Dr. Lucía Alcalá is Professor of Psychology at California State University, Fullerton. She received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of California Santa Cruz with an emphasis on cross-cultural studies. Previously, Dr. Alcalá worked as Postdoctoral Fellow at CINVESTAV in Merida, Yucatan Mexico, where she conducted ethnographic research with Yucatec Maya children and families. She has over 10 years of experience teaching courses in early childhood development and cognitive development.

Dr. Alcala’s teaching and research is focused on how children develop the initiative to help at home and in the community, as active contributors of their own development focusing on the role of cultural values and expectations across communities (Maya, Mexican-immigrant, and European American). Additionally, she explores how these experiences at home contribute to children’s executive function skills and learning processes. She has published multiple peer-review articles, presented at national and international conferences and has collaborated with Indigenous community organizations in Mexico.

Dr. Alcalá’s scholarly achievements have earned her several awards, including the SRCD’s Latinx Caucus career excellence award, and fellowships like the US Fulbright Scholar (2022). She has received multiple grants, including from the National Science Foundation. Dr. Alcalá is dedicated to mentoring undergraduates, junior faculty, and graduate students and has received multiple awards as faculty advisor of distinction and several research grants to support student mentorship in research.