EBRLVanderbilt University
Header Image - Education & Brain Sciences Research Lab
Education & Brain Sciences Research LabVanderbilt University

Tag Archives

5 Articles

Having a Brain Blast at Sevier Park!

by Education Brian Generic 0 Comments

(EBRL’s table setup for Brain Blast 2026)

Looking to learn more about brains and neuroscience in a kid-friendly environment? Well, we’re happy to teach you! Every March, Vanderbilt Brain Institute neuroscientists gather together to teach adults and kids alike all about neuroscience and their research in honor of Brain Awareness Month. Dozens of different labs and researchers all gather together for an event we call Brain Blast each March. The event is geared toward families and kids, aiming to teach people more about their very own brains! Brain Blast 2026 was held on Saturday, March 21st at Sevier Park in Nashville. Lab members had a load of fun teaching our visitors throughout the afternoon about the science that we do here in the lab, as well as played games, did tongue twisters, and gave away tons of free items! We were even visited by some record breakers. (If you went by our table, you know what we’re talking about.) 

(Labs setting up for Brain Blast 2026, hosted in the community center at Sevier Park)

Brain Blast is always a grand opportunity to learn more about neuroscience in a way that’s easy to understand. (It’s also a great way to get some free swag!) Spend a Saturday afternoon hanging out with neuroscientists, see real brains, ask all those burning brain questions you have, and even meet some creepy critters!

(You could find out what this giant cockroach on a treadmill has to do with neuroscience!)

(You could even get a temporary tattoo of a neuron painted live on your arm!)

(EBRL members from left to right: Micah D’Archangel, Kellam Schmudde, Dr. Amanda Martinez-Lincoln, Natalie Huerta, and Dr. Tin Nguyen)

EBRL is proud to participate in Brain Blast each year. It’s an event that’s just as fun for us as it is for the visitors we get throughout the day. If you happened to miss us this year, don’t worry! Brain Blast is usually hosted in late March every year, so we’ll be sure to see you next year! If you’d like to find out more about Brain Blast, please check out the VBI website here. Until next time!

Postdoctoral Fellows and Faculty Celebrated at Graduate Education Honors Banquet

by Education Brian Generic 0 Comments

(Awardees of the Postdoctoral Awards Ceremony 2026)

On March 19th, Vanderbilt held their annual Graduate School banquet and held their Postdoctoral Awards Ceremony simultaneously, bringing the two events together for the first time. Yearly this awards ceremony is held to honor those within the Vanderbilt community that have demonstrated exceptional leadership, excellence in academics, innovation, and mentorship. This year, our lab is overjoyed to report that multiple members of our lab were given distinctions that highlight their dedication to innovation in research.

 

(Dr. Cutting accepting her award)

Dr. Laurie Cutting was awarded the Excellence in Postdoctoral Mentoring Award; an award that the graduate school describes: “The recipient must demonstrate a willingness to share expertise and advice; services to the community at large, including other mentoring activities; and scholarship within the mentor’s own career, including publications, awards, presentations and honors.”

 

(Dr. Garon-Bissonnette accepting her award)

Dr. Julia Garon-Bissonnette was awarded the Postdoctoral Fellow of the Year award, an award established to honor a postdoctoral scholar who exemplifies excellence across research, leadership and science.

 

(Dr. Nguyen accepting his award)

Dr. Tin Nguyen was awarded the Postdoctoral Excellence in Innovation Award; an award the graduate school describes: “…honors postdoctoral scholars who demonstrate exceptional creativity, ingenuity and forward-thinking mindsets in their research.”

 

(Awardees of the Postdoctoral Awards Ceremony 2026)

Our lab is very proud of each of our awardees, and we’re glad that their continued hard work in academia is being acknowledged. If you’d like to learn more about the awards, other awardees, or the event, please check out the coverage of the event by clicking here.

 

(From left to right: Dr. Julia Garon-Bissonnette, Dr. Amanda Martinez-Lincoln, Dr. Sarah Hughes-Berheim, Dr. Laurie Cutting, Emily Harriott, Dr. Tin Nguyen)

 

 

 

EBRL at FLUX 2024

by Education Brian Generic 0 Comments

]

EBRL sends a hearty hello from the scientific conference FLUX! This years conference was held in Baltimore on September 28-30th. Post-docs and PhD students from our lab got a chance to both connect with and present data from our lab to fellow scientists in the field and across disciplines. Scientific conferences like FLUX allow us to make connections with fellow researchers and learn from each other. Members of EBRL go to a variety of different conferences throughout the year and just like always we had a blast!

If you’re curious about the Flux Society, please visit their website here. An excerpt from their website about the purpose of the conference:

“The Flux Society’s purpose is to advance the understanding of human brain development by serving as a forum for professional and student scientists, physicians, and educators to: exchange information and educate the next generation of developmental cognitive neuroscience researchers; make widely available scientific research findings on brain development; encourage translational research to clinical populations; promote public information by discussing implications on the fields of education, health, juvenile law, parenting, and mental health, and encourage further progress in the field of developmental cognitive neuroscience.”

Congrats to Dr. Tin Nguyen on a Successful Thesis Defense!

by Education Brian Generic 0 Comments

As you may or may not know, the presentation of a doctoral thesis is a massive milestone for individuals seeking to acquire a doctoral degree. It’s the final great stepping stone before becoming a doctor and we are extraordinarily pleased to announce that EBRL’s own Tin Nguyen officially defended his! Tin is now officially Dr. Nguyen and we couldn’t be happier for him. All of us here at the lab can’t wait to see where he goes from here.

You can learn a little about Dr. Nguyen’s thesis from his flyer here: (You can also send him an email. If there’s one thing we love talking about is research!)

EBRL at 29th Annual SSSR Meeting

by Education Brian Generic 0 Comments

Last week Ph.D. students Tin Nguyen, Andrea Burgess, Natalie Huerta, Emily Harriott and Dr. Amanda Martinez-Lincoln attended the 29th Annual Society for the Scientific Study of Reading conference. They were happy to represent both the science of reading that we study here at the lab and Vanderbilt University at large. They return refreshed and brimming with knowledge from their peers.

Pictured (Left to Right): Emily Harriott, Dr. Amanda Martinez-Lincoln, Andrea Burgess, Natalie Huerta, and Tin Nguyen