Raised ultra-orthodox / Hasidic. Now actively advancing clinical science.

My Journey Toward A Fuller Life 

For boys growing up in the Chabad Hasidic community of Crown Heights, Jewish education was paramount, and secular education was nonexistent. Instead of math, science, and English, we studied the Bible extensively, the laws that the scholars in the Talmud derived from biblical sources, and Jewish philosophy and ethics. In high school, we had a full 12-hour per day schedule, but all of our studies were directed toward learning how to serve God in the best way possible. My curiosity early on extended beyond religious texts. I always imagined myself eventually acquiring a formal secular education.

As a teenager, I noticed a lot of my friends struggling with untreated mental health issues. Coupled with my own experiences with anxiety and depression, this sparked my interest in psychology and the study of human resilience. By my mid-teens, I decided that after completing my Jewish education, I would pursue a degree in the mental health field.

With strong determination and an ability to learn new material quickly, I obtained my high school diploma and college degree in my mid-late 20s. My undergraduate studies at CUNY Brooklyn College solidified my deep interest in clinical psychology and neuroscience research. I actively sought and was fortunate to secure clinical and research internships and experiences that enriched my understanding of psychiatric illnesses and how they are currently being studied and treated. Together with one of my favorite professors, I also developed and completed an undergraduate thesis project evaluating aspects of music perception.

Currently, I work as a research specialist with the CARRS lab at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center - Western Psychiatric Hospital. We are studying relationships between circadian rhythms and the development of substance use in adolescents. In parallel, I serve as data manager for a policy project aimed at elevating education standards of ultra-orthodox Jewish schools in NY.

My goal is to earn a degree in clinical psychology and leverage my experience and knowledge to advance therapeutic approaches that transform the lives of individuals experiencing serious mental illness.