Meet the Team
Director
Dr. Savannah A. Girod is the director of the PEDs lab and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at Texas Tech University. She received her B.S. in Psychology from Stevenson University (where she also played D3 ice hockey!) Dr. Girod received her M.S. and Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2023 under the mentorship of Dr. Esther Leerkes. During this time, she also completed a NICHD T32 Predoctoral Fellowship at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute under the mentorship of Drs. Esther Leerkes and Bharathi Zvara. After receiving her Ph.D., she completed a NICHD T32 Postdoctoral Fellowship in Child Maltreatment Science at The Pennsylvania State University under the mentorship of Drs. Erika Lunkenheimer and Hannah Schreier.
As a developmentalist, Dr. Girod’s program of research is centered around understanding the individual and dyadic biopsychosocial factors spanning pregnancy and infancy that influence parent-child interactions, parents’ and children’s health outcomes, and children’s social emotional development. Overall, her research aims to inform the etiology of developmental psychopathology and to elucidate malleable targets for prevention and intervention efforts.
In her free time, Dr. Girod enjoys traveling to see her friends and family and spending time with her husband and their 2 fur babies, Nala and Tank. You will most likely find her reading books, trying new recipes, or watching sports… and sometimes all 3 at once!
Lab Manager
Jeanie Yu is the Lab Manager for the PEDs Lab. She graduated from Colby College in 2025 with a B.A in Psychology with a minor in Environmental Studies. Her research interests include early childhood adversity, developmental psychopathology, and intergenerational transmission, especially within marginalized communities. She hopes to contribute to research that identifies both risk and protective factors to help mitigate the development of psychopathology during early childhood. In her free time, Jeanie enjoys dancing to new music, hiking on dirt trails, and cooking Korean cuisine!
Research Assistant
Abigail McCarroll is an undergraduate research assistant for the PEDs Lab. She is expected to graduate from Texas Tech University in May of 2027 with a B.S. in Human Development and Family Sciences. At Tech, she is a member of the Honors College, a member of the Alpha Phi Gamma Iota chapter, and a certified phlebotomist. After graduation, she plans to pursue PA school in hopes of working in pediatric orthopedics. Her research interests include child development, effects of stress on development and health, and the educational background of pediatric healthcare workers. In her free time, she enjoys working out, volunteering with the Child Life Department at UMC, and trying new recipes for cooking and baking.
Research Assistant
Emmalyne Roys is an undergraduate student at Texas Tech University. She graduated with her Associates of Science from Clarendon College in 2025. She now studies at Texas Tech, majoring in Interdisciplinary of Human Sciences, focused on pre-med. She is also on a fast-track PCT and Phlebotomy extension program with Covenant's Hospital. She hopes to get a job as a phlebotomist or a NICU PCT here in Lubbock. Emma plans to attend medical school at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center and eventually become a NICU and Pediatric doctor. Emma's focuses in the lab are on behavioral analysis of parents and infants, predictions of parenting styles, studying children's socioemotional development, and collecting and comparing data. In her free time Emma likes to listen to music with her friends and family, bake sweet treats for her loved ones, work at her hometown flower shop, and be out in nature.