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Justin Mary, Gio Sosa, Amanda Saw, and Dale Berger in Cancun, 2010.
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Mike Healy, Victoria Romero, Chris Aberson, and Dale Berger at WPA 2001.
The original “WISE Guys and Gal”
Dale Berger, Project Director
Dale Berger, Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Claremont Graduate University (CGU), began the WISE site in 1993, and continues to manage the WISE project with the help of Chris Pentoney. Dale retired in 2015 after 45 years of teaching, research supervision, and administration. email: dale.berger@cgu.edu
Chris Pentoney
Chris Pentoney earned his Ph.D. in applied cognitive psychology in 2015. His interests include visualization of data to promote understanding. Chris programmed many of the new JavaScript interactive materials, including the confidence interval creation applet and tutorial, and he is the lead technical expert for WISE. He has continued to provide his expertise
‘Emeritus’ members of the WISE team
Justin Mary
Justin Mary completed his Ph.D. in cognitive psychology at CGU in 2014. Justin was the primary developer of the confidence interval overlap applet and took part in the development and revision of many other WISE resources. As a research staff member at the Science and Technology Policy Institute, Justin provided support and analysis for the National Science Foundation and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Amanda Saw
Amanda Saw completed her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology at CGU in 2011. Amanda was a major contributor to tutorials, research projects, and technological support. She is interested in learning principles and applying and evaluating educational technologies. In addition to the WISE Project, she conducted mathematical education research at the UCLA Human Perception Laboratory.
Nestor Ramirez
Nestor completed his MA degree in cognitive psychology in 2014. He helped with the move of WISE to the current platform.
Jocelyn Johnson
Jocelyn Johnson used her skills in statistics and social cognition to contribute to ongoing WISE research and projects.
Giovanni Sosa
Giovanni Sosa led a meta-analysis study demonstrating the effectiveness of technology in teaching statistics. Gio completed his Ph.D. in Social Psychology at CGU in 2012. His research focused upon examining the interplay between technology, learning, attitudes, and well-being. As a research analyst at Chaffey College, he helped faculty and staff measure student learning and attitudes and provided the campus community with empirical findings concerning a range of student-centered initiatives.
Mike Toma
Mike received his PhD in Cognitive Psychology. As part of the WISE group, he recommended and designed ways to enhance a user’s experience with WISE material and online statistical learning. His dissertation examined the relationship between executive functions and user engagement. He uses what he’s learned about human cognition to improve the way people interact with technology and design.
Catherine Lee
As a graduate student in cognitive psychology Catherine was interested in technology, usability, and user experience. Her research examined reading comprehension across different platforms.
Maria McManus
As a PhD student in Positive Psychology Maria was interested in web design and user experience. She is responsible for much of the beautiful layout you see at the new WISE homepage.
Josh Penman
Josh focused on organizational psychology and evaluation with an interest in developing knowledge bases that are fast, intuitive, and useful. He helped with YouTube videos and transferring lessons into the revised WISE website.
Hope Snyder
Hope helped with the move of WISE to the current platform.
Victoria Romero
Victoria Romero was a major contributor to WISE research as the site was developed. She went on to be a Senior Scientist in the Cognitive Systems division at Charles River Analytics. She lead research programs focused on applying current and emerging research from neuroscience and human behavior to improve our ability to assess, predict, and influence behavior. Victoria applies theories drawn from psychology and neuroscience to develop behavioral models and tools that inform and facilitate target audience analysis, influence campaigns, and strategic communications.
Michael Healy
Michael Healy was the primary contributor of Java programming to the WISE Project when the project began. He completed his Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology at CGU in 2004. His primary research interests are human memory, cognitive aging, and human-computer interaction.
Chris Aberson
Chris Aberson was an early member of the WISE team and the major contributor to WISE research. Chris went on to become a Psychology Professor at Humboldt State University where he taught graduate-level courses in Multivariate Statistics, ANOVA, and Computer Applications as well as undergraduate courses in Introductory Statistics, Intermediate Statistics, and Research Methodology.
Eric P. Emerson
Eric Emerson was a key contributor to development of the initial WISE site. He worked as an expert-level Information Systems Specialist for the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
Jill Huntley
Jill Huntley Taylor is a Director with Dispute Dynamics, Inc. and heads the firm’s Philadelphia office. As a trial consultant she has had key involvement in over 500 cases around the country and in Puerto Rico.
Anita Blanchard
Anita Blanchard is a faculty member in Psychology and Organization Science at the University of North Carolina Charlotte. She studies the effects of technology on employees’ affective attachment. Currently, she has two lines of research. First, she is examining sense of virtual community in virtual communities, particularly how it develops, and what it leads to. Second, she is developing an environmental theory framework to combine the social processes with the technological features that lead to successful virtual group functioning.
Diana Kyle
Diana J. Kyle is on the psychology faculty of Fullerton College in Fullerton, California, where she teaches a range of psychology courses.
Matthew Prull
Dr. Matthew Prull is on the faculty at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. Matthew completed his Ph.D. degree in Cognitive Psychology at CGU in 1997. He teaches various undergraduate courses such as cognitive psychology, research methods, statistics, and psychology of aging, and maintains an active research program in memory and aging.
Initial Participating Faculty
Leah L. Light, Pitzer College
Peter Nardi, Pitzer College
Kathy Pezdek, Claremont Graduate University
Patricia Smiley, Pomona College
John Sullivan, Pitzer College
Last updated January 5, 2026
