HYBRID CONFERENCE: November 5-6th 2022
MEET OUR CONFERENCE TEAM
Scroll down to learn more about our conference team!
Francesca De Geronimo (she/her) – Conference Chair
I am a hard-working, passionate, and dedicated student at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. My major is psychology, and my minors are writing and community action and social change (CASC). I have a strong and innate passion for psychology and hope to have a career in clinical psychology. My goal is to do research and eventually work towards a Ph.D.
Angie Jung (she/her) – VP of Operations
Angie is an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan studying Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology with plans on pursing a career in medicine. On campus, she is involved in many mental health programs, including serving as a Peer Counselor for the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) at UM, as well as the CAPS Student Advisory Board. Angie is very excited to join the GenMH team this year and looks forward to working with everyone to promote mental health awareness in the community. In her free time, Angie enjoys going on walks, playing the flute, and painting.
Elayni Liu (she/her) – VP of Marketing
Elayni is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan, and her intended major is Neuroscience. She is passionate about spreading mental health awareness in hopes of providing communities with better mental health resources and services. Excited to work with the GenMH team, Elayni looks forward to making a mental health impact by contributing to the goals of the organization.
Saad Shami (he/him) – VP of Partnership, Fundraising, and Finance (PFF)
I am very passionate about GenMH's goal of spreading awareness about mental health among our youth and enacting change in our communities. In the future, I hope to continue this trend, using this experience as a stepping stone to making worldwide change!
Emma Leipsner (she/her) – VP of Special Content
Emma is an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan School of Public Health majoring in Public Health Sciences. Emma plans to attend medical school and pursue a career in non-profits with a health focus. Emma is excited to be a part of the Generation Mental Health team to educate and reduce the stigma around mental health on college campuses.
Gaurie Gunasekaran (she/her) – VP of Speaker Recruitment
Gaurie is an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan and is majoring in Biology and minoring in Entrepreneurship. She served as a three-term Chair of the Health Committee and the Chair of the Diversity Affairs Committee in the LSA Student Government at UMich during the Covid-19 pandemic where she led many projects to improve campus life. In order to alleviate the burden of the cost of private therapy, she created a Private Therapy Reimbursement program at Umich and helped over 60 students within the first semester of launching the program. In an effort to break the stigma surrounding mental health, she led a student government partnership with the University’s TedEx chapter to organize a mental health event catering to hundreds of students. Through these efforts, she discovered a passion for advocacy and policy. She is pursuing a career in medicine and hopes to bridge the gap between mental and physical health advocacy.
Audrey Dozeman (she/her) – Operations Director
I'm a senior majoring in International Studies and Japanese, and in the future I hope to work for an international organization doing humanitarian work. This is my first time helping to plan a large event like this, and I'm so thankful for the opportunity to learn!
Skyla Park (she/her) – Operations Director
Skyla is joining the Conference Operations Team as the Director of Operations and is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor studying International Security. Her passion for mental health and mental health advocacy began when she became involved in a program at her high school called Peer Support, where she learned how to serve her community and peers in addition to planning programming/events related to mental health advocacy. She has continued to be involved in a variety of organizations on campus like Liberty in North Korea, where she has furthered her interest in advocacy. Skyla is excited to be a part of the GenMH team and hopes to contribute to a successful conference this upcoming fall!
Annie MacIntosh (she/her) – Operations Director
I am an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan studying Psychology with a minor in Gender, Race and Nation. I am passionate about the research I help conduct in the Well-being, Health, and Interpersonal Relationships Lab and U of M, being a big sister to my four younger siblings, and trying new coffee shops. In the future, I hope to work more with non-profit organizations and pursue a career related to clinical or social psychology.
Ally Franz (she/her) – Marketing Director
I am an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan- Ann Arbor studying chemical science on the pre-health track. I am passionate about mental health awareness and advocacy and hope to include it in my future work.
