of Everyday Things’ by Don Norman, and the 99% Invisible podcast!
Seminar Coordinator: John Cui
Year of Study: 3
Program: Psychology specialist
Interest/hobbies: Volleyball, Video Games, Fashion, Vintage clothing and Thrifting
A fun fact about me: I’m a pretty competitive person, so whenever I do something I always wanna be the best at it! Even in things out of my control, like height 😛
Favourite psych phenomenon: The paradox of perfectionism and pressure, where the more you’re expected to perform perfectly, the more likely you are to perform poorly. On the flip side, the less pressure you’re facing the more likely you are to perform perfectly. (Benson , 2003) and (Blatt, S. J. 1995)
Seminar Coordinator: Yusra Shafi
Year of Study: 2
Program: Psychology Specialist, Environment & Behaviour Minor
Interest/hobbies: Reading, watching documentaries and discovering fun gelato places!
A fun fact about me: I find it difficult to go to sleep and turn my brain off if I haven’t done some light, non-academic reading first 🙂
Favourite psych phenomenon: The bystander effect – when individuals are less likely to offer help if there are a lot of other people present. Scary to think if you ever need help, make sure it’s in Montreal or Vancouver, and not Toronto!
Social Coordinator: Rachel In
Year of Study: 3
Program: Psychology specialist
Interest/hobbies: Vlogging, bullet journaling, reading, and taking pictures of my friends
A fun fact about me: I went to live in Korea for a year and half!
Favourite psych phenomenon: Cool fact I learned in PSY220 on the misattribution of arousal! If you want your crush to like you more, take them to a suspension bridge! They may misattribute their physiological arousal from the fear of walking on the bridge to your attraction!
Social Coordinator: Janice Lee
Year of Study: 3
Program: Psychology minor, pharmacology specialist
Interest/hobbies: Travelling, painting and styling outfits
A fun fact about me: I only had a dog when I was younger, but I think I am more of a cat person now
Favourite psych phenomenon: In cross-cultural psychology, pathogen theory explained to me how COVID could make people more united and divided at the same time
Volunteer Coordinator: Ashley Yim
Year of Study: 4
Program: Psychology major and mathematics specialist
Interest/hobbies: Collecting cards! I mostly collect playing cards and Pokémon cards
A fun fact about me: I don’t wear jackets in winter (I like the cold)
Favourite psych phenomenon: Erikson’s stages of development — his theory is what showed me that development doesn’t end when you become an adult but rather, you continue to develop throughout your life
Volunteer Coordinator: Sophia Zhang
Year of Study: 3
Program: Psychology specialist
Interest/hobbies: Dancing, reading books and watching YouTube
A fun fact about me: I have practiced Chinese dance for 10 years 🙂
Favourite psych phenomenon: I really love the idea of chunk studying method learned in PSY260! It taught me to chunk the learning time and study consistently. I have benefited a lot from it as I can see substantial improvements in my learning efficiency once I started to try this method out. If you are struggling with loss of motivation or you do not know how to study efficiently, remember to try this out ;). Hope you will find it helpful as well!
2019-2020
President: Winston Tran
Hi all! My name is Winston and I’ll be the president this year. I really love to do things on the spur of the moment. I’ll wake up in the morning and think to myself “I want to be able to do the splits” and start working on it. Still working on those splits though…
Hi all! My name is Winston and I’ll be the president this year. I really love to do things on the spur of the moment. I’ll wake up in the morning and think to myself “I want to be able to do the splits” and start working on it. Still working on those splits though…
Program: Cognitive Science major, Psychology and English double minor
Favorite PSY course: PSY270. It started my love of Cognitive Psychology!
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Sigmund Freud… So I can also ask him “why???”
Vice-President: Tina Lin
Hi there! This is Tina and I’m your Vice President this year! I hope to introduce more opportunities for students to engage with and get to know the PSA better. Something else about me: I have minor iced coffee addiction.
Program: Double major in Psychology and Linguistics
Favorite PSY course: PSY230 Introductions to Personality
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Anyone from the field of Forensic Psychology and/or Linguistics! I like to read crime-related documentaries/stories and would love to chat about them.
