Alexandria Banou Morgan: UMaine 2025 Co-Salutatorian 

Alexandria Banou Morgan of Perry, Maine is a 2025 co-salutatorian and the outstanding graduating student in the Honors College and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS). She is majoring in psychology with minors in neuroscience and philosophy. Her journey at the University of Maine has been one of self discovery through scholarly pursuits and service. 

Morgan applied her research on identity, religion and prejudice to help others find where they belong. At UMaine’s Culture, Religion, Attitudes and Beliefs Lab, of which she has been the undergraduate director since 2022, she studied the prejudices that impact minority groups. With support from a McGillicuddy Humanities Center Undergraduate Fellowship and Center of Undergraduate Research Summer Fellowship, she interviewed second generation Iranian American immigrants to better understand how holding multiple identities affects well-being and learned about herself through the process. She hoped to find other Iranian Americans, like herself, at UMaine who could relate to her experiences. What she found instead was that all people, regardless of ethnicity, race or religion, desire to be seen and understood, and they can find belonging with each other through their differences.

A Maine Top Scholar, Morgan secured approximately $63,000 in funding for her undergraduate research. She successfully defended her honors thesis titled “Religious Self Identity and Racism” 18 months early with support from the CLAS Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Fellowship. She later co-presented her research on how white Christian nationalism promotes prejudice toward Black Americans at the International Association for the Psychology of Religion conference in the Netherlands and presented it at the 2024 UMaine Student Symposium, where she won the Social Sciences and Humanities category. 

As part of her work with UMaine’s Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology Lab, Morgan mentored two high school students who were participating in the Maine State Science Fair, an opportunity that brought her full circle back to the experience that awarded her a full tuition scholarship to attend UMaine. By flipping roles from student to mentor, she applied and repackaged the knowledge she’s gained since high school. 

Through the Honors College, Morgan mentored peers and served as a teaching assistant for five courses. She was also a member of the clubs Women in Philosophy and Philosophy Across the Ages, in which she mentored high school students, fostering a passion for academia.

Following graduation, Morgan plans to research and advocate for state policy to bridge the inequality gap in Maine’s rural healthcare, then pursue a doctorate degree in clinical psychology.

Do you feel you approach situations with other people differently because of your research on identity and well-being? How so?

I definitely believe I approach situations with other people differently because of my research. Identity is such an integral part of how we not only think of ourselves, but also how we connect with others and find belonging. The first-hand experience of researching identities is a perspective that follows and informs so much of how I see the world as a person, student and researcher. 

I often think about a recurring experience I had while interviewing second generation Iranian American immigrants, searching to know more about their belonging in relation to their identity. When I shared my findings with folks from different ethnic groups, they often said they wish they could have been included in the interviews. They recounted similar experiences of feeling disconnected from others because of their diverse identities, and they had this sense that they just didn’t “fit” in one particular group. I find this funny, because in these groups of people expressing that they don’t find connection with other people, they are simultaneously finding connection with others. I often told my mentor I wish I could have everyone meet; maybe they would find solace in knowing their shared struggles.  

Overall, I think this speaks to a larger phenomenon of how we desire to be seen and understood. Having done this research, I am reassured that working with folks of diverse identities in therapeutic and research settings is vital because of its direct impact on mental health and well-being. I find that I want to approach people with the empathy and understanding that they are valid in their identities and not alone in their differences. 

Do you think you may help fill mental wellness healthcare gaps in Maine? Why or why not?

Growing up in rural Maine, I can attest that Maine has a shortage of so many vital practitioners. Certainly, psychiatrists and psychologists are a significant part of this shortage. Once I become a psychologist, I would be more than happy to come back and serve the community that serves me. However, this is only a tiny part of the solution to a much larger issue. There are so many structural and inequity issues related to how Mainers receive care that need to be addressed in tandem. Using empirical research to mitigate barriers to receiving care is essential. Before returning to practice here, I would first like to be a part of researching and implementing treatments or policy to bridge these gaps, in whatever form that takes. 

As an annual volunteer, how has your perspective of the Special Olympics, and the people who participate and their families, shifted as you’ve learned more in the field of psychology?  

I was inspired by my brother, who is a local Special Olympian himself, to start volunteering with the Special Olympics. I find that this event encompasses the good in humanity. Every year, I am reminded of the resiliency of the families, the Olympians and the people who come together to volunteer their time to make this event possible. As my education continues in psychology, I am reminded of how important it is to step outside of the Ivory Tower of Academia and be face-to-face with real people and learn from them. The best education happens when you are an active agent in the world. 

How has your ethnicity played a role in your education and experiences? 

Growing up a second generation Iranian American in rural Maine has undoubtedly impacted my education and experiences. I started college by thinking deeply about my identity and ethnicity, shaping the classes and experiences I sought. Maine is notably not a very diverse state, so I went into college wanting to connect with my ethnicity. As there are not many Iranian Americans in the area, this became an effort to connect with all kinds of people from diverse identities, and from that, I’ve been able to find community. 

In an educational sense, I wanted to study culture and belonging broadly. That’s how I found Dr. Jordan LaBouff’s Culture, Religion, Attitudes and Beliefs Lab, where I have been lucky enough to not only research and study people from my ethnicity but also study the prejudices that impact all kinds of minority communities. Much of my philosophical coursework is based on phenomenology, the understanding of being in the world, because looking back, this has all been an effort to understand myself. Additionally, I was lucky enough to take CHF 404: “Human Sexuality in Europe” to examine the cross cultural differences in belonging.  

My ethnicity and the subsequent reckoning of my journey to understand it are huge motivators for how I interact with and wish to continue interacting with the world. 

What has been the most interesting experience you’ve shared with a peer or peers while working in faculty and research labs? 

One of the most interesting and valuable experiences I’ve had while working in faculty and research labs was mentoring high school students. In Dr. Jennifer Blossom’s Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology Lab, I was given the opportunity to be a qualified scientist for two students participating in the Maine State Science Fair. When I was a sophomore and junior in high school, I was also a participant. My successes and subsequent scholarships are why I am here at UMaine today. It was such a full circle moment to be given the opportunity to mentor the high school students. 

Taking on the role of mentor allowed me to apply everything I’ve learned and repackage it to meet the needs of my students. The process taught me how to be a leader and a role model and gave me a new appreciation for all the many mentors that have supported me and helped me get to where I am today. 

I like to joke that research feels like my brain is doing jumping jacks. I get to think in novel ways, and I get so very earnestly excited about what I do — from thinking about a question to developing a way to work through it to answering it and seeing how these answers impact all of us in the real world. It was just such a joy to share my excitement with the high school students.

Contact: Ashley Yates; ashley.depew@maine.edu