Department of Psychology
San Diego State University
Dustin Thoman, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator | dthoman@sdsu.edu
Dr. Thoman’s research focuses on the development of student interest, and the influence of stereotypes and social identities in shaping the development of students’ educational and career interests. Through consulting and program development, he has also worked to improve educational programs, particularly those designed to broaden participation and promote diversity in science and math education, through theoretically and empirically-grounded approaches.
Department of Psychology University of Colorado Colorado Springs
Jessi L. Smith, Ph.D.
Co – Principal Investigator | jsmith20@uccs.edu
Dr. Smith’s research is grounded in experimental methodology and longitudinal analyses, with an applied focus on educational, workplace, and health-related domains. She has also created the Center for Student Research and developed new responsible conduct of research training, and leads other faculty-student research initiatives. Her diversity science research focuses on STEM experiences of women, Native American, and Latinx students.
Department of Psychology
San Diego State University
Miguel Villodas, Ph.D.
Co – Principal Investigator | mvillodas@sdsu.edu
Dr. Villodas’ research focuses on educational success and psychological well-being among diverse populations. He has expertise in quantitative research methods and has contributed to the development and evaluation of university and community-based faculty-student mentoring, group-based student support, and research engagement initiatives for diverse students from ethnic/racial minority, first-generation, housing insecure, and foster care backgrounds.
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
San Diego State University
Christal Sohl, Ph.D.
Co – Principal Investigator | csohl@sdsu.edu
Dr. Sohl’s research focuses on molecular mechanisms of disease at the intersection of biochemistry, molecular biophysics, cell biology, metabolomics, and oncology. Dr. Sohl has developed and launched a mentoring program for students and also serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Committee at SDSU, which is charged with developing new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policy for the College of Sciences.