Callie Duggan ’23 

Why did you pursue this project?
Hi, my name is Callie Duggan! When I’m not in school, I also enjoy playing with my dog and playing soccer for my club team, CFC. I have always been interested in science, so I took an online neuroscience course over the summer before I joined ISRP, and it brought my attention to neurodevelopmental disorders. A few of my family suffer from ADHD, and my interest in strengthening treatments arose from my witness to their struggles. I started my ISRP journey by learning about methylphenidate, a drug that helps patients manage symptoms, and then I switched my topic to transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a stimulation therapy that is still in its experimental phase as researchers investigate the best ways to target ADHD symptoms. This summer, my topic has shifted again towards a different neurodevelopmental disorder: autism. I plan on aiding my mentor in her research on Autism traits and mental health in girls and women with the fragile X premutation while also learning more about neurodevelopmental disorders and how they affect people.