Secretaries: Isabella Kuo and Serena Tan
Hello! I’m Isabella and I’m one of the secretaries for this year. I have noisy joints that make me question my age and do Muay Thai in my free time. (I then counterbalance that by eating my weight in chicken nuggets.) Say hi if you come to our PSA events or see me at the office (SS 509)!
Program: Psychology Specialist
Favorite PSY course: PSY328 (Psychology and the Law) and PSY424 (Psychology of Interpersonal Relationships)
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
John B. Watson! I have so many questions about the Little Albert experiment (where a little infant boy was conditioned to be scared of furry objects). I’d also want to hear his take on modern-day parenting, given how his previously influential childrearing practices are now defunct and his own two children became the biggest critics of his parenting.
Hey everyone! I’m Serena, one of the secretaries for this year. I complain a lot about not having enough free time for new hobbies but when I do have free time I’m probably just playing video games anyway (I’ve recently been playing FE3H, Undertale and Untitled Goose Game!) Hope to see you all at future events!
Program: Linguistics major, double minor in psychology and semiotics
Favorite PSY course: PSY210 or PSY270
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Probably an expert in the fields of psycholinguistics or positive psychology like Jean Berko Gleason or Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. I’m fascinated by Csikzentmihalyi’s concept of flow and I’m especially interested in language acquisition and the childhood development of bi-/multilingualism!
Treasurer: John Bao
Hey, I’m John and I’m the treasurer for this year. I like all kinds of music but I lean more into jazz and funk and also play the bass and guitar (can also slap dat). Hope to see y’all at our events!
Program: Cognitive Science Major and Psychology Major
Favorite PSY course: PSY100 (only took 2 PSY courses so far lmao)
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Carl Rogers for his humanist approach in psychology; I’m interested in his studies and sometimes you just need to see the good in people :))
Academic Coordinators: Sophia Qiu and Sophia Zhao
Hi there! I’m Sophia (Qiu – or you can call me Sophie) and I am one of the academic coordinator here at PSA with Sophia (yes that’s right we are both Sophia). I enjoy chilling with my cats and wandering around Toronto to find yummy food! I am pretty excited about the coming academic year, can’t wait to see you at the events!
Program: Psychology specialist, cognitive science major, statistics minor
Favorite PSY course: PSY270
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Carl Jung, and why not?
Hi! My name is Sophia (Zhao) and I’m one of the academic coordinators. During my spare time I like to explore around the city and discover good restaurants. I also like listening to music and my favorite artist is Bruno Mars. Look forward to meeting everyone at PSA events this year!
Program: Psychology and physiology double major
Favorite PSY course: PSY240 – Intro to Abnormal Psychology
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Carl Jung, because I remember learning about him in PSY230 and many of his ideas like the collective unconscious was very interesting
Seminar Coordinators: Shannon Meikle and Kathy Sun
Hello! I’m Shannon, one of the seminar coordinators. My goal is to provide new seminars that meet the needs of psych students academically and professionally. I like mystery novels, bubble tea, and 80s pop songs. If you see me at any events, come chat with me! I’d love to meet you.
Program: Neuroscience and Psychology
Favorite PSY course: PSY270
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Mary Ainsworth!
Heyo, I’m Kathy, one of the seminar coordinators for this year. I like to swing dance and I love everything about Cantonese cuisine. I’m looking forward to organizing lots of cool psychology specific presentations. This year, seminars will be focused on facilitating a dialogue between the presenter and the audience. The conversation is bound to be interesting and I hope to see you there!
Program: Psychology specialist, criminology and sociolegal studies major, sexual diversity studies minor
Favorite PSY course: Not sure yet but I’m planning to take PSY323, Sex Roles and Behaviour and I’m super excited for it
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
I would like to have a lovely dinner with Alfred Kinsey. He’s not strictly a psychologist but he made important contributions to human sexual behaviour, challenging the conservative views on sex and sexual behaviour at the time. I would like to hear his opinion and insights on human sexual behaviour relative to the current attitudes of sex, gender and sexuality. I certainly want to see his reaction to how society views have changed.
