Ayanna Kim Thomas
Memory scientist
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Thomas grew up in New York and attended Catholic school. She left Catholic school to attended Bronx High School of Science.
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Education and career
Thomas received her B.A. in African American studies and psychology from Wesleyan University in 1996 and matriculated to the University of Washington to earn her PhD in 2001. In 2004, she completed her post-doctoral work as a National Institute of Aging (NIA) Fellow at Washington University in St. Louis.
Thomas' journey to professorship began as a research scientist at Washington University. In 2004, she transitioned to assistant professor at Colby College in the Department of Psychology. In 2007, Thomas became an assistant professor at Tufts University. In 2019, she was promoted to professor at the Tufts University Department of Psychology, and named Editor-in-Chief of the journal Memory & Cognition, starting her term on January 1, 2020.
In 2021, Thomas was appointed as the Dean of Research for School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University. In February 2025, she was appointed as the Dean of Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Thomas is a founding member of the SPARK Society which is devoted to increasing representation in cognitive sciences for underrepresented minorities. Thomas has acquired fellow memberships with the Psychonomic Society and American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Program.
In 2026, Thomas was announced as the president-elect of the Association for Psychological Science. Her term will commence June 1, 2026.
Research
Thomas's research is in the field of psychology, memory and cognitive aging. Her approach to research is translational with the use of different methodological techniques. She is the principal investigator at the Cognitive Aging and Memory Lab at Tufts University.
Thomas was editor of the 2020 release of The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging: A Life Course Perspective. Her research has been covered by I Am a Scientist, National Public Radio, CBC News in Canada, and Popular Science.
Honors and awards
In 2018, Thomas received a Dalmas Taylor Award from the American Psychological Association. She received a mid-career award from the Psychonomic Society in 2021.