Georgia Southern psychology majors win nationally competitive awards for consecutive years

March 25, 2025

Students from Georgia Southern’s College of Behavioral and Social Sciences’ psychology program have won nationally competitive travel awards for their research two years in a row.

Heaven Divinity (’24) and Carmen Ford (’24) won the Council on Undergraduate Research’s (CUR) Social Science and Psychology Conference Travel Awards in 2025 and 2024, respectively. 

The awards allowed Divinity and Ford, both McNair Scholars at the time of their research, to attend and present at the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology (NITOP), which is held annually in January.

Both were students of Associate Professor of Psychology Virginia Wickline, Ph.D., and conducted the research they would later present in her research experience class.

Divinity presented her work regarding an ongoing COIL program at Georgia Southern. COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning) projects pair individuals worldwide to practice communication skills or accomplish a shared task. 

Her project, “Crossing Borders,” paired Georgia Southern students with international students to measure global readiness. Divinity said the COIL project impacted her personally and professionally while helping to shape how she approaches her work. 

“This project, in particular, has made me more adept at conducting the statistical analysis essential for my research, which will help me navigate graduate school,” she said. “It has also allowed me to delve deeper into the importance of understanding and respecting the diverse cultural backgrounds of others. The experience has equipped me with the tools to embrace diversity in my professional endeavors.”

Ford presented an experimental research study she helped develop on whether a syllabus with a one-page “snapshot” infographic of a professor would influence students’ first impressions.

She said the research helped put her on the path of wanting to teach psychology and made her aware of the biases people can harbor, including her own.

“As a student, I did not realize that I had my own bias and impression of professors from documents like syllabi and or Folio announcements,” she said. “Through this experience, I have truly learned the value of putting your best foot forward and leaving an impact not just professionally but personally.”

An experience made all the more significant because she collaborated with leading researchers in the field.

“The big benefit for Carmen in presenting is that we worked with two peers or mentors of mine who are nationally known names in teaching psychology, “said Wickline. “She had the chance to work with experts she’d been reading about in our lab, which isn’t very common at the undergraduate level.”

Both students plan to earn their doctoral degrees and one day become licensed clinical psychologists – goals bolstered by their experience in Wickline’s research lab and at NITOP.

“The experience was very rewarding,” said Divinity. “It gave me confidence, impressed upon me the importance of networking and refined my presentation skills. I’ll forever be grateful to Dr. Wickline and my fellow lab members for the opportunity.”

Ford echoed similar sentiments.

“Attending this conference is something I never could’ve imagined at the start of my academic journey,” she said. “Presenting allowed me to enter a new world that once seemed out of reach. It boosted my confidence, and I was honored to be accepted in that space.”

Their mentor, Wickline, says they have grown tremendously since she first taught them in their early undergraduate years, and she believes the sky’s the limit for both of them.

“Their success–and the success of other students like them–means the world to me,” she said. I am proud to see how far they have come and cannot wait to see what comes next!”

Divinity is pursuing acceptance into a doctorate in psychology program and hopes to work in private practice with children and families. Ford is now a first-year student in Georgia Southern’s Psy.D. program and wants to open a private practice and continue her pedagogical research.