Melissa Gazal, a candidate in Fordham’s Ph.D. program in Administration and Leadership, presented her dissertation research at the Eastern Psychological Association’s annual conference on March 8. The panel, Armenians in the Behavioral Sciences, took place at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square and featured speakers from across the Eastern U.S.
Her topic, Spiritual and Identity Development of Armenian-American College Graduates, was both a scholarly inquiry and a personal project. It marked the first time she had shared her findings publicly beyond her dissertation defense.
Gazal, who also serves as associate director of student involvement at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus, was invited to participate by Fordham psychology professor Harold Takooshian, Ph.D., and psychologist Ani Kalayjian, Ed.D. Both have been longstanding mentors in the field.
A first-generation Armenian-American college graduate, she focused her research on East Coast students and alumni, whose experiences are often overlooked in a literature base centered on the West Coast. She also examined how Armenian Student Associations shape identity and connection on campus. Participants described these groups as vital sources of community—often likening them to a “home away from home.” Many also expressed a desire for their institutions to formally recognize Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day each April 24.
She successfully defended her dissertation in December 2024 and is scheduled to present again this June at the JASPA Five-Year Institute.
In reflecting on the process, Gazal emphasized the role of her support system. “I absolutely could not have done this without my community,” she wrote. “The people who connected me to participants, cheered me on, checked in during the hard weeks—they were everything.” She extended thanks to her committee—Lori A. Wolff, Ed.D., Phillip A. Smith, Ph.D., and Jesse S. Arlen, Ph.D.—as well as to her parents, who supported both her undergraduate and doctoral education at Fordham.
Looking ahead, she hopes to expand her work into a book and teach graduate-level courses. “Community is central to our culture,” she wrote. “That’s true in this research, and it’s true in how I got here.”
This article was contributed by Ayedje Kossi and edited by Vince Ricco.