Social Coordinators: Layan Elfaki and Anna Yan
Hi! My name’s Layan and I’m one of the social coordinators for upcoming academic year; my goal is to organize events that will help psychology students feel more integrated within the psych department. In my free time, I enjoy mentoring and interacting with kids, watching the Blacklist and photographing artsy outfit shots. Looking forward to meeting u all at our PSA events!
Program: Double major: Psychology & Health and Disease
Favorite PSY course: PSY270
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Freud, just to know more about his thought process when coming up with his theories of parent-child relationships because of how abstract/wrong they seem to us now.
Hi everyone! My name is Anna and I am one of the social coordinators for the PSA this year. I like to eat, read, and listen to musicals that make me cry. I look forward to getting to know all of you!
Program: Psychology Specialist, PoliSci Major
Favorite PSY course: Psy220
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Freud. I want to know how he would psychoanalyze me.
Volunteer Coordinators: Elizabeth Chan and Janice Lee
Hey friends! I’m Elizabeth, one of your Volunteer Coordinators, and I am looking forward to interacting with this year’s volunteers (former and new!) at our events. In my free time, I love doing jigsaw puzzles and drinking bubble tea.
Program: Psychology Specialist, Education and Society Minor
Favorite PSY course: PSY100 is the only PSY course I’ve taken, but so far I’m really enjoying PSY220, intro to social psychology
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Wilhelm Wundt, because he’s the first known psychologist! I would want to learn about his first psychology experiments and their impact on scientific research at the time.
Hey! This is Janice, I am the volunteer co-ordinator for this year. I am currently in my second year and it’s also my second year joining the PSA. I enjoy cafe-hopping, painting, and styling outfits in my free time. I am really excited to meet all the new faces joining the PSA this year!
Program: Pharmacology Specialist, Psychology Minor
Favorite PSY course: PSY100
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Jean Piaget. I wonder what’s his favourite spot in Geneva to chill and work.
Conference Coordinator: Isabel Bowman
Hi everyone, I read books and occasionally attempt to write them. Avatar with blue people is good but Avatar with cabbage man is best. I look forward to fighting climate change together. Thanks guys.
Program: Psychology specialist, cognitive science major, philosophy minor
Favorite PSY course: NEW333
If you were to have a meal with someone related to the field of psychology (living or dead), who would it be and why?:
Plato — he was at such a pivotal point in history! I want to know the scoop on how much of a jerk Aristotle was, and whether all the stories about Diogenes are real (e.g. his demonstration of a ‘featherless biped’). I bet he’d also have a lot to say about modern society, science, psychology, etc.
2018-2019
President: Anna Chu
Hi everyone! My name is Anna Chu and I’m this year’s president! With this upcoming year, I hope to provide our community with more resources and opportunities to expand their knowledge and collaborate with other course unions to show students that there is more to psychology than research and clinical application. As the president of PSA, I hope to create a place where all students can share their knowledge and passion for psychology and a place where everyone feels welcome.
Programs: Psychology and Neuroscience Double Major, with a Minor in Physiology
Where You Were Born: Toronto, ON
Hobbies: Reading, Taking Naps
Favourite Food: French Fries
Favourite Song: Dependent on Mood
Fun Fact: I’m a Christmas baby! 😀
Vice-President: Betty Luo
Hello! My name is Betty (Yiqi) Luo and I am the vice president for this year! I will assist the president and promote more academic and social opportunities for students who are interested in Psychology. I will also be responsible for internal affairs and make sure that the PSA team is working together to provide meaningful experiences for you! I hope that PSA will become another home for you where you can share your feelings and thoughts.
Programs: Specialize in Psychology, Minor in Education & Society
Where I was born: Foshan, Guangdong, China
Hobbies: Play Guzheng, Distance run
Secretary: Maureen Huang
Hey everyone! I’m Maureen and I’m one of your secretaries this year. My goal for this school year is to expand the amount of exposure PSA has, so more students (especially first years) will know what resources and opportunities are available to them! This past year I found the PSA to be a super supportive and welcoming community, and I wish to pass that on to other students who may also be looking for psychology fanatics. Events put on by the PSA are also super helpful, and I want first-year students who may be unsure about what the program is about to gain an insight through PSA events and psychology students that are involved with the PSA. I’m so excited to be a part of this team so we can do more for this student body, and I’m looking forward to meeting all of you!
