| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Applicant Name | Marissa Coiner |
| Applicant Email | Email hidden; Javascript is required. |
| Training Level | Postdoctoral Resident |
| City of Residence | Boston, MA |
| Distance to Chicago, IL | > 2 hour flight |
| Age | 29 |
| Gender identity and pronouns | cisgender female; she/her |
| Have you ever attended an AACN annual meeting? | Yes |
| The following list includes characteristics of historically underrepresented groups. Please select all characteristics that represent you and/or describe other diverse facets of your identity in the “Other” option. |
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| Funding Opportunitites | |
| I would like to be considered for the following funding opportunities. |
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| If selected for both Student Leader/Assistant and SPS Conference Mentor, I would prefer: | SPS Conference Mentor |
| Application for Student Assistant | |
| By applying to be a student assistant, you agree to the following responsibilities/commitments: |  I carefully reviewed the above responsibilities/commitments and agree with all of them. |
| Would you like to be considered for complimentary lodging? | Yes, please. |
| In-Person Volunteer Slots |
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| Application for Conference Leader | |
| Application for Scholarship | Travel scholarship awardees are provided with free conference registration and reimbursement of up to $550 of travel expenses to support conference attendance, including meals, hotel stay, and airfare. |
| Application for Conference Mentor Award | |
| In 500 words or fewer, please describe (1) your prior mentorship experience and what you feel you can offer mentees from historically underrepresented backgrounds at the AACN annual meeting, and (2) how this mentorship experience will contribute to your professional goals. You also may describe the ways in which attending the AACN Annual Meeting would represent a financial hardship for you without this award. | By the time I realized pediatric neuropsychology was the right career path for me, I was halfway through graduate school in a general clinical child training program. There was no neuropsychology track, and practicing neuropsychologists in the area were few and far between. Fortunately, it was also around this time that I learned about the AACN mentorship program. I applied, and was connected with a fabulous mentor and practicing pediatric neuropsychologist at the Kennedy Krieger Institute, Dr. Kelly Jones. Dr. Jones met with me at multiple stages throughout the remainder of my graduate training, warmly and patiently guiding me through the formal guidelines and unwritten rules for pursuing a career in this field. Later, at the first AACN conference that I attended in 2022, I met and talked at length with Dr. Molly Colvin, the training director at the internship site where I later matched. Having the opportunity to connect with Dr. Colvin at the Training Director’s hour turned out the be pivotal in helping me chart the course for the remainder of my training. Fast forward to today, I am in the middle of my first year of postdoctoral residency in pediatric neuropsychology at my first-choice training program. The mentorship I received from Drs. Jones and Colvin, and the mentorship of so many others along the way, was invaluable in getting me to where I am. At the same time, I have found tremendous personal gratification in providing mentorship for others at earlier stages of training. For several years, I provided mentorship for underrepresented students applying to graduate school through Project Short. I'm proud to share that the first student I mentored is now at her first-choice PhD program for counseling psychology. Others I have mentored are well on their way to gaining additional research experience in preparation for graduate school. It has been immensely rewarding to pay forward the mentorship insights I've benefited from over the years to the next generation of psychologists. Now in the last stage of my neuropsychology training, I find myself sharing those same guidelines, unwritten rules, and interview tips with other graduate students and the pre-doctoral interns at my training site. It continues to be one of the most gratifying parts of my professional life to share this knowledge with others pursuing this path. After postdoc, I hope to pursue a career in academic medicine that includes a role in clinical training and education. As I become more specialized in neuropsychology, I’m eager to tailor my mentorship experience to support other trainees who are pursuing this particular path. It would be my honor to support mentees at the upcoming AACN annual meeting. I look forward to helping them navigate the social and training landscape of neuropsychology and to being someone they can turn to after the conference is over as they plan for next steps. Finally, this award would also allow me to fund my own travel to the conference, as I would not otherwise be able to attend. Thank you for considering. |
| Tiebreaker | 1 |
