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Student Spotlight: Grace Belt,Academic Research Graduate Student
November 6, 2023
Academic Research Graduate Student, Grace Belt, was recently featured in the Fall 2023 Sponsored Foundation Newsletter. Grace was given a “Student Spotlight” which highlighted all her hard work and accomplishments both on campus and in the community. Grace is a member of our Social Identity and Social Influence Lab with Dr. Amber Gaffney, the leader of Dr. Gregg Gold’s Social Influence Lab, and a recipient of the Gardner Apprenticeship Program. The entire newsletter can be found here: https://issuu.com/hsuf/docs/fall_2023_newsletter
Student Spotlight: Grace Belt
Grace Belt (she/her) is an Academic Research Psychology graduate student. She has always been passionate about social justice and interested in how society works and functions, which is what drew her to social psychology. The field involves the perspective of individuals in groups and the perspective of groups as a whole, and provides information about prejudice and discrimination.
Grace is a member of Dr. Amber Gaffney's Social Identity and Social Influence Lab, and the leader of Dr. Gregg Gold's Social Influence Research Lab. Through each, she was able to learn more about research and get involved with various lab projects.
In addition to her participation with the labs, Grace was a student researcher for the Cannabis Entrepreneurs grant, with Dr. Gold and Dr. Erick Eschker as co-Pls. For this grant from the California Department of Cannabis Control (DCC), Grace was one of six student researchers. The student researchers conducted interviews with a wide range of people involved with the cannabis industry, including growers, distributors, and sellers, to gauge how policies and regulations of legal cannabis were affecting them and how their businesses function. After conducting the interviews, they coded the answers into qualitative data and presented the results to the DCC so they can help the industry grow safely. Grace's favorite part of this project was being able to talk to participants and receive nuanced answers to the questions.
Through Dr. Gold's lab, Grace is also involved in Jessie Cretser-Hartenstein's RSCA-funded project "Journalism Degree Motivations, "conducting surveys to determine why there has been a significant decline in journalism students. This decrease in students and the industry is dangerous because journalism strengthens democracy and keeps unjust systems in check.
Outside of her work under these grants, Grace is very involved on campus and in the community. She is Treasurer for Psi Chi, Teaching Assistant for undergraduate classes, and a volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters of the North Coast. She is also involved in other grants and research with Dr. Gold, including the UCLA Pre-Medical Enrichment Pathway Program (PREP), the College of Professional Studies Scholars Program, and the Gardner Psychology Research Assistantship Program.