Programs: Psychology Specialist and Education and Society Minor
Where You Were Born: Taipei, Taiwan
Hobbies: Watching Netflix, Reading, idk?????
Favourite Food: Chocolate!!
Favourite Song: Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen and I’m Still Standing from the SING soundtrack
Fun Fact: I love styling hair!
Secretary: Christina Wang
Hi friends! My name is Christina Wang and I’m one of this year’s secretaries. For this upcoming school year, I hope to expand the Psychology Students’ Association’s reach in order to get information out to a greater number of students! There are honestly so many wonderful events that the PSA has to offer, as well as opportunities that are available to you (the student body) that not all people know about. My goal this year is to get all of this information to you, the students! Any information that the PSA has to offer, I aim to promote and communicate in a timely manner through our various social media handles. In this way, I hope that the PSAs presence will be more prominent on campus at UofT. I’m excited for this new school year, and I’m looking forward to meeting you when you drop by our PSA hub!
Programs: Psychology and Human Biology Double Major
Where You Were Born: Toronto, ON
Hobbies: Playing board games and watching Netflix
Favourite Food: Salmon sushi
Favourite Song: Honestly, it keeps changing all the time but right now at this moment, it’s Rewrite the Stars
Fun Fact: I love turtles!
Treasurer: Jonathan-Tavares Howard
Academic Coordinator: Thomas Russell
My name is Thomas Russell. I’m going into my fourth year majoring in neuroscience and minoring in psychology and biology. My areas of interest are CBT and neuropsychiatry, specifically looking for treatments for IED patients. Outside of school I enjoy yoga, boxing, snowboarding, playing piano, and reading. This year I am one of the academic committee execus and I’m very excited for another great year with the PSA! If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me at psa.academiccommittee@gmail.com
Academic Coordinator: Winston Tran
Bonjour tout le monde! My name is Winston and I’m one of your academic coordinators for the 2018-2019 year. With this upcoming year, I hope to be able to facilitate an environment where students strive to not just be involved with research and academics but to actively pursue opportunities for leadership and personal development. I know that it seems a bit counterintuitive given my role, but I strongly believe that the most successful students get the best of both worlds!
Programs: Cognitive Science Major, Psychology and English Double Minor
Hobbies: Trying new things. I recently started Muay Thai Kickboxing and I’ve been sore since.
Favourite Song: I don’t really have one, but I always try to sing Lose Yourself by Eminem at karaoke — it never goes well.
Favourite Class: PSY270 – Introduction to Cognitive Psychology
Favourite Fun Fact: Vikings used the bones of slain animals to make their weapons as they believed this would bestow the weapon with the animal’s spirit. Ironically, this made the weapons stronger because the carbon in the bones in conjunction with the iron they used created a steel-like metal.
Seminar Coordinator: Hazel Kang
Seminar Coordinator: Isabel (Breana) Bowman
Program(s): Cognitive science and psychology
Born: Ottawa
Hobbies: I often read books and watch shows within the realms of sci-fi and fantasy, and occasionally attempt to write — I’m also developing an interest towards cognitive scientific approaches to fiction and storytelling!
Food: Turnip cake and congee
Song: Presently and for the past while, The Suburbs by Arcade Fire
Social Coordinator: Shannon Meikle
I was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. My favorite food is ramen and my favorite musician is Bleachers. I spend my weekends trying to find the best bubbletea in Toronto (so far it’s coco).
I’m a third year student studying psychology and neuroscience. My favorite professors are EAS100’s Prof. Wang and PSY220’s Prof. Waggoner-Denton thanks to their engaging lectures and approachability. My favorite psychology experiment is Arthur Arons 36 questions that lead to love.
Social Coordinator: Laura Lyn
My goal for this year as co-social coordinator of PSA is to plan and host fun social events (semi-formal, pub night, board game night, etc) to foster the psychology student community here at uoft! I look forward to meeting and getting to know other psychology students, especially the new office holder volunteers!
Program: Cognitive Science and Psychology double major
Where I was born: Jamaica
Hobbies: travelling and reading
Favourite food: Chirashi/Sushi
Favourite song: Only Time by Enya
Volunteer Coordinator: Sunny (Songyi) Kim
Hi friends! My name is Sunny Kim and I am one half of your volunteer coordinators! I recently transferred into Arts and Science from Kinesiology. My job as a volunteer coordinator is to make sure that our office is always filled with welcoming people who are eager to help you! As part of the executive team, I hope to make everyone’s year the best one yet! You can catch me on the 11th floor at Robarts so feel free to say hi!
Programs: Double Major in Sociology and History, with a Minor in Psychology (but who knows! I might change it again)
Where You Were Born: South Korea
Favourite Food: Sushi (of course!)
Favourite Song: I don’t discriminate, I love all songs
Fun Fact: I’m fluent in Korean and take zodiac signs very seriously
Volunteer Coordinator: Tina (Yu-Hsuan) Lin
Hello everyone! This is from Tina Lin and I am the other half of the lovely Volunteer Coordinators (hee). As part of the executive team, my goal is to ensure everyone that comes into the office feels welcomed and involved while they are here. Throughout the year, I also hope to bring more events and activities for students to engage in. Come and visit us to find out more, the office is opened for opportunities, belonging and laughter!
p.s. If I get too talkative, you have probably opened the Pandora’s Box (jk)
2017-2018
President: Anh-Thu Ha
My name is Anh-Thu Ha, and I am a fourth year Psychology Student. Why I wanted to be involved with the PSA and my goals as this school years President is to ensure students are able to obtain all the resources and events provided by the PSA in the most accessible, inclusive, and informative way. My objective is to reinvigorate the Psychology Students’ Association so that it will continue to engage the active participation of its constituents, and work towards creating a community of supportive academic peers.
Vice President: Barron Pan
My name is Barron Pan and I’m in my fourth year majoring in Psychology and Employment Relations. I fell in love with PSA at the end of my second year when I discovered that there were a group of individuals who shared similar passion for psychology and soon became the Seminar Coordinator. In that position, I achieved my goal of contributing to building a sense of community by helping other students with their academic success and career planning. This year, I will continue my effort through supporting the execs and make PSA a more efficient and organized course union to better serve the U of T community.
Secretary: Anna Chu
Hello there! My name is Anna and I’m a fourth year Psychology and Neuroscience double major. I’m incredibly excited to be a part of this year’s PSA executive team and I can’t wait to be involved. I wanted to be a part of PSA to meet and learn as much as I can from others who share the same passion. I was involved in the presidential subcommittee last year, and I loved working closely with the exec team then. As one of PSA’s secretaries, it’s my responsibility to help the other members of this team reach out to all of you and share all the opportunities available for all students. I believe that this year’s executive team is made up of individuals who are willing to work hard for the benefit of psychology students and I look forward to this upcoming year with everyone.
Secretary: Cheryl Quan
Hi, friends! My name is Cheryl and I double-major in Psychology, Biology, and Evolutionary Anthropology. I’m currently in my third year and so excited to be a part of the PSA executive team. As soon as I enrolled in the Psychology program at the end of my first year, I knew I wanted to get involved with the community. I was a volunteer in my second year, holding office hours at the PSA hub (it’s super cool, come visit us at SS 509). I believe that PSA has so much potential to reach out to and support students at U of T. Part of my role is to aid the other executive members in achieving our goals, some of which are enhancing the experiences of Psychology (and other) students, creating a welcoming atmosphere, and fostering a love of science and education. All of us here at PSA are here for you. If you are in need of support or help in any way, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We value your ideas, questions, and concerns immensely and promise to do everything we can to continue serving our U of T community and its students.
