Catherine Nicoli

Catherine Nicoli (she/her/hers) is a rising fifth-year senior in the Lyman Briggs College at Michigan State University, majoring in (1) History, Philosophy, and Sociology of Science and (2) Psychology with a Minor in Law, Justice and Public Policy. As a summer intern, Catherine worked alongside Drs. Pike and Rebello to realign existing trauma-informed care (TIC) frameworks with the most-current standards of trauma-informed care. This project focused mainly on The Sanctuary Model, a systems-oriented approach to TIC which aims to create a safe environment for all stakeholders. Through creating a proposal for
the parent company, Andrus, Catherine researched best-practices in TIC and organizational obstacles to implementation. This research eventually lead to a scoping review taking peer-reviewed and gray literature analysis of different TIC models used at the organizational level, and pulling data from each. Catherine also assisted Drs. Pike and Rebello to review and score grants; make informative videos for future interns; and present important literature. Throughout the summer, she learned about the intricacies of providing community care and supporting community members with different and individual trauma-histories. More importantly, she learned about the many ways that research–when paired with community engagement–can affect change in communities across the globe. With this in mind, Catherine looks forward to staying involved with the Columbia Global Mental Health Programs as opportunities arise.