Principal Investigator
Mariya V. Cherkasova, PhD
Assistant Professor of Behavioral Neuroscience in Psychology
Interested in psychological and neural mechanisms of reward-related behavior and addiction.
PhD from McGill University (2012); Postdoctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia (2014-2020)
Office: 2128 Life Science Building
Email: mariya.cherkasova@mail.wvu.edu
Graduate Students
Polina Krom
Polina is a Graduate student in the WVU Psychology PhD program in Behavioral Neuroscience. Polina is interested in researching addiction with methodologies such as EEG, eye-tracking and other imaging techniques. Upon graduation, Polina plans to pursue a career of a research scientist in the pharmaceutical industry. In her free time, she likes to travel, ride horses and read.
Maria Potts
Maria is a Ph.D. student in the Behavioral Neuroscience program in WVU’s Psychology Department. Broadly, she is interested in the long-term effects of addiction on the brain and behavior. After receiving her degree, she hopes to become a professor at a small liberal arts college. Outside of work and school, Maria enjoys reading, painting, and singing.
Software Developer
Katherine Muksuris
Katherine (Kat) is a graduate student in the Behavioral Neuroscience program at WVU’s Psychology Department. Kat’s research interests primarily include Parkinson’s disease and how patients with Parkinson’s respond to stimuli that encourage risky behaviors. After graduating, Kat will pursue a career in teaching in a primarily undergraduate institution, such as a liberal arts college. Outside of the lab, she enjoys drawing, traveling, and studying languages.
Isaac Kim
Isaac is a graduate student in the Behavioral Neuroscience PhD program at WVU Psychology. Isaac is interested in the biological and behavioral principles underpinning addiction and is currently focusing on gambling. Isaac wants to pursue a career in academia with the ultimate aim of developing complex behavioral prediction models for addictive and other mental health disorders. Outside the lab, Isaac enjoys studying astronomy, AI-related technologies, propaganda strategies, and international affairs..
Sumesh Ramasamy
Sumesh is a MSc student in the Engineering program and a graduate research assistant in the BBA lab. He is primarily working on developing software in Unity for our ICRG-funded gambling research. He also helps the lab with various miscellaneous software development / trouble shooting needs.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Rosalyn Hill
Rosalyn is a junior at WVU majoring in Neuroscience. Rosalyn join the BBA lab in Fall 2023 as a volunteer research assistant. She completed the SURE program in the lab in the Summer of 2024. She is currently continuing her research in the lab as part of a research experience course. After graduation, Rosalyn intends to pursue graduate studies in Psychology.
Isabella Steffenino
Izzy is a senior at WVU, majoring in Neuroscience. She joined the BBA lab in Fall 2024 as a volunteer research assistant and plans to complete her Capstone project in the lab.
Nicholas Palmer
Nicholas is a senior at WVU double majoring in Psychology and Economics. He began volunteering as at the BBA lab as a research assistant in the fall of 2024 and will complete his Capstone project in the spring of 2025. After graduation, he intends to apply to graduate programs in psychology and pursue a career in behavioral research..
Lab Alumni
Molly Summers: Molly gained research experience in the lab via the Research Apprenticeship Program in 2020 - 2021. Molly has since completed her BSc in Neuroscience at WVU and is currently working as a full-time research coordinator while she prepared to continue post-graduate education.
Alik Assi: Alik was an undergraduate research assistant in the BBA lab in 2020-2022 and completed his Capstone project in the lab. After completing his BSc in Neuroscience at WVU (with a minor in Finance), Alik completed an MSc in Information Technology and currently works as a Technical Intelligence Analyst at Concentric, Embedded at Fortune 50 Tech Company.
Moyosoreoluwa Jacobs: Moyo obtained secondary research experience in the BBA lab as an MA candidate in Counseling in the summer of 2021. She is currently a doctoral student Clinical Psychology at the Institute of Gerontology, Wayne State University.
Margaret Craw: Margaret was an undergraduate research assistant in the lab in 2021-2022. After completing her undergraduate degree in Neuroscience at WVU, she continued her education as a Physician Assistant student at Grand Valley State University.
Jamie Dotson: Jamie joined the lab in the fall of 2021 via the Research Apprenticeship Program and continued to volunteer in the lab until her graduation year. She has completed her BSc in Psychology in the Fall of 2023 and is planning to pursue graduate training in Counseling.
Laura Loeffelbein: Laura was a volunteer research assistant at the BBA lab before completing her Capstone project in the lab Fall 2022. Laura is currently a medical student at the WVU school of medicine (offered early admission!).
Logan Riffey: Logan was an undergraduate research assistant, an AGE-ADAR scholar, and a CAPSTONE student in the BBA lab Summer 2022-Spring 2023. After completing his BSc in Psychology and Biology at WVU, he is currently pursuing a MSc in Neuropsychology at Maastricht University.
Gillian Kaier: Gillian is a junior at West Virginia University. She has been is a volunteer research assistant at the BBA Lab 2021-2023 and has completed her CAPSTONE in the lab. She has completed her BSc in Neuroscience and Psychology in the Spring of 2023 and plans to pursue a career in Neuropsychology.
Brianna Schlierf: Brianna is a senior at WVU, majoring in Neuroscience and Psychology. She joined the BBA lab in Fall 2022 to complete her Capstone project. She plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in Neuropsychology. In her free time, she enjoys watching football and playing with dogs!
Jonathan Stambaugh: Jonathan has been a volunteer research assistant with the BBA lab Fall 2024 - Fall 2024. He is currently a Prescriber Medical Administrative Assistant at Harmony and Roots, Transformations Care Network.