Treasurer: Cassandra Wang
Hello everyone! My name is Cassandra and I am currently in my fourth year studying to complete a double major in psychology and criminology. I discovered the PSA community in my second year and had an unforgettable time volunteering as an office hour holder. I was able to make friends with a wide variety of people whether they were younger or older, pursuing the same degree as me or studying something completely different. They shared with me their seemingly endless wealth of knowledge about anything ranging from academics to philosophy to life experiences in general. Office hours became not just a place for me to meet new people but a place where I could continue building on these bonds and getting to know better my fellow undergraduate peers – something that is extremely hard to do given the sheer size of our classes. I hope to continue lending my support to the PSA this year as Treasurer. Together, let’s continue making PSA a safe and welcoming community for all.
Academic Coordinator: Betty Luo
Hello! My name is Yiqi Luo (Betty) and I am entering my second year in UofT. I specialize in Psychology and minor in Education. Last year, PSA helped me gain a lot of resources on courses, career and research, and I am super excited to be part of the PSA executive team this year and to support other students. I am working to improve the traditional Dr. Freud event for the first-year class, connect second-year students with more on-campus and off-campus opportunities, and support upper-year students with further research and career resources. Can’t wait to work with you all!
Academic Coordinator: Harrison Duong
Hello everyone! My name is Harrison and I am currently in third year, double majoring in psychology and neuroscience.In my second year I was part of the academic subcommittee, and it was through this experience that I realized how much fun it was working behind the scenes to ultimately give back to the psychology community. As part of the PSA executive team, I wish to continue to have fun while supporting students with all the academic resources they will need to succeed in their future endeavours. There is no doubt in my mind that this year will be just as amazing!
Seminar Coordinator: Becky Gross
Hello! My name is Becky Gross, entering my third year in UofT, studying a double major in psychology and neuroscience. My involvement with the PSA began last year, I entered the mentorship program and became an office hour holder. When deciding on the path I wanted to take in university I relied heavily on the PSA for support, the welcoming community full of interesting opportunities and people helped me a lot. As a seminar coordinator I would like to help provide students with some of the interesting opportunities that helped me decide to get involved. We are currently planning a number of seminars on a variety of aspects pertaining to a career in a psychology related field, including both a deeper understanding of the field academically and the logistics behind continuing forward in undergrad and beyond. If you have any suggestions, or would like to see a talk regarding any topic at all please don’t hesitate to reach out and let us know!
Seminar Coordinator: Thomas Russell
My name is Thomas Russell and I’m a third year student doing a major in neuroscience, a minor in psychology and a minor in biology. I started volunteering in the PSA in my second year, and jumped at the opportunity to become more involved in the community! I am very excited to be one of the seminar coordinators, and hope to provide other students with helpful sessions to ensure their academic success! I plan to orchestrate many great showcases of current psychology research taking place at UofT, allowing students to be exposed to tons of new ideas. I’m super excited for a great year!
Social Coordinator: Audrey David
Hi, everyone! My name is Audrey and I’m a third year student studying a double major in Psychology and Neuroscience. As a student, I was looking for opportunities that will help me meet more people in my program and to become more involved with student groups that align with my interests. I first got involved with PSA as an office hour volunteer in my second year and through this, I met many awesome students who I shared common interests and goals with. Now as the Social Coordinator of PSA, I aim to arrange social gatherings and opportunities that will provide psychology students the platform they need to meet and bond with fellow students alike. I hope that through PSA, psychology students get the academic and social support that will help make their stay at UofT the best it can be.
Social Coordinator: Danielle Lim
Hello!! My name is Danielle, and I am a Psychology Research Specialist and English Literature Minor. This is my fourth and final year as an undergraduate student here at UofT, and I could not be more thankful for all that the PSA has offered me within these past few years. Not only have I gained academic resources, invaluable insights, and lasting friendships through the PSA, but this organization was also what provided me with a sense of home when I needed it most. I remember spending much of first year feeling like a number, feeling lost, wandering aimlessly. I was lucky enough to stumble upon the PSA in my second year, quickly realizing that this was a place where I was known by my name and not by my number. Now, as a PSA executive member, it has been my overarching goal to ensure that more students within the undergraduate collective are able to find their name, to find their individual voice, to find the PSA’s potential in also becoming their safe and supportive home. Visiting our office is the first step in recognizing its potential, so feel free introduce yourself in person — we will welcome you with open minds, open hearts, and endless thanks!!
