Cindy Stappenbeck obtained her Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Niagara University in May 2000, then continued her academic and research training at the University at Buffalo (UB), earning a Master's degree in Psychology in May 2002. Upon completing her Master's degree, Cindy obtained employment at the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA) where she worked as a Project Coordinator for a large National Institute on Drug Abuse funded project.

Cindy entered the University of Texas and joined the SAHARA lab in August 2004. Since becoming a member of the lab, she has assumed some of the lab-related research responsibilities related to "The UT Experience!"study. Cindy's research investigates the relation between alcohol and dating aggression, and she has conducted both experimental and longitudinal studies to assess this relation. She was recently awarded a 2 year Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Pre-Doctoral Fellowship from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to support her research. She is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington.