Psychology Asst. Prof. Sarah Merrill Continues Family Legacy at UML

A woman with long hair and a blue purse over her shoulder opens a classroom door. Image by Ed Brennen
Sarah Merrill, a new assistant professor of psychology in the College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, heads to her first class, Interpersonal Relationship Dynamics, in the Donna Manning Health & Social Sciences Building.

09/17/2024
By Ed Brennen

This being her first-ever class as an assistant professor of psychology at 51视频, Sarah Merrill made a point of getting to Room 160 of the Donna Manning Health & Social Sciences Building 15 minutes early.

Merrill, who joined UML this fall after five years as a postdoctoral researcher at Brown University and the University of British Columbia, plugged her laptop into the smart podium, connected to Wi-Fi, called up the Blackboard shell for the Interpersonal Relationship Dynamics course and waited for students to begin trickling in for the 3:30 class.

But by 3:27, no one had arrived.

鈥淭his can鈥檛 be right,鈥� thought Merrill, who double-checked her syllabus and realized that, in her first-day excitement, she had gone to the wrong room. She quickly gathered her things and went next door to Room 165, where 30 juniors and seniors were getting settled.

鈥淲ell, hello, nice to meet you all,鈥� Merrill said cheerfully after making the seamless save. 鈥淢y name is Sarah Merrill, and I will be your professor for this class. Hopefully, we will have a great time learning about relationships.鈥�

A woman with long hair and in a black top works at a laptop at her desk in her office. Image by Ed Brennen
Asst. Prof. of Psychology Sarah Merrill decorated her new office at Coburn Hall with a weaving of Southwick Hall made by her late grandfather, Kenneth Merrill, who graduated from Lowell Textile Institute in 1951. A blanket he wove is draped over her chair.
More than 3,000 first-year and transfer students are learning their way around 51视频 this fall. So are 32 new faculty members, Merrill among them.

鈥淲alking onto campus for the first time, with the beautiful weather, it reminded me of being a freshman in college,鈥� said Merrill, a native of Middletown, Rhode Island, who earned bachelor鈥檚 degrees in psychology and neuroscience from Wellesley College and a Ph.D. in developmental psychology from Cornell University.

Although she is new to campus, Merrill鈥檚 ties to the university run deep. Her grandfather, Kenneth Merrill, graduated from Lowell Textile Institute, a predecessor of UML, in 1951 and was a professor there. His father, Gilbert Merrill, was a professor at the Lowell Textile School, a predecessor of the textile institute, and wrote textbooks that can still be found in the university library.

A 1951 yearbook entry for a man named Kenneth Merrill.
The 1951 Pickout yearbook entry for Kenneth Merrill, Sarah's grandfather.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to become part of the family legacy,鈥� Merrill said from her new office at Coburn Hall, a building that is also part of that legacy. Gilbert鈥檚 mother, Lilian 鈥� Sarah鈥檚 great-great-grandmother 鈥� was a member of the Coburn family for whom the South Campus building is named.

One of the first things Merrill hung up in her office was a weaving of Southwick Hall that her late grandfather made as a senior project 75 years ago. She draped a blanket that he wove over the back of her chair. At her new home in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts, is the rocking chair that Kenneth received upon retiring as a professor.

鈥淚t鈥檚 rare you get to work in a place that you would pick, especially as a brand-new professor, but this is where I wanted to end up,鈥� Merrill said as she prepared for her first class.

A picture of a 1953 yearbook page with the entries for Gilbert Merrill and John Merrill.
The 1953 Pickout yearbook entries for Sarah Merrill's great-grandfather, Gilbert Merrill, and his brother, John, both faculty members at Lowell Textile Institute.
In August, Merrill attended two days of new faculty orientation, hosted by the Center for Excellence in Learning & Teaching (CELT), where she learned about student resources like the Center for Learning, Advising & Student Success, Disability Services and Information Technology.

鈥淚t was helpful to get a lay of the land and know what鈥檚 available for students,鈥� said Merrill, who also joined the UMentor program that connects new faculty with experienced peers.

Merrill felt immediately welcomed by her new colleagues in the Psychology Department, as well. Several of them reached out to her over the summer to share course materials and teaching tips. Merrill also got to know psychology Ph.D. student Angelina Davis, her 鈥渆xtremely helpful鈥� teaching assistant.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been very community-oriented and collaborative,鈥� Merrill said. 鈥淣ot all academia environments are like that; they can be more competitive. But I feel like everyone really wants me to succeed and are happy to help me.鈥澛�

A woman smiles as she takes a bag from another woman while standing in front of a stairway bannister. Image by Ed Brennen
On her way to class, Sarah Merrill accepts a welcome-to-UML gift bag from Psychology Department Assistant Jamie Trottier.
To wit: As Merrill headed to her first class, she was greeted in the hallway by Psychology Department Assistant Jamie Trottier, who gave her a welcome-to-UML gift bag that included a loaf of homemade bread.听

Merrill is an expert in social epigenetics, or the ways in which the social environment can impact gene expression and biology, and she now has her own lab at UML, the .听

This isn鈥檛 Merrill鈥檚 first time in front of a class, of course. As a Ph.D. student at Cornell, she designed and instructed a course that covered developmental psychology 鈥� material that she used when putting together the syllabus for her Interpersonal Relationship Dynamics course at UML.

But she still felt butterflies on her way to her first class.

Two women sit at a table near a window and listen. Image by Brooke Coupal
Sarah Merrill, right, listens to a presentation during a new faculty orientation session in August at Coburn Hall.
鈥淎re they going to think my jokes are funny or lame?鈥� wondered Merrill, who enjoys letting her 鈥渋nner theater kid shine鈥� when in front of students.

She likened teaching a new class to publishing her first paper.

鈥淵ou鈥檙e confident in the material and the research you did, but now you have to put it together in a package that other people will read and hope they get your message,鈥� she said.

After the first 75-minute session of Interpersonal Relationship Dynamics (which Merrill plans to rename 鈥淟ove and Bonding鈥� in future semesters), students seemed to get the message 鈥� and liked their new professor.

鈥淪he鈥檚 very upbeat,鈥� said senior psychology major Delia Fraser, who was on the class waitlist but planned to keep attending until a spot opened up. 鈥淚 liked how she didn鈥檛 just go over the syllabus on the first day, but taught us a little bit about what the class is going to be about.鈥�

A woman is reflected in a computer monitor while teaching in a classroom filled with students. Image by Ed Brennen
Asst. Prof. of Psychology Sarah Merrill is reflected in a monitor as she leads her first class at UML.
鈥淚 loved it. She was very well-prepared and presented with a clear voice,鈥� added Nathaniel Buteau, a senior exercise science major with a minor in psychology. 鈥淚 appreciate interactive professors, and I can already see that she is going to push me to engage with the material.鈥�

As Merrill waited for students to arrive at Room 165 for the first session of the other course she is teaching this semester, Developmental Psychopathology, she gave herself a passing grade.

鈥淚 was a little nervous at the start and overly breathy,鈥� said Merrill, who didn鈥檛 hesitate when asked what she would consider a successful first semester.

鈥淟ots of engagement, personal interactions with the material and everyone crushing my exams.鈥�


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