Leadership
The SGM SIG leadership consists of two co-chairs and two student representatives. The primary responsibilities of the leadership are to facilitate the day-to-day operations of the SIG, to act as a liaison between the SIG and the ABCT leadership, to organize activities and events related to the annual convention, and to ensure that members’ needs are being met. In addition, the leadership develops and executes new initiatives based on members’ interests. Of note, we strive for a leadership that reflects the diversity of our members.
Allura Ralston
Co-chair, 2026-2029
Allura Ralston, PhD, (she/her) is an Assistant Professor at Millersville University, where she teaches courses in clinical psychology at the undergraduate and graduate level. Her program of research focuses on understanding and ameliorating minority stress in transgender and gender diverse communities in clinical, research, and societal contexts.
Through her research, she hopes to inform culturally responsive treatment, create affirming research practices, and find ways to strategically decrease the misinformation and discrimination faced by transgender and gender diverse communities. She is currently in the process of obtaining licensure in Pennsylvania and she hopes to create a practice focused on providing culturally responsive care for
LGBTQ+ communities. She also serves on a number of committees that focus on issues of diversity,
equity, and inclusion including her university’s President’s Commission on Gender and Sexual Diversity.
Co-chair, 2026-2029
Allura Ralston, PhD, (she/her) is an Assistant Professor at Millersville University, where she teaches courses in clinical psychology at the undergraduate and graduate level. Her program of research focuses on understanding and ameliorating minority stress in transgender and gender diverse communities in clinical, research, and societal contexts.
Through her research, she hopes to inform culturally responsive treatment, create affirming research practices, and find ways to strategically decrease the misinformation and discrimination faced by transgender and gender diverse communities. She is currently in the process of obtaining licensure in Pennsylvania and she hopes to create a practice focused on providing culturally responsive care for
LGBTQ+ communities. She also serves on a number of committees that focus on issues of diversity,
equity, and inclusion including her university’s President’s Commission on Gender and Sexual Diversity.
Lorenzo Lorenzo-Luaces
Co-chair, 2023-2026
Lorenzo Lorenzo-Luaces, PhD, (He/Him/His) is an Associate Professor of Indiana University Bloomington. His research interests are broadly related to the treatment and phenomenology of depression and other internalizing disorders like generalized anxiety, including their classification and differentiation from negative moods that are not impairing or distressing. His research has focused on the outcomes and processes of change in depression treatments, especially cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBTs). An overarching theme informing his work is that the level of heterogeneity in the clinical presentation (e.g., symptoms) and in the prognosis of internalizing disorders needs to be considered when studying etiology and treatments.
Co-chair, 2023-2026
Lorenzo Lorenzo-Luaces, PhD, (He/Him/His) is an Associate Professor of Indiana University Bloomington. His research interests are broadly related to the treatment and phenomenology of depression and other internalizing disorders like generalized anxiety, including their classification and differentiation from negative moods that are not impairing or distressing. His research has focused on the outcomes and processes of change in depression treatments, especially cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBTs). An overarching theme informing his work is that the level of heterogeneity in the clinical presentation (e.g., symptoms) and in the prognosis of internalizing disorders needs to be considered when studying etiology and treatments.
Zig Hinds
Student Representative, 2026-2028
Zig Hinds, MS, (They/Them/Theirs) is a fourth-year Clinical Psychology doctoral candidate at Rosalind Franklin University. Their clinical and research interests focus on the impacts of negative interpersonal experiences on substance use, the resiliency of LGBTQ+ communities, and the benefits of using community-specific interventions. Zig has been a member of the SGM SIG for the past four years. They have enjoyed participating in events that foster connection and visibility for student members. In their free time, Zig enjoys painting, making music, watching cartoons, and spending time outside.
Student Representative, 2026-2028
Zig Hinds, MS, (They/Them/Theirs) is a fourth-year Clinical Psychology doctoral candidate at Rosalind Franklin University. Their clinical and research interests focus on the impacts of negative interpersonal experiences on substance use, the resiliency of LGBTQ+ communities, and the benefits of using community-specific interventions. Zig has been a member of the SGM SIG for the past four years. They have enjoyed participating in events that foster connection and visibility for student members. In their free time, Zig enjoys painting, making music, watching cartoons, and spending time outside.
Ben Eisenstadt
Student Representative, 2026-2028
Ben Eisenstadt, MA (He/Him/His) is a third-year PhD student in clinical psychology at Stony Brook University. His research aims to promote the individual and relational health of LGBTQ+ people in romantic relationships, with a particular focus on the romantic experiences of transgender and gender diverse community members. Ben has been a member of the SGM SIG for the past four years. He has also worked as a graduate research assistant for the Inter-Organizational Strategic Task Force on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression Change Efforts cosponsored by ABCT. In his free time, Ben enjoys spending quality time with his dog Serena and watching reality television.
Student Representative, 2026-2028
Ben Eisenstadt, MA (He/Him/His) is a third-year PhD student in clinical psychology at Stony Brook University. His research aims to promote the individual and relational health of LGBTQ+ people in romantic relationships, with a particular focus on the romantic experiences of transgender and gender diverse community members. Ben has been a member of the SGM SIG for the past four years. He has also worked as a graduate research assistant for the Inter-Organizational Strategic Task Force on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression Change Efforts cosponsored by ABCT. In his free time, Ben enjoys spending quality time with his dog Serena and watching reality television.