Volunteer Coordinator: Alec Stirbisky
Hello! My name is Alec and I am a third year Psychology, and Molecular Genetics & Microbiology double major. I am excited to be a member of this year’s Psychology Students’ Association executive team. I became involved with the PSA in my second year as a volunteer office hour holder. Being a volunteer was an important step forward in becoming involved with my peers both in and outside of academics. Through joining, I gained access to the many resources and insights that my friends in the PSA community had to share. As one of this year’s volunteer coordinators I hope to help build meaningful connections in the undergraduate community at U of T to the PSA so that more can benefit from what we have to offer. This year we will continue to make the PSA an accepting, helpful, and fun community for all to visit and be a part of.
Volunteer Coordinator: Jonathan Tavares
Hello, my name is Jonathan Tavares and I am second year Psychology specialist and Sociology major. I will be one of your volunteer coordinators for the 2017-2018 school year. I was inspired to join the Psychology Student Association when I saw the great bond they had both among themselves and with psychology professors.
2016-2017
President: Victoria Antinucci
This year I hope to increase the presence of the PSA among the psychology student body. I also hope to maintain and enhance the great work that is being conducted by the PSA. I can’t wait to get started and work with this year’s amazing executive team!
Vice President: Jenny Shao
Secretary: Anh-Thu Ha
This year, I hope to strengthen the communication between the Psychology student population to the PSA, and to the Psychology department as a whole body. My goal is to increase PSA visibility and to create an environment that supports the accessibility to resources and opportunities available to the Psychology Student body.
Secretary: Eileen Wu
Treasurer: Thomas Tan
My goal is to maintain the financial stability of PSA and able to cater towards more activities and events, which are essential and helpful to psychology student needs. Also, I want to provide more opportunities for first and second psychology students to connect with PSA and learn more about the psychology through events within the University of Toronto campus.
Academic Coordinator: Elizabeth Ko
Academic Coordinator: Ibrahim Hamid
Seminar Coordinator: Barron Pan
My goals in the coming year are to bridge the gap between students and access to academic resources in Psychology and help increase PSA’s publicity amongst psychology students as well as students with interests in psychology in other departments to contribute to building a more scholarly and interactive environment in the student community.
Seminar Coordinator: Freda Jian
Social Coordinator: Stephanie Choi
Social Coordinator: Valentina Mihajlovic
Volunteer Coordinator: Cassandra Wang
Goals: 1) To vigorously promote our union and recruit as many individuals as possible; 2) To get to know all volunteers by name and retain one interesting fact about each of them by the end of the semester; 3) To make PSA a place where you feel mattered and included – a place where you genuinely look forward to coming to.
Volunteer Coordinator: Danielle Lim
My main goal this year, will be to increase awareness and visibility of the PSA in order to promote and encourage more volunteer involvement within the group. The vastness of our program often lends its way to feelings of being lost within the collective, and we hope that by giving more students the opportunity to interact with one another, more and more students will be able to find a home where they belong, where they are known by their name and not by their number. Please feel free to contact either one of us if you have any questions or suggestions! Wishing you all the best for the 2016/2017 school year!
2015-2016
President: Valentina Mihajlovic
Vice President: K. Chiyung Wong
Secretary: Jenny Shao
Treasurer: Ai Nguyen
Academic Coordinator: Freda Jian
Academic Coordinator: Victoria Antinucci
Seminar Coordinator: Aaron Wang
Seminar Coordinator: Katrina Thomson
Social Coordinator: Justin Kwok
Social Coordinator: Aaron Switzer
Volunteer Coordinator: Seema Satish
Volunteer Coordinator: Eileen Wu
2014-2015
Co-president: Brian Pereira
Co-president: Julian Perinetti
Treasurer: Stephanie Tran
Academic Coordinator: Natasha Elena
Seminar Coordinator: Valentina Mihajlovic
Seminar Coordinator: Nalian Youmer
Social Coordinator: Yoon Woo Park
Social Coordinator: K. Chiyung Wong
Volunteer Coordinator: Alexandra Martinez-Cazonieri
Volunteer Coordinator: Aaron Wang