Caitlyn Hocker (she/her) – Marketing Director
Caitlyn is a junior from Connecticut studying Cognitive Science and minoring in Spanish. She has a wide array of interests and passions across different sectors, including mental health and psychology. She has worked with both young adults and children with varying disabilities through different organizations and personal experiences throughout high school. In addition to experiencing her own bouts of mental difficulties, this fulfilling work only encouraged her to continue to delve into the field and take an active role.In her free time, Caitlyn enjoys being outside and active, whether walking, skiing, biking, or just soaking up the sun. She loves keeping herself occupied with a good book, her job(s), or hanging out with friends and family. While she is in the process of figuring out what she wants to do, she has a profound desire to connect with those different from her. Her next step will be studying abroad in Granada, Spain, while living with a host family. She hopes to immerse in the culture and take advantage of all the opportunities abroad!
Sophia Hovakimian (she/her) – Marketing Director
Sophia is in her final year at the University of Michigan as a Psychology major and Statistics minor. She came to join GenMH as a student after becoming increasingly aware of and passionate about the mental health crises on her campus. As a Marketing Director, Sophia hopes to aid GenMH in accomplishing their mission by promoting the conference and the resources it offers. In the future, she hopes to get her PhD in Clinical Psychology and conduct research on different health outcomes.
Natasha Kakish (she/her) – PFF Director
I'm a student at the University of Michigan who is passionate about mental health. My major is Business Administration with a concentration in finance. I have previously interned at a non-profit organization where I was able to use business to help drive a change for mental health in Detroit. I also conducted research at Michigan on how the pandemic impacted mental health, helping to create policy change. Following graduation, I hope to go into a career in the financial services industry and continue mental health advocacy.
Joshua Tai (he/him) – PFF Director
Joshua is a senior at the University of Michigan studying Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. He is passionate about bringing awareness to mental health and hopes to create more space for discussion. He hopes to have a career in medicine specializing in pediatrics.
Avelyn Men (she/her) – PFF Director
Avelyn is a member of the PFF committee at GenMH. She is a student at University of Michigan major in psychology minor in social work (CASC). Avelyn is passionate about mental health advocate and stigma around mental illness. She has volunteered at multiple different non-profit organization for the past two years, and recently gained her certificate for NAMI (National Mental Health Alliance) Family to Family class. She also attend several support group and hospital visit that hold by NAMI.
She likes to camping, cooking, and trying new foods. Avelyn is glad to be part of the GenMH team and looking forward to work with all other members to make the conference successful.
Mai Tran (she/her) – Special Content Director
I am a sophomore student at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor majoring in BCN. I am extremely passionate about developmental/clinical psychology and am an advocate for mental health, which is what brought me to GenMH. Through this experience, I hope to gain more hands-on experience with spreading awareness and building a safe space for conversations surrounding mental wellbeing, thus contributing to my goal of working in psychotherapy.
Kieun Grace Seok (she/her) – Special Content Director
I am passionate and optimistic undergraduate student at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Currently, I am in my final year of working towards a double major in Psychology and Philosophy (B.A.). My heart has always gone out to children, and I hope to pursue a doctorate in clinical child psychology. With this career goal in mind, I have been working under a supervisor as a behavior technician in ABA while back at home in California.
SJ Shin (they/them) – Speaker Recruitment Director
I am a student at the University of Michigan studying Psychology and Community Action & Social Change, wanting to get involved with GenMH because of my passion for mental health and community engagement. My international background drives much of my interest in how culture and race affects one’s identity, and encourages me to empower underrepresented groups in society. With my position for this year’s conference, I hope to be able to continue the dialogue on youth advocacy and encourage open conversation.
In my free time, I enjoy writing, languid walks in the park, and rewatching comfort shows. You can probably find my wandering around museums or obsessively making new playlists on Spotify.
Sam Marchuck (he/him) – Speaker Recruitment Director
Sam Marchuck is rising sophomore at the University of Michigan, originally from Long Island, New York. He is currently majoring in Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience on a pre-medical path. Sam has always had a passion for increasing awareness surrounding mental health and is excited to be a part of the team at Generation Mental Health.