The REEF Lab is located in the Department of Psychology at the University of Hawai'i Mānoa.
Lab director
Cassandra L. Hendrix, PhD
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Cassie is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Hawai'i Mānoa and is the director of the Research on Early Environmental Factors (REEF) Lab, which will open in January 2025. Before starting at UHM, Cassie was a postdoctoral research fellow at NYU Langone Health in New York, and completed her doctorate in Psychology and her training as a child clinical psychologist at Emory University in Atlanta, GA. Cassie has experience in behavioral, MRI, and biological research with pregnant women, their fetuses, and infants. When she is not in the lab, she enjoys exploring wild places on land and undersea.
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Graduate students
Sydney Takemoto
Sydney is a Clinical Psychology PhD student at the University of Hawai'i Mānoa. She graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2023, and then worked as a research assistant in an infant development lab at NYU Langone. Sydney is interested in exploring how early parent-child interactions shape children’s risk for psychopathology, even before birth. In her free time, she enjoys long walks, rom coms, and trying new recipes.
Madison Wolpert
Madi is a Clinical Psychology PhD student at the University of Hawai'i Mānoa. She got her undergraduate degree in Psychology at the University of Washington, and worked in a perinatal research lab at NYU Langone. Madi is interested in investigating how prenatal stress can alter in-utero environments, impacting fetal brain connectivity, and contributing to long-term psychiatric risk. Outside of the lab and classroom, you can find her swimming in the water or reading in a coffee shop.
Lab manager
Zoë Barron
Zoë earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Medicine, Health, and Society from Vanderbilt University. Since graduating in Spring 2025, she has come to UH Manoa to pursue postgraduate research in developmental psychology. She is excited to examine both behavioral and neurological data, with the aim of better understanding risk factors for children’s psychopathology and long-term psychological development. When she is not in the lab, she can likely be found on the beach with a gripping novel or at the Farmer’s Market with a handful of fresh fruit!
Research Assistants
Madeline Abrass
Madeline earned her Bachelor’s degree in Human Biology from the University of California, San Diego, where she is currently completing her Master’s in Biology. Her research background includes neuroscience and endocrinology, with a focus on hormonal signaling and brain development. Originally from Hawai‘i, Madeline is passionate about health equity and hopes to apply her research experience toward a future career in medicine. In her free time, she enjoys photography, surfing, and spending time in nature.
Kaylee Bomgardner
Kaylee is an undergraduate student at the University of Hawaii at Manoa majoring in Psychology and Women’s Studies, exploring the ways in which behavior, identity and well-being are shaped. As a student research assistant at the REEF Lab, her aim is to make meaningful contributions while developing her skill set within a research environment.
Krystalyn Edwards-Calma
Krystalyn is a research assistant at the University of Hawaiʻi / Queen’s Medical Center MRI Research Center. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 2024. Krystalyn has experience in biomedical, behavioral, and MRI-based research. She plans to pursue a PhD and, ultimately, build a research career focused on addressing adversity in Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. Outside the lab, she enjoys traveling and spending time with friends and family.
Shyonna Landrum
Shyonna is an undergraduate student at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, double majoring in Psychology and Human Development & Family Studies. When she's not in school, she loves spending time outdoors with family and friends, both here in Honolulu and back home in Eugene, Oregon. She's excited to be part of the lab and to contribute to the meaningful work the REEF Lab is doing!
Kristen Maya
Kristen is a developmental educator and research assistant at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Her work explores the intersection of parenting, behavioral science, and neurodevelopment, especially how early stress and adversity shape children’s learning through epigenetic and clinical pathways. She is committed to culturally grounded, healing-centered research with Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) families.
Mari Tamashiro
Mari was born and raised here on Oahu and is a second-year undergraduate psychology student here at UH Manoa. She discovered her passion for the field after completing a high school internship program in her senior year and now aims for a future career in neuropsychology.