LAB DIRECTOR
Jennifer Forsyth, PhD (she/her) | Assistant Professor
Dr. Forsyth is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, with a minor concentration in Neuroscience, from UCLA in 2016. She completed her clinical internship at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh before returning to UCLA for postdoctoral training in functional genomics. She transitioned to faculty as an Assistant Professor in Psychiatry at UCLA under the Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics in 2019 before moving to the University of Washington in 2021. Her research seeks to understand how serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia develop, with an emphasis on understanding the pathways from genetic variation to neural- and systems-level changes.
Curriculum Vitae | Email: jenforsy [at] uw [dot] edu | Office: Kincaid Hall 527B
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Mahnoor Hyat (she/her) | Graduate StudentMahnoor is a fourth-year graduate student in the GRaND lab. She earned her BA with honors in Psychology from Stanford University in 2022. She is dedicated to investigating heterogeneity in the development and expression of mental illnesses. Her research focuses on identifying early neurobiological and sociocultural indicators, which could help inform preventative measures for at-risk individuals. At Stanford, she worked in the Stanford Neurodevelopment, Affect & Psychopathology Lab under Dr. Ian Gotlib on projects related to maternal mental health, child neurobehavioral development and prenatal health. Her honors thesis used network analysis to examine behavioral and emotional symptoms in black children from low-income, unmarried-parent households. Her current work is focused on delineating the genetic, neural and behavioral mechanisms of serious mental illness such as schizophrenia in diverse populations across contexts. She recently led a project that looked to parse out genetically mediated cognitive, behavioral, emotional and social precursors of schizophrenia in childhood and early adolescence and is now working on examining the neural and mechanistic underpinnings of these associations. In her free time, Mahnoor enjoys going on boba walks, watching movies and spending time with friends and family!
| Email: mhyat30@uw.edu |
Onyx Scheuer (they/them) | Graduate Student
Onyx is a third-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program. They earned their Ph.D. in Physiology and certificate in Clinical and Community Outcomes Research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2023. While at UW-Madison, they conducted research in the Jackson Lab utilizing a genetically encoded voltage sensor to investigate cortical circuitry of fast-spiking inhibitory interneurons implicated in psychiatric disorders. Currently, Onyx’s research focuses on the impact of interactions between genetic risk factors and adversity on adolescent mental health. Outside the lab, Onyx enjoys aerial arts and live music.
Jinhan Zhu (she/her) | Graduate Student
Jinhan Zhu is a second-year graduate student in the Clinical Psychology program. She received her Master’s degree in Computer Science from Yale University in 2022, following her Bachelor’s degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She previously worked as a software engineer at Amazon but has shifted her focus to explore her interest in psychology and neuroscience-related research. In the GRaND lab, Jinhan provides research computing, software, and technical support for neuroimaging and genetics projects while also pursuing her research interests in investigating the neurobiological factors underlying the occurrence of Serious Mental Illness. Outside of the lab, she enjoys reading, photography, and video games.
Sruthi Sravanam (she/her) | Graduate Student
Sruthi is a graduate student in Public Health Genetics program, with focus on applying principles of genetics to improve public health. Her research interests lie in understanding the genetic factors that contribute to the development of neuropsychiatric disorders leveraging bioinformatics tools. Sruthi is currently working in the GRaND lab, where she is studying neurodevelopmental modules of BrainSpan data and their enrichment patterns in relation to psychiatric and neurodevelopmental traits. Before joining the GRaND lab, Sruthi gained experience at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, where she worked on HIV-1 research, employing techniques like LASER ART and CRISPR gene editing. Outside of her academic life, Sruthi enjoys playing volleyball, badminton, square/line dancing.
STAFF
Jason Karalis (he/him) | Research Coordinator
Jason graduated from Stony Brook University in 2024 with a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Spanish Language and Literature. In the GRaND lab, he primarily works on the “Genetic Risk for Serious Mental Illness and Development” and “From Genotypes to Phenotypes in Schizophrenia: A Developmental Functional Genomics Approach” studies. During his time as an undergraduate, he gained research experience in the Klein Lab as a Project Coordinator and the Social and Neuro-Affective Predictors of Psychopathology (SNAPP) lab as a Lab Manager. His research interests include looking at the development of affective and psychotic disorders as well as investigating their associated protective and risk factors, both shared and unique. Outside the lab, he volunteers as a crisis councilor, and he likes to spend his free time reading, going on nature walks, and spending time with friends.
| Email: jkaralis@uw.edu |
Nathan Chen (he/him) | Research Technologist
Nathan graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in informatics in 2025. He is interested in utilizing data science to comprehend genetic risk for serious mental illnesses like major depressive disorder. In the GRaND lab, he is working on conducting data harmonization and descriptive statistics using Python on extensive medical datasets related to drug use and serious mental illness. In the future, he hopes to use machine learning and AI to advance healthcare prevention and intervention. Outside of the lab, Nathan enjoys working out, exploring big cities like LA, and watching reality TV shows like couple’s therapy and cut.
