Department of Psychology

Emily Torchiana ’17 graduated from the College of Charleston with a BS in Psychology. She recently founded the non-profit organization Lost got Found. The aim of this organization is to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health by providing a public platform for individuals who experience mental illness to share their stories and connect with others. Emily travels the country to share information about her organization and her experiences with mental health. Recently, she was recognized for her outstanding achievements and service when she was the recipient of the prestigious national Jefferson Award for her work.

Emily’s powerful story has also been featured in The College TODAY.

Juliana Wallace began working in Dr. Cindi May’s research lab in her Freshman year, starting with research on how cues (words, sounds, etc.) that have some emotionality can affect our prospective memory. Juliana ran studies with younger and older adults and presented findings from the research at SARD in her sophomore year. She has received two grants for different research studies here at the College, and she is now embarking on my Bachelor’s Essay focused on curiosity.

During her Junior year summer, Juliana became trained in Bibliotherapy while completing an internship through Medical Experience Academy in Greenville, SC at the USC School of Medicine- Greenville. Bibliotherapy (therapy in which you read to individuals who are suffering from certain conditions, such as Alzheimer’s, a stroke) is used to help calm patients and to reduce pain depending on their condition. Juliana has worked with numerous young and adult patients in Bibliotherapy through her internship and also her volunteer work at the Shriner’s hospital in Greenville, SC.

Juliana is also a passionate lover of animals, and she loves the idea of the use of therapy dogs in sessions of counseling/therapy (especially for young kids who have a hard time getting out of their shell). She has been volunteering at the Pet Helpers animal shelter for 3 years in Charleston as an animal photographer. Her dream would be to run a counseling/therapy office in which she would offer a service that would include the presence of therapy animals to aid in sessions.

Juliana was the president of Psi Chi Honors Society during her Junior year, and she is still a member. She is also a member of the Pre- Health Honors Society, and she served as a Psychology tutor at the Center for Student learning for a year.

Juliana says of the Department of Psychology, “I am in awe at our amazing professors and the hard work they put in for this community and their students. I wouldn’t go back and time and make any choices differently. Dr. May is a phenomenal professor, mentor, friend, and guide in this journey. She pushes me to be the very best I can be while also making me feel we are a team.”

Eric Singleton ’18 uses his experience with psychology to inform his interests in international affairs. He says, “I essentially feel like my studying psychology has given me two types of experience. The first is in practical research methods and laying out a roadmap for postgrad education plans – I am really interested in the intergenerational transference of PTSD-related symptoms in populations who have experienced politically-motivated traumatic events (i.e. genocide victims, refugees, post-Cold War).” This interest inspired Eric to conduct a research project involving a cross-regional comparison of PTSD transference amongst Cambodians and Vietnamese people and their offspring. He completed this project while studying abroad in Cambodia and Vietnam with Dr. Jen Wright in Summer 2017. To build on his experience, Eric also began working this spring in the National Crime Victims Center with the Hispanic outreach program.

According to Eric, the second key experience of his psychology studies is “applying things I’ve learned (especially with respect to social psychology, conditioning/learning, and tests/measurements) to the nonprofit sector.” Eric has been working at Coastal Community Foundation for a little over two years, and he has applied what he’s learned to understand theories of altruism, management strategies, and data analysis for large projects (such as a Civic Engagement Agenda) amongst nonprofits. Additionally, Eric served as a development intern at the EastWest Institute in New York City in Summer of 2016. There he proposed research-backed fundraising strategies that were grounded in social psychology principles (e.g., crowdfunding as conformity, foot-in-the-door-effect). Eric is currently working on a Bachelor’s Essay project with Dr. Jen Wright on “Identifying and Addressing the Barriers to Nonprofit Success.” His goal is to better understand the relationships between variables/adversities that nonprofits must maneuver on a daily basis, and he seeks to learn how these variables/adversities relate to the nonprofits’ successes (or failures) of missions, capacities, and leadership.

After his graduation from CofC, Eric plans to pursue a MA in Conflict Transformation and Social Justice before gaining a couple of years of work experience and pursuing a Clincal PhD. He plans to spend the first portion of his career on the ground, providing treatment in recently war-torn areas, disrupting intergenerational transferences of symptoms. For the second phase of his career, he hopes to combine his interests and experiences: “- maybe work as an executive of an NGO advocating for mental health policy or distributing services. Hopefully in Latin America.”