Meet the People Behind the Lab
Founding Director of the Lab
Yael Warshel
Bellisario College of Communications and College of the Liberal Arts (Rock Ethics Institute and African Studies), Penn State
Dr. Warshel works at the intersection between international media, child, and conflict zones analysis, practice and policy specializing in peace communication.
Faculty Collaborators
Faculty Collaborator
Department of Management, Communication and Society, Copenhagen Business School.
Dr. Albu's expertise is at the intersection of communication, digital technologies and organization. Her research focuses on ethnographic studies of human rights organizations in the MENA region (Tunisia, Morocco and Lebanon).
Faculty Collaborator
Biobehavioral Health and Child Maltreatment Solutions Network, Penn State.
Dr. Shalev’s research leverages behavioral, physiological and molecular methods as it relates to stress and aging across the life span.
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Former Graduate Research Assistants
January 2024 - August 2024
Rehab Alayoubi
An integraged undergraduate-graduate student majoring in media studies with minors in digital media trends and analytics and psychology.
January 2024- May 2024
Sabrina Knox
A second-year Schreyer Honors Scholar and Presidential Leadership Academy Scholar studying philosophy and English and pursuing a master's of international affairs through the integrated undergraduate-graduate program.
January 2022 – August 2022
Triwik Kurniasari
A first-year Ph.D. student in mass communications. She earned a master's degree in communication and development studies.
September 2021 – May 2022
Erin Condo McCracken
A second-year master of international affairs student with a minor in information, communication and technology for development (ICT4D). She also holds master's degrees in social work and public administration.
May 2020 - August 2020
Kara Roop Miheretu
A third-year Ph.D. dual title candidate in early childood education and comparative international education development.
2017 - 2018
Aya Al Khatib
Aya recently earned her master’s degree in media studies from Penn State, where she also earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism with a minor in political science. In between her undergraduate and graduate years, she worked for the communications division of UNICEF Jordan.
Former Undergradaute Research Assistants
May 2024 - June 2024
Marisa Schnars
Marisa Schnars is a first-year Rock Ethics Institute and Paterno Fellow. She is majoring in international politics with a minor in Middle Eastern studies.
January 2023- May 2024
Alexi Om
a third-year scholar in the Schreyer Honors and Paterno Fellows program. As an undergraduate student in the College of Liberal Arts, she is currently pursuing a comparative literature major and a Chinese minor.
May 2023 - August 2023
Rayna Alexander
a third-year student, Paterno Fellow and Presidential Leadership Academy Scholar studying political science and minoring in geography.
January 2023- August 2023
Renata Daou
A fourth-year student pursuing a bachelor's degree in political science and journalism, with minors in global security and Middle East studies.
January 2023- May 2023
Sukainah Aldarweesh
An Outstanding Adult Student Award winner, and Schreyer scholar. An IUG student majoring in media studies with a minor in psychology. Her research interests are media effects, media psychology, and children and media. She is involved with the Daily Collegian, the News Literacy Institute, peer mentoring, and the CMCZ Lab.
January 2022 - May 2022
Lilly Riddle
A third-year student, Rock Ethics Institute Fellow and Paterno Fellow in the Schreyer Honors College pursuing bachelor's degrees in political science and journalism.
September 2021 - December 2021
Lillian Aronson
A Rock Ethics Institute Fellow and Paterno Fellow pursuing a bachelor's degree in international politics and a master's degree in international affairs simultaneously through an integrated undergraduate-graduate program.
September 2021 - December 2021
Catherine Ackerman
A second-year Rock Ethics Institute and Paterno Fellow majoring in criminology and English.
January 2020 - December 2021
Luisina Kemanian-Leites
A sophomore Rock Ethics Institute and Paterno Fellow majoring in international politics with minors in Arabic and Spanish.
January 2021 - May 2021
Kristen Miller
A sophomore Rock Ethics Institute and Paterno Fellow majoring in global and international studies, labor and human resources, Latin American studies and Spanish, with a minor in Portuguese.
May 2020 - August 2020
Josie Krieger
A junior Paterno Fellow majoring in history and economics with minors in Jewish studies and Middle Eastern studies.
January 2020 - August 2020
January 2022 - May 2022
Kathryn Lewis
a junior Rock Ethics Institute Fellow majoring in global and international studies, and Spanish.
January 2020 - May 2020
Erin Brown
A Rock Ethics Institute and Paterno Fellow double majoring in communication arts and sciences and women's studies with a minor in rhetoric and a certificate in Holocaust and genocide studies.
October 2019 - August 2020
Pablo Gutierrez
A senior Rock Ethics Institute and Paterno Fellow majoring in anthropology, French language and literature, and history.