Dr. Melissa VanderKaay Tomasulo is Associate Dean of the School of Natural & Health Sciences, Associate Professor of Psychology and Health Science, and co-directs the Stress and Immunology Laboratory at Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont, USA. She is an experimental health psychologist with training and expertise in the behavioral and psychophysiological effects of stress on spatial navigation, allostatic load, and disease pathogenesis. Her current research demonstrates the ability of VR-delivered meditation to mitigate the negative consequences of stress on behavioral, autonomic, neuroendocrine, and immune responses. She is collaborating with scientists at NASA Johnson Space Center to develop a VR stress-relieving countermeasure protocol that aims to prevent immune dysfunction and improve crew health during future long duration spaceflight missions. Her expertise in VR-delivered meditation has been applied to workers over-wintering in Antarctica, first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic, and college athletes. NASA’s Human Research Program, the Vermont Space Grant Consortium, and the Vermont Biomedical Research Network have funded her research. She received her Ph.D. in Health Psychology from The Ohio University.'