ABC's: Alumni, Brunch & Career Chats

Meet Psychology Dept Alumni on October 4, 2019 who will present their career path and share how they've used their degree.

• 9:30-11am: Alumni Panel with free brunch!
• 11am-12pm: Students can sign up to meet alumni for 15 min. one-on-one sessions.

Lisa Smith, Health Coach, founder of Black Health Academy

After graduating from Michigan with a bachelors in psychology Lisa went on to work as a social worker for The State of Michigan for over four years, however after getting her MBA and discovering a passion for health and wellness she set her sights on entrepreneurship. Once Lisa aggressively conquered her physical health and regained her confidence she set herself on a purpose driven course which led her to launch Professionally Fit in July of 2015 and The Black Health Academy in October of 2017. Lisa also serves as the new Executive Director of the Plant Based Nutrition Support Group, a 6500 member nonprofit organization. Serial entrepreneur, health and wellness subject matter expert, plant based nutritionist, author, and professional speaker are all but a few titles to describe Lisa A. Smith. She now finds she is constantly applying her degree in psychology to her work in coaching, speaking and teaching life long behavior change in the health and wellness field. She has helped many to bridge the gap between their health and career, fight chronic disease and become Professionally Fit!

Stephanie (Colbert) Gaumer, Clinical Therapist at Counseling Centers of Michigan

Stephanie’s career path started at Michigan’s Psychology Department where she took a variety of classes surrounding the brain and child development. These interests led her to volunteering at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital where she learned that many employees had backgrounds in social work. She went on to pursue a Master in Social Work at Loyola University Chicago with a focus in health and a specialty in working with older adults. After graduate school, she worked at a neurofeedback provider for 3 years where she expanded her knowledge on the connection between the brain and mental health. In her desire to broaden her social work career, she moved to the more clinical approach at her current position as a Clinical Therapist at Counseling Centers of Michigan in Clarkston, MI. She has received training in a variety of therapeutic techniques and she works with clients of all ages surrounding mental health concerns, including anxiety, depression, PTSD, OCD, anger management and emotional regulation, as well as peak performance in sport and life. This position has been very rewarding to her as she develops relationships with clients and walks alongside them as they achieve their goals. While in Ann Arbor, she also competed for the Women’s Gymnastics team. Her experience within the athletic department showed her that athletes are a unique population that also experience a lot of the same mental health concerns as the general population with the added pressures of balancing sport and athletics. The sport and social work connection has become another passion of hers as she looks to help stress the importance of social workers being present within high schools, colleges and professional sports. She does this with the members of the Alliance of Social Workers in Sport where social workers around the country and Canada come together to discuss the latest advances in the field and how they can all work to expand the possibilities of social workers in a variety of settings.

Dyan Jenkins-Ali, Senior Project Manager for University HR Strategy and Planning 

Dyan Jenkins-Ali is a Senior Project Manager for University HR Strategy and Planning, managing administrative and operational projects that impact the development of goals and initiatives designed to enhance multiple student, staff, patient and faculty health benefits and experiences. Her health care career spans more than 20 years, in which time she has worked in an executive capacity with M-CARE, Dental Dental, Providence Hospital and Health Alliance Plan. Dyan holds a State of Michigan Agent//Producer License in Life, Health and Disability, and is a certified phlebotomist. She is a member of the Association of Health Care Executives and National Association of Health Service Executives, treasurer of U-M's Letterwinners M Club Board, and a diplomat with the U-M Credit Union. Dyan received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master's degree in Health Services.

Rebecca Marshall, Associate Director, Experience Analytics at Organic

As a lead in Marketing Intelligence at Organic, Rebecca has a passion for data and the blend of art and science that leads to great digital experiences. Her double major in Psychology and Economics at Michigan prepared her well for her career in digital marketing strategy and analytics.

Following graduation, Rebecca moved to Minneapolis, MN to start her career in Merchandising at Target Corporation. There, she focused on visual space optimization and how the arrangement of merchandise in the store could influence guests to make a purchase. After some time at Target, Rebecca became more interested in Marketing and moved home to Detroit to work in Digital Marketing Strategy and Analytics, first at Digitas LBI, and, presently, at Organic, Inc. an Omnicom Company.

Rebecca has been at Organic since 2014 and currently leads the campaign site analytics for Wells Fargo but has also had the opportunity to provide data driven solutions for a variety of brands including Art Van, Sephora and Hilton Worldwide. She’s constantly learning and tapping into an array of data sources, including site analytics, media performance, survey research, and social listening to name a few, enabling her to provide a fresh perspective on performance and actionable optimization recommendations for continuous improvement. When she's not working, she enjoys traveling and trying new restaurants in the fast growing city of Detroit and continues to cheer on the Wolverines in Ann Arbor during football season!

Fiona Nowlin, Product Manager at Humantech

Fiona Nowlin is a Product Manager at Humantech, a VelocityEHS solution, where she is responsible for leading all things related to the company’s office ergonomics software, including its successful relaunch in 2017. As an agile product owner, Fiona works with a global clientele that require inclusive and data-driven design.

Fiona began her career as a researcher in the Combined Program in Education and Psychology (CPEP) at the University of Michigan. In 2013 she joined the tech industry at Zaption, a San Francisco based start-up (acquired by WorkDay in 2016) where she learned the importance of creative, positive team cultures.

With this diverse background, Fiona has gained experience in the areas of technology, ergonomics + well-being, instructional design, customer success + support, and marketing. Her passions include change management, communication, and agile development. She continues to nurture her life-long love of learning by asking questions, seeking to understand, and continuously improve.

Fiona earned her Bachelor degree in psychology with honors from the University of Michigan in 2010, with a thesis exploring the effects of students’ first impressions of classroom teachers. She values curiosity, efficiency, and sustainability (& fun!).

Lindsey Hiemstra, Account Manager at Google

Lindsey Hiemstra studied psychology, Spanish literature, and business when she attended the University of Michigan for her undergraduate studies. Psychology has always been her true passion and combining it with business was the niche she knew she fit into the best. She feels lucky to have been offered a job at Google on the Ads side of the organization, and has been working with consumers on issues and opportunities. She recently started projects looking into market trends. She also leads team-cohesion based trainings for teams around the country, which is what gives her the most energy.

Christina Steinman, Engagement Manager at Gongos

Christina Steinman graduated from the University of Michigan in 2011 with a BA in Psychology with Honors and French. She obtained an MSc in Applied Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition from the University of Oxford (with a dissertation looking at the interactions of first, second, and third languages in trilinguals), and began a PhD in Second Language Studies at Indiana University before deciding to transition to a private sector career. She now works in market research, applying the research skills learned in Psychology and Linguistics studies to hands-on research work as a project manager.