Dr. Lauren

Dr. Lauren is a neuropsychologist and Assistant Professor of Research in the Neurology Dept. at USC, with over 50 peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals.

Her work uses brain imaging to understand modifiable risk factors for suboptimal brain aging, Alzheimer’s disease, and cerebrovascular disease, especially those that stem from the built environment. She is the Chair of the ENIGMA-Environment Working Group, which pools brain imaging data from labs around the world to determine the impact of geo-derived environmental exposures on structural brain properties.

Her current research investigates how exposure to ambient air pollution serves as a chronic stressor that facilitates neurodegeneration. Her research is jointly funded by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences and National Institute on Aging at the NIH. Prior to her work in environmental neuroscience, Dr. Lauren spent many years conducting research on psychological stress and genetic risk factors that adversely impact the brain.

In addition to her research, Dr. Lauren has mentored undergraduate and graduate students, as well as post docs and junior faculty navigate various phases of their professional development. This mentorship includes refining elements of graduate admissions applications (e.g., personal statements), conceptualizing research questions and their corresponding methodological strategy/design, and technical writing for grants and manuscripts. She also developed and leads a graduate course on writing in the sciences, which is designed to teach fundamental aspects of professional development (writing emails and personal statements, curating CV’s, interviewing, etc.) and designing and pitching a research proposal. Dr. Lauren has served on several committees for graduate admissions, qualifying exams, and dissertations, and is passionate about training the next generation of scientists and academics to move higher education and scientific research forward.