Lab Alumni
Sam Sievertsen (he/him) | Research Coordinator
Sam graduated from the University of Washington in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. In the GRaND lab, he primarily worked on the “Genetic Risk for Serious Mental Illness and Development” and “From Genotypes to Phenotypes in Schizophrenia: A Developmental Functional Genomics Approach” studies. While an undergraduate, he gained research experience in the Phillips Lab as a Laboratory Assistant and the Social Identity Lab as a Research Assistant. Also during his time at UW, he worked as a Registered Behavior Technician providing in home and in school applied behavioral analysis therapy to children on the Autism Spectrum and with related disorders. His research interests include identifying neurobiological and cognitive correlates/trajectories of anxiety, mood, and suicidality symptoms. He will begin his PhD in Clinical Psychology at Oregon Health & Science University in the Fall of 2024. Outside of lab, he enjoys skiing, running, and climbing.
| Email: sams17@uw.edu |
Emma Mirhashemi | Undergraduate Honors Student
Emma graduated from the University of Washington in 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a minor in Law, Societies, & Justice. She pursued her neuroscience related research interests in the GRaND lab by investigating the etiology of schizophrenia using neuroimaging data. Her time in the Culture, Diversity, and Health lab and her experiences in the GRaND lab have solidified her interest in pursuing a graduate degree in clinical psychology. Outside of the lab, she loves exploring the outdoors and trying new restaurants around Seattle! Though Emma is no longer located in Seattle, she also continues to be involved in projects in the GRaND lab.
Sophie Ferreira (they/them) | Research Technologist
Sophie graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in 2022 with a Bachelors of Science in Psychobiology. They joined Dr. Forsyth’s lab in 2020, where they gained experience using computational methods to work with neuroimaging data to explore genotype-phenotype relationships in individuals with schizophrenia. Previously, they have worked with mouse models using immunostaining to investigate protein pathways in rare pediatric neurological disorders. As an undergraduate, Sophie also worked in conjunction with UCLA’s Counseling and Psychological Services Center as a Peer Mentor to support fellow students undergoing psychological distress. Their academic interests include serious mental illness and neurodiversity, with a special emphasis on disability advocacy. Outside of lab, they enjoy cooking with ingredients they’ve never tried before, crocheting gifts for their friends, and bragging about their adorable cat, Boo.
Ariana Chavannes (she/her) | Undergraduate Research Assistant, Honors Student
Ariana Chavannes was in the Honors Psychology Program at the University of Washington, and graduated in 2023 with a B.S. in Psychology and a minor in Disability Studies. Her research project included investigating how well genetics predict typical brain development and expected brain deficit patterns in individuals with schizophrenia. She also has work experience as a Health and Wellness Coach at a Residential Mental Health Treatment Center. Her current research interests include understanding the environmental and neurobiological factors underlying serious mental illness, and plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Outside the Lab she enjoys spending time with friends and family, painting, and traveling.
Julia Hayano (she/her) | Undergraduate Research Assistant
Julia graduated from the University of Washington in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and began working with Dr. Forsyth in October 2021. In addition to the GRaND lab, she gained experience in human subjects research at the Katz lab and in research using mice models at the Zweifel lab as a Research Assistant. She is interested in the development of mental illnesses using neuroimaging and hopes to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology. Outside of the lab, Julia enjoys playing with her dog and traveling.
Sarah D’Souza (she/her) | Undergraduate Research Assistant
Sarah is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy with a minor in Neural Computation and Engineering. She joined the GRaND Lab in January 2023. She performed visual quality control for structural MRI scans using the ENIGMA Cortical QC protocol and troubleshoots grey matter segmentation in scans using the FreeSurfer processing pipeline. In the future she is interested in working at the intersection of neuroscience and technology in research and industry. Outside of class and the lab, Sarah loves hiking, reading and exploring the city with friends.
Minkyoung Cha (she/her) | Undergraduate Honors Student
Minkyoung is a senior undergraduate student who is pursuing a B.S. in Psychology, with plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. She is interested in mental health issues affecting adolescents and adults, particularly through neurobiological, cognitive, and interdisciplinary approaches to understanding the psychology behind pathology. In addition to her work in the GRaND lab, Minkyoung has gained research experience at the Computational Clinical Science Laboratory at Seoul National University and is currently assisting with a systematic review on chronic pain after traumatic injury at the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine at UW Medicine. As an Honors Student, she is exploring how genetic risk factors influence within-family IQ differences in schizophrenia and neurodevelopmental disorders, focusing specifically on copy number variations and loss-of-function mutations. Outside of the lab, Minkyoung enjoys journaling, drawing, photography, and spending time with her friends.
Mihin Wijayasundara | Undergraduate Research Assistant
Mihin is set to graduate from the University of Washington in 2026 with two Bachelor of Science degrees in Neuroscience and Biochemistry, and a minor in Education. He currently works as a research assistant in the Sibley Lab studying ADHD in teenagers and enjoys casual gaming, playing piano, and being active on the soccer field.
