Zihana Garcia is a second-year honors student majoring in Psychological Sciences with a minor in Human Development and Family Science. She is interested in pursuing child psychology to support children’s healthy development and mental health. She is excited to work in the SHINE lab and looks forward to exploring how to advance mental health assessment and identify what families can do to provide an encouraging environment for their children.

Outside the lab, Zihana serves as treasurer of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology; mentors in the HHS Success Mentors Program and the Honors Engagement Mentor Program; and mentors with the Purdue chapter of College Mentors For Kids. She also works in the Wellness Suite at the CoRec as an assistant and a cooking instructor. In her free time, Zihana enjoys reading, traveling, baking, and spending time with family and friends. Through her previous jobs working with kids, Zihana has gained extensive firsthand experience supporting healthy child development and is excited to move into the research side of the field to better understand how to provide a nurturing environment.