meet the team
dr. simon graham
Dr. Graham is a medical physicist and biomedical engineer with diverse interests in the development of MRI technology for clinical applications involving the brain. In the past, he has conducted numerous studies aimed at improving the understanding of the biophysical properties of biological tissue that affect MRI signal contrast; improving the method and application of functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) of brain activity in healthy individuals as well as patients suffering from stroke, Alzheimer's Disease, mild cognitive impairment, brain cancer, and traumatic brain injury; general development and optimization of MRI methods; and detailed numerical simulations, computational methods, and MRI hardware development towards improved use of MRI and associated medical devices (e.g. deep brain stimulators). He has a lengthy track record of successfully leading collaborative research grants and projects.
dr. eugenie roudaia
Dr. Eugenie Roudaia is a scientific associate at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest. The primary aims of her research is to improve our ability to monitor brain health as we age and to identify effective methods to promote optimal perceptual and cognitive function in older adults. To address the first aim, Dr. Roudaia is studying how visual and attentional functions are affected in healthy aging, mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, using both behavioural measures and electroencephalography (EEG). This research may lead to the development of simple vision-based tests that can assist in the screening or diagnosis of age-related brain disorders, or in the monitoring of brain health. This research will also help us understand how different types of visual functions are affected at different stages of the dementia continuum. To address the second aim, Dr. Roudaia is conducting intervention studies examining the effect of mindfulness meditation on cognition and psychological well-being of older adults. She is also testing whether directly training perceptual abilities can counteract age-related declines in those abilities, and whether it can also improve performance in contexts relevant for daily life.
research team
alexandra pavel
Alex is a Research Assistant with the Graham Neuroimaging Lab at Sunnybrook Research Institute. She previously received her BSc in Psychology and Neuroscience from the University of Toronto, and obtained an MSc in Neuroscience from the University of British Columbia. As part of the Graham Lab team, Alex is involved in several ongoing clinical and technical projects, including the NeuroCovid19 study, neuropsychological testing, and eye-tracking research. Alex can be reached at
Corey Mroczkowski
Corey is a Research Assistant with the Kunin-Lunenfeld Centre for Applied Research & Evaluation (KL-CARE) as part of the Baycrest Academy of Research and Education. Corey received his Masters in Neuroscience at the University of Waterloo where his research focused on studying the visual system’s influence on fine motor control. Previously, Corey received his BSc in Kinesiology where he was actively involved in multiple sensorimotor projects involving eye-tracking, electro-encephalography (EEG), and neuropsychological testing. As part of the KL-CARE team, Corey is involved in multiple projects related to the applied sciences where he provides support with data analytics, data management, program administration/data collection, and staff training.
Sage mccoll
Sage McColl is a Research Assistant with KL-CARE as part of the Baycrest Academy for Research and Education. She has a BScH in Psychology from Trent University, where she completed an Honours Thesis in the Action and Cognition Lab (ACT Lab) under the supervision of Liana Brown. Sage also has an OCGC in Brain Disorder Management from Mohawk College. Sage has been working on the NeuroCOVID project since it started at Baycrest in September 2022. She leads recruitment at Baycrest and helps with data collection.
Irene ma
Irene is a Co-op Research Student in the Graham Neuroimaging Lab at Sunnybrook Research Institute. She is pursuing her BSc in Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. She is currently working on data collection and analysis for the NeuroCOVID-19 study (MRI scans, blood biomarkers) as well as various other neuropsychological projects. Her work involves optimizing procedures and equipment within the lab including the Eyetracker and TabletCam in the MRI. Irene can be reached at
elim tang
Elim is a Co-op Research Student at VisAge Lab in Baycrest’s Rotman Research Institute. She is currently in her 3rd Year pursuing her HBSc Specialist Program in Psychology at University of Toronto Scarborough. Being part of the Baycrest NeuroCovid Study Team, she helps with neuropsychological testing, data collection and recruitment for the study.
nicolas neto
Nicolas is a Co-Op Research Student in the VisAge Lab and is part of Eugenie Roudaia's Baycrest-based research team for his Arts and Science Internship program work term at the University of Toronto. Nicolas' program of study is the Environment and Toxicology Specialist program where he is interested in learning about the effects of various disease states (such as COVID-19) on drug metabolism as well as associated behavioral and cognitive impacts. Nicolas works on the NeuroCOVID project where he is involved with Baycrest participant recruitment, helping to conduct onsite study visits, and analyzing data from the REDCap database. Nicolas is also involved with other projects in the VisAge lab such as the ITrainMyBrain and Bright Mind studies. You can contact Nicolas at