Lab Members

Elina Birmingham
Associate Professor
Faculty of Education
Simon Fraser University
email: ebirming@sfu.ca

Faculty Profile Page:  https://www.sfu.ca/education/faculty-profiles/ebirmingham.html

Behnaz Bahmei is a postdoctoral researcher in the lab. She received her PhD from the School of Mechatronics Systems Engineering, Simon Fraser University.  She received her M.Sc. degree in mechanical engineering from K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran in 2014. Behnaz is proficient in computer programming with the focus on machine learning and deep learning for multiple applications including Computer Vision, Recommendation Systems and Signal Processing. Behnaz joined our group in May 2018 as an artificial intelligence specialist. She is currently working on the sound identification for studying auditory sensitivity in people with ASD.

Guangqian Grace Lyu is a PhD student in the educational psychology program at Simon Fraser University, supervised by Dr. Elina Birmingham. She received her M.Sc. degrees in forensic psychology and educational psychology in the UK in 2010 and 2019. Grace joined our group in 2023 and is currently working on the cross-cultural perspective of camouflaging, autism stigma, and social interaction among autistic people and their families with immigrant backgrounds.

Shahrzad Motaghedi is a PhD student in Educational Psychology at Simon Fraser University, beginning her studies in 2023 under the supervision of Dr. Elina Birmingham. Her research focuses on including autistic students within the public school system, aiming to enhance educational experiences and outcomes for neurodiverse learners.

Meryssa Waite is a PhD student in the Clinical Psychology program. Her research is co-supervised by Dr. Elina Birmingham. She received her MA in Clinical Psychology at SFU and her BSc (Hons.) in Psychology at the University of Victoria. Her research looks at Autistic students’ experiences in work-integrated learning (WIL). She is also currently a research assistant working on the sound sensitivity project.