Meet the Team
Lab Director
Allison LoPilato, PhD
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Dr. LoPilato is the principal investigator of the REACT Lab. She is also an Assistant Professor in the Emory Department of Psychiatry, Director of the Emory Child & Adolescent Psychiatry outpatient clinic, and the Co-Director of the Child and Adolescent Mood Program, where she leads the Mood Regulation clinic. Dr. LoPilato’s research interests include identifying cognitive-affective mechanisms (e.g., emotion regulation, effort sensitivity, relief motivation, underlying youth mood disorders and designing and testing intervention service models that can be scaled and sustained beyond the walls of mental health specialty clinics. She actively integrates youth feedback throughout her research process.
As a clinician, Dr. LoPilato specializes in treating youth with severe emotion dysregulation and suicidality. She is one of few Georgia clinicians intensively trained in in DBT-C, a family-based treatment for children with severe emotional and behavioral dysregulation. Dr. LoPilato is also extensively trained in CBT. She has co-developed two therapy manuals, publishes in respected academic journals, delivers national workshops, and serves on professional committees.
To learn more about Dr. LoPilato and opportunities to engage with her work, please follow the button to your left.
Program Management
Morgan Kemper, LMSW, Ed.S.
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Morgan graduated from the University of Georgia with degrees in sociology and social work. She subsequently earned her Master of Social Work degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Advanced Standing program, and has an Education Specialist degree in Professional Counseling. Prior to joining the lab, she spent a decade in public education as a school social worker.
Her research interests include mental health care access inequities, youth anxiety and mood disorders, Adverse Childhood Experiences, and the interrelationship of these factors.
Morgan serves the REACT lab as a program manager. She also contributes through clinical delivery, community outreach, and research support.
Research Staff
Malia Bloemker
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Malia graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. Her research interests include various mental health disorders and their comorbidities, including: anxiety, depression, OCD, and trauma-related disorders.
Malia contributes to the lab as a research coordinator for the PATH and REACH projects.
Troy Maxwell
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Troy graduated summa cum laude from Tuskegee University with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology. Troy's research interests are centered around mood and anxiety disorders, with a strong emphasis on investigating their occurrences in underrepresented populations.
Troy contributes to the lab as a research coordinator for REACH.
Adrienne Sato
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Adrienne graduated from Oberlin College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and a minor in computer science. Adrienne is exploring her research interests, but finds particular curiosity in translational work.
Adrienne contributes to the lab as a research coordinator for the PATH and REACH projects.
Ella Akridge
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Ella is an undergraduate student at Emory University pursuing a double major in Psychology & Cultural Anthropology. Her research interests include studying adolescents in the context of their environment, family systems, and culture.
Ella is a research assistant in the lab. She is currently working with Dr. LoPilato on her honors thesis about adolescent sensitivity to social stressors. She hopes to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology.
Previous Lab Members: Pia Montenegro • Emily Wei • Mariana Lopez-Ruiz • Eugenia Giampetruzzi • Gretchen Shoemaker •
Nicole Palmer • Crystal Liu •