K. Breana Downey, Phd Email and Phone Number

Courses taught (includes in person, hybrid/HyFlex, and 100% online):PSY 1103 - General PsychologyPSY 1123 - Careers and Writing in PsychologyPSY 2753 - Psychological StatisticsPSY 3253 - Research Methods LabPSY 3903 - Fundamentals of NeurosciencePSY 4353 - Experimental PsychologyPSY 4900/5900 - Practicum: Teaching PsychologyPSY 4960 - Altered States of ConsciousnessPSY 5783 - Behavioral NeuroscienceMentorship:7 teaching assistants (undergraduate and graduate)5 undergraduate research grants7 undergraduate poster presentations1 undergraduate thesis committee2 graduate capstone projects

Creator and co-host of CoxPod, a podcast and online resource for coxswains. In our first three years we surpassed 20,000+ podcast listens and 1,000+ social media followers. The coxswain is a unique position in the sport of rowing, and we're creating content that helps athletes at all levels thrive in this often under-coached role.My roles include:-copywriting-content creation-podcast production-social media management-graphic design-website design

Coaches and coxes for corporate, masters/adult, and youth rowing programs.

Held weekly virtual training sessions for the team's 12 coxswains after the spring 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Taught the basics of the rowing stroke to ~30 8th-11th grade athletes with no experienceTrained new and experienced coxswains and provided feedback on race recordingsDesigned and implemented level-appropriate workouts on the water and indoors, prioritizing athlete and equipment safetyCreated daily lineups, as well as competitive and inclusive boating for racesDeveloped athletes as students and as whole people by instilling values such as time management and self-advocacySupported varsity coaches by coaching varsity boats when neededCoordinated with two other novice coaches, two varsity coaches, and five men's coaches to support the activities of the school’s rowing programHighlights: 2nd in the Girls Freshman 8+ (2019) and 1st in the Girls Fourth Varsity 8+ (2018) at the Virginia Scholastic Rowing Association State Championships; 3rd in the Junior Women’s 8+ at the Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Championships (2019)

Used functional magnetic resonance and behavioral methods to study how the experience of bilingualism impacts the brain networks underlying executive function and arithmetic (Principal Investigator: Dr. Guinevere Eden, Director of the Center for the Study of Learning)Managed a research project from start to finish, culminating in a study of 44 bilingual adults and childrenCreated and delivered 9 scientific presentations for a range of audiences, from departmental seminars to international conferencesWrote at a variety of levels, from short abstracts to full-length manuscriptsReviewed literature and synthesized research findingsAwarded 5 grants from organizations internal and external to Georgetown, to fund attendance at scientific conferences and coursesTrained child and adult participants for functional MRI experiments, instructing them in how to perform tasks and preparing them for the MRI environment with a mock scanner; monitored participants for excessive motion while in the scanner; operated a stimulus presentation computer during scanning; conducted post-scan performance assessmentsAdministered and scores neuropsychological batteries that measure IQ and reading and math abilities in children and adultsCoordinated with a team of graduate and undergraduate students, high school student volunteers, postdoctoral researchers, research assistants, and the principal investigator of the labInformally advised high school, undergraduate, masters, and other doctoral students in the lab and in the neuroscience program more broadly

Ran water and land practices in coordination with one additional coachManaged multi-boat practices with lineups of different skill levelsKept detailed, comprehensive records of athlete performance during winter trainingSpring/summer 2020 season was cancelled due to COVID-19

Assisted with the collection of structural and functional brain imaging (MRI) data from healthy volunteers and adolescent patients with anxiety and mood disordersUsed E-Prime and PsychoPy stimulus presentation software programs to run experimental tasksAssisted with setup and monitoring of physiological measurement devices (pulse, skin conductance, respiration), response devices (button boxes), and other research equipment (noise cancelling headphones)Troubleshot problems that arise during MRI scanning and made decisions about how to proceed when an issue arises, with the goals of optimizing data collection and ensuring a safe and positive experience for patientsCoordinated with a team of clinicians, scan technologists, post-baccalaureate research assistants, staff scientists, postdoctoral researchers, principal investigators, and other doctoral-level researchers Trained new members of the research team in the responsibilities of the positionPrepared informative reports for dissemination to research team after each scanning session

Co-directed the course "Topics in Neuroscience: Diseases, Research, and Treatment," which is cross-listed in the cognitive science and neuroscience departments, taken by undergraduate and masters students, and team-taught by doctoral studentsCoordinated guest lecturers, designed and graded assessments, contributed to syllabus and course design, used course learning management systems (Blackboard, Canvas)Trained and mentored multiple junior directors who were preparing to take on the director role in the following semesterOversaw the doctoral student teaching practicum in which students reflected on class observations, wrote essays on pedagogy, and prepared and taught a lecture in the classOversaw a major redesign of the course including changes to the course title, home department, organization of content, and assignmentsTaught the following lectures in the course from 2017-2019: Audition and Language, Executive Function Human Neuroanatomy Lab, Stroke, How to Read and Understand a Research Paper, Comparative Neuroscience, Brain and Language, Split-Brain Patients, Cognitive Neuroscience Methods

Lectures in graduate courses (course titles in parentheses):-Language (Introduction to Neurophysiology)-Introduction to Neuroscience (Experiences in Neuroscience)-Introduction to Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (Experiences in Neuroscience)-History of Neuroscience (Experiences in Neuroscience)-Human Neuroanatomy Lab (Experiences in Neuroscience)Lectures in undergraduate courses (course titles in parentheses):-A Day in the Life of a Cognitive Neuroscientist (Bilingualism: Mind and Context)-Neuroanatomy and Neural Circuits (Introduction to Cognitive Science)

Investigated learning of visual word forms during reading in healthy young adults(Principal Investigator: Dr. Julie Fiez)Designed and conducted behavioral experiments with human subjects, using software such as E-Prime to collect dataCoded audio recordings in order to glean reaction times using Praat softwareOrganized and analyzed data with Microsoft Excel and SPSS Statistics

Worked on the sales floor as a cashier and at the fabric cutting counterAdditional responsibilities included stocking and the design of retail displays

Coordinated with other Resident Assistants, teachers, and the Academy Director to plan and organize events during this three-week language immersion program held at Washington & Lee UniversityEnsured the safety of 60 high school students and addressed disciplinary and medical incidents