LABBIES
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Members of the DICE Center include Dr. Lorraine Benuto (Director), graduate students, and undergraduate research assistants. Our lab culture is highly collegial. All members of the lab are expected to engage in professional and collegial behavior. We work together on projects and support and respect each other’s work. Labbies often will help each other with the logistical details of dissertation proposals and defenses and often collect data in tandem with each other. We spend time together attending conferences, program events, community events, social events, and we’ve been known to enjoy a grilled cheese sandwich or an episode of Law and Order together!
Lorraine, Cossette, Alan, Jorge, Stephanie, Natalia, Edwin, & Brenda
DIRECTOR: LORRAINE. T. BENUTO, PHD
Professional Facts: Lorraine T. Benuto is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology. Her research interests are the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based psychological services to cultural minorities with a specific focus on the Latino population.
Dr. Benuto is also the Director of La Clinica VIVA which is funded by the Nevada Office of the Attorney General through a grant from the Violence Against Women Act. VIVA is dedicated to providing high quality, culturally sensitive, evidence-based psychological services to Latinas who have experienced interpersonal violence and/or sexual assault. She also serves as the director of the THRIVE Center, which is funded by a Victims of Crime Act Grant from the National Institute on Justice. Dr. Benuto is ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS IN 2022 (for matriculation in 2023).
Some Personal Facts: Dr. Benuto grew up in rural Northern California just outside of Reno, NV. She earned her B.A. from a a small liberal arts college in the Bay Area (Dominican University of California). It was here that she developed a passion for research which led her to pursue a Ph.D. from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. After completing her clinical internship in San Juan Puerto, Rico, Dr. Benuto decided to relocate to northern Nevada to be closer to her family. In her spare time Dr. Benuto enjoys spending time with her family. She also enjoys hiking the many trails that exist in the surrounding Reno area, crafting, and Jazzercise!
Mentorship Style: Dr. Benuto takes a hands-on approach to mentoring both graduate and undergraduate students. For graduate students Dr. Benuto holds the expectation that the students in her lab be actively involved with the research projects that are currently underway. If you join the DICE Lab you can expect to be involved in a minimum of four research projects per year that will be submitted for publication (i.e., you will work on approximately two papers per semester). While student-generated research is highly valued, Dr. Benuto does hold the expectation that all research conducted in the DICE Center will fit with the mission of the center. With graduate students she provides timely, critical feedback and is focused on helping students evolve into strong writers and critical thinkers.
Alan Garcia, M.S.
Contact Info: agarcia@nevada.unr.edu
Alan is a graduate student in the clinical psychology program. He moved to Reno in 2020 after earning his B.A in psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles. He earned his M.S in psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno in 2021. Alan is interested in researching evidence-based interventions for Latinos who are victims of trauma/interpersonal violence and families whose children display behavior problems. Alan is currently working on his dissertation to increase treatment dissemination and examine treatment acceptability of an evidence based parenting intervention to parents whose children have mild to moderate behavioral problems. He has a passion for traveling, working out, and building Legos.
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Cossette Canovas, B.S.
Contact Info: ccanovas@nevada.unr.edu
Cossette is a fourth year graduate student in the program. She moved to Reno in 2014 to start her undergraduate degree at UNR. She graduated UNR in 2018 with a B.S. in neuroscience and a minor in Japanese studies. After graduating, Cossette stayed in Reno working as a clinic manager at the UNR School of Medicine Psychiatry clinic. Cossette is interested in racial discrimination and the impact discrimination can have on mental health, well being, and cognitive functioning. Her goal is to legitimize the very real consequences victims of racial discrimination experience in order to improve treatment availability and quality for persons of color.
Cossette is currently finishing up her thesis, which focuses on establishing treatment targets for racial trauma. She is also working on her dissertation, which focuses on adapting group-based therapy for the treatment of racial trauma. Additionally projects Cossette is working on include investigating the protective strategies used by Latina victims of domestic violence and collecting the stories of Latino immigrants who immigrated to the United States via border crossing.
In her free time, Cossette enjoys playing video games, playing Dungeons & Dragons, watching anime, writing stories, and taking too many pictures of her cat.
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Jorge Cao-Noya, M.A.
Contact Info: jcaonoya@nevada.unr.edu
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Stephanie Reyes, B.A.
Contact Info:stephaniereyes@nevada.unr.edu
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Stephanie is a graduate student in the UNR clinical psychology program. She earned her B.A. in psychology with a minor in public health from the University of California, Merced. Stephanie is interested in researching anxiety, depression, and trauma among the Latinx population and disseminating treatments to this underserved population. Her research also focuses on evaluating daily skill use via Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) among clients treated with transdiagnostic treatments, such as the Unified Protocol (UP).
Currently she is working on collecting data for her thesis. Her project is focused on treating Latinx clients with the UP protocol who are struggling with anxiety and depression while assessing daily skill use via EMA. Additionally, Stephanie is developing a Spanish telenovela series teaching skills to manage anxiety and depression that are taught in the UP protocol.
Stephanie loves to spend time with family and friends, travel, and dance baile folklorico.
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Natalia Duda, B.A.
Contact Info:nduda@unr.edu
Natalia Duda is a third-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program. She grew up in a small town in Poland and immigrated to the United States in 2013. Natalia received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Substance Abuse Services from the University of Nevada, Reno. Her research examines the mechanisms behind racial trauma and its impact on one’s mental health in hopes to improve treatment outcomes for victims of racial discrimination. Broadly, her clinical work focuses on providing evidence-based interventions for victims of trauma and youth with first symptoms of psychosis.
Natalia is currently collecting data for her thesis that aims to identify physiological stress reaction to racial racism trauma and if it emulates a stress response observed among people with PTSD. Additionally, she is working on her dissertation proposal that aims to design an intervention that successfully treats symptoms of racial trauma.
In her free time, Natalia likes to spend time with friends, snowboarding, and exploring Tahoe with her three dogs Ted, Bobbi, and Velma.
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Edwin Jurado, B.A.
Contact Info: ejurado@umich.edu
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Edwin is a first-year graduate student in the clinical psychology program. He earned a B.A. in psychology at the University of Detroit Mercy and a graduate certificate in Public Health Practice from Wayne State University. Edwin is interested in researching race-based trauma, discrimination, and mental health outcomes in Latinxs. More specifically, Edwin is interested in developing and adapting treatment for Latinx individuals who experience discrimination due to race/ethnicity or other marginalized identities.
Edwin is looking forward to exploring the beautiful scenery around Reno and engaging with the University of Nevada Reno community. Edwin is a big fan of live music, video games, anime, and dancing.
Brenda Zavala, B.A.
Contact Info: bzavala1398@yahoo.com
Brenda is a first year student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program at UNR. She received her A.A. in Psychology from El Camino Community College before transfering to the University of California, Irvine, where she received her B.A. in Psychological Sciences. Her research interests include the access and utilization of mental health services in Latinx communities, the adaptation of evidence-based interventions for Spanish-speakers, and the development of culturally appropriate practices in the mental health field.
In her free time, Brenda enjoys spending time with her family, friends, and pets. She also enjoys crocheting and turning off her brain to reality tv.
Research Assistants
WE ARE ACCEPTING RESEARCH ASSISTANTS FOR THE 2023-2024 ACADEMIC YEAR.
Gabriella Villa
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Alia Ahn
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Sofia Sanchez
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If you are interested in becoming a research assistant please complete the application form and submit to dr.benuto@gmail.com. You can download the form here: Research Assistant Application
