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• IUPUI expands clinical psychology program by adding two new faculty

IUPUI expands clinical psychology program by adding two new faculty

• Aug. 14, 2013

INDIANAPOLIS - The School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis continues to expand its clinical psychology programs with the addition of two new faculty with expertise in severe mental illness and substance abuse and dependence.

Kyle Minor and Tamika Zapolski join the Department of Psychology this fall as assistant professors. Both bring knowledge related to a variety of mental illnesses and conditions and are expected to help the continued integration of clinical psychology between IUPUI and medical and treatment facilities in the Indianapolis area.

“The Psychology Department is very excited that Dr. Minor and Dr. Zapolski have joined our department. They were both our top picks for these positions, come from the best graduate and post-doctoral training programs in the country and already have significant track records in research and teaching,” said Peggy Stockdale, chair of the department.

Minor joins IUPUI from Harvard Medical School, where he recently completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Early Detection, Assessment and Response to Risk in the Department of Psychiatry. He said he was drawn to IUPUI because of its cross-disciplinary collaborations in clinical psychology and the opportunity to involve undergraduates, graduate students and surrounding medical facilities in his research.

“My research is focused on identifying clinical risk markers of psychosis and developing interventions for individuals with severe mental illnesses,” Minor said.

“IUPUI’s program is unique in that it integrates the graduate program in psychology with an academic medical school environment. The opportunity to have so many potential collaborators (students and faculty) in such close proximity was the one of the biggest draws of this program,” Minor added.

Minor earned his Ph.D. in clinical psychology and a master’s degree in psychology from Louisiana State University. He has undergraduate degrees in psychology and English from Northern Kentucky University.

He is a member of the Society for the Research in Psychopathology, the American Psychological Association and American Psychological Society. His research has appeared in several scholarly academic publications, and he has held several teaching and research positions while he pursued his Ph.D.

Zapolski joins the department from a post-doctoral internship at the University of Kentucky Medical Center.

She earned her Ph.D. and master’s degree in clinical psychology from the University of Kentucky and an undergraduate psychology degree from the University of Missouri in Columbia. In 2012, she received the Nietzel Award for the Outstanding Doctoral Student in Psychology.

Her past research has involved the study of risk behavior associated with alcohol and drug use, multicultural issues and social and impulse behavior of children and adolescents.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to work with individuals from multiple disciplines across the campus and community in an effort to understand the underlying factors related to substance use and abuse among African-Americans across development,” Zapolski said.

Her past publication credentials include the Journal on Pediatric Psychology, Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Psychology of Addictive Behavior and many others. She also co-authored chapters in at least six books related to clinical psychology.

She is a member of the Kentucky Psychological Association and the Research Society on Alcoholism.

About the School of Science at IUPUI

The School of Science is committed to excellence in teaching, research and service in the biological, physical, behavioral and mathematical sciences. The School is dedicated to being a leading resource for interdisciplinary research and science education in support of Indiana's effort to expand and diversify its economy.