Priscilla Tovar-Perez

Priscilla Tovar-Perez is a doctoral student in the Human Development area within the Department of Educational Psychology. She is a member of Dr. Amy Bellmore’s research team, which studies school-based peer relationships during adolescence. Priscilla’s research examines how adolescents make meaning of their social and academic environments, and how these experiences shape their well-being and development. Her work explores how friendship and identity contribute to adolescent girls’ body image and sense of self, as well as how teens use Internet memes to cope with stressful events, such as the Covid-19 pandemic. 

As a first-generation college student, Priscilla is passionate about applying insights from developmental psychology to create more supportive and inclusive educational spaces. She aims to bridge research and practice to help students feel seen, supported, and empowered to grow academically, especially those navigating higher education for the first time.