Lab Director
Dr. Caroline Kelsey
Dr. Kelsey is the director of the SEED lab and an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign). She received her Bachelor’s from Pennsylvania State University, her Master’s in Experimental Psychology from The College of William & Mary, and her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Virginia. Prior to coming to Illinois, Dr. Kelsey completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School. Her research has been funded by Danone and the National Institutes of Health. Outside the lab, Dr. Kelsey enjoys watching Formula 1 racing and creating new things with her 3D printer.
Email: Cmkelsey@illinois.edu | Google Scholar Page
Lab Manager
Melissa Yako
Raised in the Chicago suburbs, Melissa moved to Champaign-Urbana to attend UIUC, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, followed by her Master’s in Social Work. She has experience in community advocacy and engagement both as a hospital social worker as well as an AmeriCorps VISTA member. Her interest in research and education led her to her time as a research staff member (and later, lab manager) for the UIUC Infant Cognition Lab. She is excited to join the SEED lab in further exploring developmental psychology! She and her husband have two kids; together, they enjoy movie nights, game nights, and playing with their two tuxedo cats, Hedgehog and Sparkle.
Email: mkane@illinois.edu
Volunteer
Apurva Chaturvedi
Apurva Chaturvedi is a medical student at the Carle Illinois College of Medicine at UIUC (Class of 2029). She grew up in Baltimore, MD and Naperville, IL. She attended undergrad at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), majoring in Psychobiology and minoring in Visual and Performing Arts Education (VAPAE). After graduating, she worked as a study coordinator for the UCLA Sensory Cognitive Affective Neurodevelopment (SCAN) lab for two years, studying sensory processing in autism, before starting medical school in July 2025. She has a passion for neurodevelopment and hopes to pursue neurology or psychiatry in residency. In her free time, she loves to paint, listen to podcasts, and spend time with her family!
Email: achatu3@illinois.edu
Interested in being involved in our research? Check out the Join our Team page!