Hometown: University Place, Washington
Major(s): Cognitive and Brain Science and Philosophy
Sam Lacet-Brown is a senior double majoring in Cognitive and Brain Science and Philosophy. He was born in Boston but moved to Washington State at age 2, eventually settling into his hometown of University Place, WA. Coming into college, he knew he wanted to pursue these majors due to his prior exposure to psychology and computer science through working as a freelance web designer and volunteering on a suicide hotline. He is passionate about exploring the role of ethics in data science. He is a part of Psi Chi (the psychology honor society) and a recipient of The Class of 1921 Leonard Carmichael Prize for outstanding academic achievement. Since his freshman year, Sam has worked on campus doing AV for Tufts Technology Services.
Sam has spent most of his time at Tufts working to create social opportunities for other neurodivergent students. He founded the Neurodiverse House on campus (which is a theme house that focuses on neurodivergent students differing communication styles and sensory needs) and has served as House Manager since its creation. He also worked with JumboCode on an app to decrease dental anxiety in autistic children for Autism Smiles (a non-profit organization of Tufts-affiliated pediatric dentists). Additionally, he is President and Treasurer of the Diverse Minds club, which serves as a low-commitment weekly social space for neurodiverse students. He works closely with the Crehan Lab to consult with them on surveys and help connect research opportunities to interested students. Sam joined the PTSD Neuroimaging Lab in his sophomore year, where he worked with Prof. Lisa Shin and Prof. Sam Sommers to gather data for his Senior Honors Thesis. He is investigating the impact of differing types of racist experiences on long-term physiological outcomes.
Outside of campus, Sam has worked in a variety of positions involving ethics and/or technology. He has had the opportunity to work in the lab of Dr. Sara Goering at the University of Washington’s Center for Neurotechnology exploring how different philosophical frameworks could be applied to the issue of compensation after invasive research trials. Sam has also interned at Meta, using statistical analysis to determine what metrics would be best to prioritize to increase user engagement with messaging services on Instagram and other platforms. This past summer, he worked for Cornerstone Research where he helped use data analysis on pharmaceutical records and the financial market to answer questions for expert witnesses within legal cases. He has been invited to join Cornerstone as a full-time analyst after graduation. In his free time, Sam loves playing board games with friends, building guitar pedals, and drumming.
Sam Lacet-Brown, A24