Biography
Shellie-Anne Levy, M.S., is a Neuropsychology Intern in the Department of Clinical and Health Psychology at the University of Florida. She received her B.A. in psychology from Emory University in Atlanta, GA. Prior to her graduate studies, Shellie-Anne was a postbaccalaureate research fellow at the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) of the NIH. She obtained her M.S. in clinical psychology at Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 2010. She is currently completing her doctoral training at Howard University under the mentorship of Drs. Denee Mwendwa and Regina Sims.
Research Focus
Shellie-Anne is a member of the Health Promotion and Risk Reduction Research Center (HealthPARC) in the department of psychology at Howard University. Her research interests are in the area of minority cognitive aging and health. Shellie-Anne’s current research focuses on cardiovascular disease risk and neurocognitive functioning in adults. She further examines protective factors such as spirituality, mindfulness, and social support that may impact CVD risk and attenuate cognitive decline. Shellie-Anne is completing her dissertation, which is entitled “Cultivating Mindfulness: A Possible Mechanism to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk and Improve Memory and Executive Functioning in Middle Aged and Older African Americans.”
Clinical Focus
Shellie-Anne’s clinical interests are in the neuropsychological assessment of older adults with dementia/movement disorders. She is also interested in developing her skills in cognitive rehabilitation with older adults.
Courses Taught
- Abnormal Psychology
- Introduction to Psychology
- Introduction to Clinical Psychology
Publications
Sims, R.C., Hosey, M., Levy, S.A., Whitfield, K.E., Katzel, L.I., & Waldstein, S.R. (In Press). The influence of distinct functions of social support on neurocognitive function in older adults. Experimental Aging Research.
Mwendwa, D.M., Ali, M., Sims, R.C., Cole, A., Lipscomb, M.W., Levy, S.A., Callender, C., &Campbell, A.L. (2013). Dispositional Depression and Hostility are Associated with Inflammatory Markers of Cardiovascular Disease in African Americans. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 28, 72-82.
Mwendwa, D.T., Ali, M., Sims, R.C., Madhere, S., Levy, S.A., Gholson, G., Callender, C.O., & Campbell, A.L. (In Press). Psychometric properties of the Cook Medley Hostility Scale and its association with inflammatory markers in African Americans. Psychology, Health, & Medicine.
Sims, R.C., Levy, S.A., Mwendwa, D.T., Callender, C.O., & Campbell, A.L. (2011) The influence of functional social support on executive functioning in middle-aged African Americans. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 18(3), 1-18.
Mwendwa, D.T., Gholson, G., Sims, R.C., Levy, S.A., Ali, M., Harrell, J., Callender, C.O., & Campbell, A.L. (2011). Coping with perceived racism: A significant factor in the development of obesity in African American women? Journal of the National Medical Association, 103(7), 602-608.
Manuscripts Under Review
Sims, R.C., Levy, S.A., Rosenberger, W., Manukyan, R., Whitfield, K., & Waldstein, S. Glucose tolerance and neurocognitive function among non-diabetic older adults. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition.
Sims, R.C., Bennett, N., Mwendwa, D.T., Ali, M., Levy, S.A., Callender, C., & Campbell, A. Executive functioning and negative eating behaviors in severely obese African Americans. Appetite.
Poster Presentations
Levy, S.A., Sharp, T., Mwendwa, D.T., & Sims, R.C. (2013). Trait Mindfulness and Depressive Symptomatology Relations among African Americans. Annual Meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. Miami, Florida.
Levy, S.A., Mitchell, D., Keen II, L.D., Bichay, K., Thomas, J., Mwendwa, D.T., & Sims, R.C. (2012). The psychometric properties of the Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale in an African-African community sample. Annual Meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. New Orleans, LA.
Herren, O., Levy, S.A., Ali, M., Mwendwa, D., Sims, R., Callender, C. & Campbell, A. (2012). The influence of spirituality and religiosity on cognitive functioning in African Americans. 18th Annual Black Graduate Conference in Psychology, Los Angeles, CA.
Brown, T.F., Bennet, N.K., Levy, S.A., Mitchell, D., Smith, S., Mwendwa, D.T., & Sims, R.C. (2012). The relation between trait mindfulness and inhibition in a community-based sample of African Americans. Annual Meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. New Orleans, LA.
Levy, S.A., Sims, R.C., Mwendwa, D.T., Ali, M.K., Gholson, G., Callender, C.O., & Campbell, A.L. (2011). Coping with Perceived Racism and Dispositional Hostility as Indicators of Cardiovascular Disease Risk in African Americans. Annual Meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. San Antonio, Texas.
Levy, S.A., Sims, R.C., Mwendwa, D.T., Callender, C.O. & Campbell, A.L. (2011). The Influence of Social Support on Executive Functioning in a Community-Based Sample of African Americans. 119th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Ali, M., Mwendwa, D.T., Sims, R.C., Madhere, S., Levy, S.A., Gholson, G., Chiles, S., Callender, C.O., & Campbell, A. (2011). Empirically Derived Components of the Cook-Medley Scale and Inflammation in African Americans. Annual Meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. San Antonio, Texas.
Zhang, L., Salloum, J.B., Levy, S.T., Kerich, M.J., Hommer, D.W., George, D.T. (2007) Amygdala activity in decoding tasks of negative emotional faces in perpetrators of domestic violence with alcohol dependence. 20th NIH Research Festival. Bethesda, MD.
Oral Presentations
Levy, S.A., Ali, M., Bygrave, D., Mwendwa, D.T., Sims, R.C., Sumner, A., Callender, C., Campbell, A. (2012). Mindfulness as a Possibility for Intervention and Prevention of Cardiovascular and Kidney Disease Risk: What we are Discovering with the Study of Cognitive Aging (S.O.C.A). Howard University Hick’s Research Symposium. Washington, DC.
Professional Memberships
- International Neuropsychology Society (INS)
- Society of Behavioral Medicine (SBM)
- American Psychosomatic Society (APS)
- National Register for Health Service Providers in Psychology
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- APA Division 38, Health Psychology
- APA Division 40, Society of Clinical Neuropsychology