QCARES uses community-base action research to explore access and barriers to affirming mental health care, gender affirming therapy approaches with transgender and non-binary people, and evidence-based approaches to teaching and training about diversity.
Principal Investigator and director
Dr. Jay Bettergarcia, Ph.D. (they/them)
Dr. Jay Bettergarcia, Ph.D.
Bio: Jay Bettergarcia is an Assistant Professor at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Jay's research focuses on LGBTQ+ mental health and wellness, transgender-affirming therapy, and diversity teaching and training. Jay loves working with various collaborators, including professors, staff, students, and community members to create social change with the LGBTQ+ community.
Ph.D. Counseling Psychology, University of California, Santa Barbara
M.A. Social Psychology, San Francisco State University
B.S. California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Read more about Dr. Bettergarcia's research and publications on the Cal Poly faculty page here.
Click here to view Dr. Bettergarcia’s CV.
Pronouns: They/Them/Theirs
project coordinator
Mikie Weidman
Bio: Mikie is currently a first year in Cal Poly's Psychology Master's Program. She is a 2020 graduate from Chico State University where she received two bachelors' in Psychology and Women's Studies. She aspires to create a world that is inclusive to all people and believes being kind to others is the only way to be successful.
B.A. Psychology, Chico State University
B.A. Women’s Studies, Chico State University
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Lab Manager
Bonnie Rose Thomson
Bio: Bonnie is a fourth year Psychology major with a minor in Child Development. Her research interests include multicultural competency trainings for therapists and clinicians, LGBTQ+ mental health disparities, risk and resiliency factors for substance abuse, and children’s developing concepts of gender and race. After graduation, she plans on pursuing a PhD in Clinical or Counseling Psychology and working with underserved populations. Outside of school, she enjoys playing the flute, reading, traveling, musical theatre, and petting cats and dogs.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
research assistants
Allie Aarrestad
Bio: Allie is a senior at Cal Poly majoring in Psychology and minoring in Child Development. Her academic/research interests include behavioral disorders in children, effects of hospitalization/disease on children, gender dysphoria in children, and mental health of children. After graduation, Allie plans on applying to PhD programs in Clinical Child Psychology.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Hallie Andersen
Bio: Hallie is a fourth year Psychology major with a minor in Child Development. Her research interests include the effects of stress on neurodevelopment, neuroscience and psychopathology. After graduation, Hallie hopes to pursue a PhD in Neuroscience.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Madilyn Baker
Bio: Madilyn is a fourth year Psychology major with a minor in Spanish. Her academic interests include social and multicultural Psychology, especially as they pertain to cultural competency. After graduation, Madilyn plans to pursue a Masters in Psychology and work with children and families. Aside from being a student, Madilyn loves spending time with friends, learning to cook and crafting.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Ella Commerce
Bio: Ella is a fourth year Psychology major with a minor in statistics. Her academic interests include personality, identity development, psychopathology, and design and analysis of experiments. After graduation, Ella hopes to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology with a concentration in quantitative methods.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Noa dunevich
Bio: Noa is a third year psychology major at Cal Poly. Her academic interests include social neuroscience, cognitive development, and clinical practice. After graduation, Noa hopes to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology and work in the mental health profession.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Jane gilchrist
Bio: Jane is a fourth year Psychology major. Her academic interests include anxiety disorders and the use of evidence-based practices in treatment. Upon graduation, Jane hopes to earn a Masters degree in Clinical Counseling, and would like to work with adolescents in private practice and teach psychology courses at the community college level. In her free time, she enjoys watching movies, playing tennis, testing new recipes in the kitchen, and going to the beach with friends.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Conner Grannis
Bio: Conner is a third year Psychology major. His main research interests include organizational, social, and consumer psychology. After graduation, he will be attending graduate school to get his Masters in Business. He plans to pursue a career in marketing with a focus on consumer behavior and the psychology of business organizations.
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Max Harrington
Bio: Max is a fourth year Psychology major with minors in Child Development and Ethnic Studies. Their research interests include implicit bias formation, identity development, media psychology, and impact of discrimination on cognition. After graduation they hope to pursue a PhD in Social Psychology.
Pronouns: They/Them/Theirs
ELL Hundertmark
Bio: Ell is a fourth year Psychology major with a minor in Queer Studies. Their academic interests include queerness, gender, and resilience, and they hope to use their degree to become a resource for oppressed bodies, create space for marginal voices, and subvert dominant narratives upholding systems of oppression. They ultimately plan on furthering their education by pursuing graduate research degrees within the fields of Social and Liberation Psychology.
Pronouns: They/Them/Theirs and He/Him/His
Danica Lewis
Bio: Danica is a fourth year Psychology major with a passion for biopsychology! After graduating Cal Poly, she plans on earning her Psy.D in Clinical Psychology with a specialization in Neuropsychology. Danica's career aspirations include working alongside medical doctors to treat individuals suffering from traumatic brain injuries, especially among those in underserved and/or marginalized groups.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Brianna Martin
Bio: Bri is a fourth year Psychology major with a Child Development minor. Her academic and research interests include public health access within marginalized communities. She hopes to get her Master’s in Public Health meanwhile focusing on her interest of public health access for mothers and children. Bri enjoys meeting new people, spending time outside, and learning!
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Lily packer
Bio: Lily is a fourth year Psychology Major and Ethnic Studies minor. Her academic interests include multicultural psychology and social psychology. After graduation, she plans to pursue a doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Chloe Plummer
Bio: Chloe Plummer is a fourth year Psychology major and Child Development minor. Her academic interests include child development, effects of stress on the body and mind, and how to develop high-quality childcare programs. After graduation, Chloe plans to pursue a Master's or Doctorates degree, and work with children and families. Outside of school, she enjoys spending time with friends, hiking, and going to the beach.
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Maya Woodbury
Bio: Maya is currently a fourth year Psychology Major. Her academic interests include social and multicultural psychology, especially the effects of institutionalized discrimination on individuals and groups. After graduation, she plans to spend time working with deprived communities before pursuing higher education in a more concentrated field. Outside of School, Maya loves to spend her time cooking, traveling, and with her friends and family.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
