Lab Members
Graduate Students
Esmeralda (Esme) Ramirez, MA
Prevention Science
Esme Ramirez (she/her/hers) is a PhD student in Prevention Science in the College of Education at the University of Texas at Austin and a member of the Prevention Research Lab. Her research aims to reduce health inequities among young adults and populations placed at increased risk by structural inequities. She focuses on how commercial determinants of health intersect with social and cultural factors to shape mental health, substance use, and related behavioral health outcomes, and how the same digital platforms that drive these influences, particularly social media, can be leveraged for prevention and health promotion. Her graduate work has been supported by the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long Graduate Fellowship, the Teresa Lozano Long Endowed Graduate Fellowship, the Mary Buice Alderson Scholarship, and the Texas New Scholars Award.
Previously, Esme was a Research Project Director at the University of Southern California, where her work examined syndemic conditions among disenfranchised populations, including substance use, intimate partner violence (IPV), depression, anxiety, and barriers to care. Projects she worked on included a longitudinal study of substance use and IPV among low-income women in San Antonio (1 R01 DA039269) and a binational study of transitory migration between Los Angeles and Mexico City (1 R01 MD013628-01). She holds a bachelor’s degree and an MA in Radio-TV-Film and Media Studies from UT Austin. Her master’s thesis examined media use and social mobility among Latino families in Austin.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Jocelyn Chiu
Public Health · Pre-Medical
Jocelyn Chiu is a second-year Public Health student at the University of Texas at Austin on a pre-medical track. Her research interests focus on food insecurity, nutrition, and the factors that shape young adults’ health behaviors. She is especially interested in how food access, digital media, and food environments influence eating behaviors and health outcomes. Her current research examines food insecurity, unhealthy food advertising on social media, and food purchasing through delivery apps.
Jocelyn joined the Prevention Research Lab because of its focus on everyday influences on health. She hopes to study how food access and media environments contribute to nutrition-related behaviors and health disparities.
In her free time, Jocelyn enjoys singing, playing instruments, traveling, and spending time with her cat. She is also an avid sports fan and proudly supports the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Rockets.
Elijah Echevarria
Sociology · Applied Statistical Modeling
Elijah Echevarria is a senior Sociology major at the University of Texas at Austin and is completing a certificate in Applied Statistical Modeling. His research interests focus on equity for marginalized populations in the United States and the development of more effective machine learning models.
Elijah plans to pursue a PhD in Statistics and Data Science and hopes to build machine learning models that improve how researchers analyze data and draw conclusions. He has previously worked with the Prevention Research Lab and is particularly interested in health and nutrition equity for marginalized communities.
Outside of research, Elijah has held several leadership positions in the retail and food service industries.
In his free time, Elijah enjoys working out, reading fiction and nonfiction, and playing soccer.
Max Gu
Behavioral and Social Data Science · Business and Public Policy
Max Gu is a second-year Behavioral and Social Data Science student at the University of Texas at Austin. His research interests focus on using data to understand how media and social environments influence health behaviors among young adults.
At the Prevention Research Lab, Max is currently working on research projects related to mental health and social connection. He is particularly interested in how quantitative research can inform policy and decision-making and was drawn to PRL for the opportunity to apply data science to real-world social and health issues.
In his free time, Max enjoys basketball, traveling, trying new food, and working on personal coding projects.
Jiana Kuruvilla
Health and Society · Pre-Medical
Jiana Kuruvilla is a second-year Health and Society student at the University of Texas at Austin on a pre-medical track. Her research interests center on how media, advertising, and social environments influence health behaviors among youth and underrepresented populations.
Jiana is drawn to the Prevention Research Lab because its work sits at the intersection of public health research and real-world policy impact, particularly the MEDIA Studies examining how advertising shapes the health decisions of young people.
Outside the lab, she serves as a Healthyhorns Student Outreach Ambassador, a Young Adult Advisory Board Member for the ENDSight Study at the University of Oklahoma, and a community health researcher through the Health Leadership Apprentice Program at Dell Medical School.
In her free time, Jiana enjoys baking, photography, content creation, guitar, exploring hidden gems around Austin, and finding the perfect matcha.