Our Team
Director
Shaylene Nancekivell (she/her)
Dr. Shaylene Nancekivell is an Associate Professor at the University of Manitoba who directs the Young Minds Research Lab. She was previously an Assistant Professor at UNCG. Broadly, she is interested in understanding the nature of conceptual representations, specifically those (potentially) structured as intuitive theories. Right, now her primary interests center around how children and adults reason about digital contexts and possessions. But, as an educator, she has additional interests in people’s beliefs about learning Her work can be found in a wide range of developmental, cognitive science, and educational journals. She is currently funded by NSERC.
When she isn’t working, Shaylene enjoys speed skating, swimming with her daughter, and hiking in local parks with her family.
Learn more about recent papers here, or by sending her an email at shaylene.nancekivell@umanitoba.ca.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Anna-Elisabeth Baumann (she/her)
Dr. Baumann is a postdoctoral fellow in the Young Minds Research Lab. Previously, she worked with Dr. Susan Graham as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Calgary, and completed her Ph.D. at Concordia University, Montreal with Dr. Diane Poulin-Dubois. Dr. Baumann is interested in how children learn to trust in others and form social categories. In particular, she studies how children learn from and interact with new technologies, such as robots and AI.
In her free time, Anna enjoys antiquing and collecting as many trinkets as possible.
To see recent publications, please click HERE.
For more information, please contact anna.baumann@umanitoba.ca
Graduate Students
Ekam Banipal (she/her)
Ekam is a Ph.D. student in Experimental Psychology. She is interested in how kids make choices and the factors that affect how they feel about those choices. Other than conducting research, Ekam enjoys spending time with her family and friends and reading books.
Sarah Petriw (she/her)
Sarah is a Ph.D. student in Clinical Psychology. She is interested in how young children reason about privacy online (and offline). Specifically, she is studying if children believe privacy is important for happiness. Beyond school, Sarah enjoys yoga, hanging out with her dog, and reading.
Mark Dobrovolskyi (he/him)
Mark is pursuing a Masters in School Psychology. He aims to increase the inclusivity of children with diverse needs and promote evidence-based practices in education. His Master’s thesis focuses on how learning styles, a common learning myth, may impact how people think of students and the potential consequences of these perceptions. Beyond academia, Mark collects hobbies, like soccer, bowling, baseball, and recently, chess!
Kyla Sarmiento (she/her)
Kyla is pursuing a Masters in Psychology. She’s interested in mapping children’s beliefs about privacy. Specifically, she is interested in questions like what makes a space private to young children and when do young children understand entering other’s private spaces without permission is not acceptable. In her spare time, Kyla enjoys shopping, making t-shirts, reading, and anything pink.
Rebeca Urizar (she/her)
Rebeca is pursuing a Masters in Psychology. She’s interested in studying how social factors and emotional factors affect who people go to for personal advice compared to learning facts. In her spare time Rebeca likes to paint, do puzzles and advocate for animal welfare.
Lab Coordinators
Celeste Vermette (any pronouns) - Lab Manager
Celeste graduated from the University of Manitoba in June of 2026 with a B.A. Honours in Psychology and minor in Anthropology. Having completed their undergraduate thesis with the MINDLab in the Dept. of Psychology, they are interested in how language affects individual's lived experience and how to support second-language acquisition in young learners. Otherwise, they enjoy drawing and showing off their cat to anybody who asks.
Taylor French - Social Media Coordinator
Taylor is a B. A. Honours Psychology student. She joined the lab to gain valuable experience and expand her understanding of the clinical psychology field. Her interests centre around human development and behaviour modification.
Honours Thesis Students
Caleb Payment (he/him)
Caleb is an undergraduate student in the B.Sc. Honours Psychology program. He is interested in studying the reasons behind human behaviour and decision making. He joined the lab to learn the basis that children use to make decisions. Outside of school, Caleb enjoys playing hockey and basketball, watching Marvel movies, and learning about space.
Kiana Pagtakhan (she/her)
Kiana is an undergraduate student in the B.A. Honours Psychology program. She joined the lab to get research experience and is happy she gets to do so by studying child development. In her spare time, Kiana enjoys drawing, printmaking, and going on runs.
This could be you!
We are currently looking for undergraduate research assistants to join our lab.