CEHD expertise on the dangers of child separation at the border

June 19, 2018

Megan Gunnar, Ph.D., director of the Institute of Child Development — the #1 program in developmental psychology in the nation — is an expert on how children and adolescents regulate stress and emotions. In response to the recent reports on the U.S. government policy separating children of immigrants trying to enter the U.S. illegally, Dr. Gunnar is speaking out, and she is getting worldwide attention. This forced separation can have a negative developmental impact on children far into their future, according to Dr. Gunnar.

“When children are exposed to trauma and major stressors, the most powerful means that nature has devised to protect their bodies and brains from toxic effects is the presence and availability of their parents,” she said.

Dr. Gunnar’s thought leadership on this issue has appeared in more than 40 major media stories with a total reach of more than 380 million people. Read more about this controversial issue and Dr. Gunnar’s expert analysis featured in these media outlets: Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, BuzzFeed, San Francisco Chronicle, Denver Post, and Orlando Sentinel.

A guide to forming advisory boards for family-serving organizations

May 3, 2018

Forming an advisory board can feel like adding yet another box to check in the path to getting something done. But a well-planned advisory board will make your work better, not harder, by providing broader perspective, ensuring you are empowering those you serve, and creating ambassadors for your work.

A new tool from ITR’s Center for Resilient Families, in collaboration with the National Child Traumatic Stress Network and Family Informed Trauma Treatment Center, is the first comprehensive guide to forming an advisory board with a trauma-informed approach for organizations that serve families. In clear language and achievable steps, it walks you through the process of forming a board and highlights the common decisions that groups have to make while outlining the options at each juncture.

This practical and flexible tool will demystify the process and free you up to think about the bigger strategic decisions that will form the bedrock of your board. A well functioning advisory board can help you meaningfully infuse a trauma-informed approach at every level of your organization.

Download

Visit http://crf.umn.edu/advisory to download the tool.

Winston Newbury (MA ’68)

May 3, 2018

Winston Newbury (MA ’68), a leader and educator in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, has published Think Your Way to a Debt-Free Life (DRC Publishing, 2017). Newbury grew up in the remote fishing community of King’s Point, Green Bay, Newfoundland, before attending college and then moving to Minnesota for a master’s degree in industrial education and, later, courses at Dunwoody Institute. He taught college in Canada, started a business, and entered public service. His book examines the important skills of adult generalists and “outport wisdom” that enables resourceful thinking in the face of economic realities and challenge.

Colloquium: Harvard University researcher Walter Dempsey

April 11, 2018

One of the longstanding challenges of mental health interventions has been the difficulty in tailoring programs to the needs of individual people. New technology has made it possible to customize the type and amount of support we give an individual based on the state of that person.

As part of the Institute for Translational Research’s colloquium series, we are excited to host Harvard University researcher Walter Dempsey to discuss his work on “just-in-time” adaptive interventions aimed at providing the right type/amount of support, at the right time, by adapting to the changing state of the individual. He’ll also discuss the stratified micro-randomized trial (sMRT).

Dr. Dempsey is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Statistics at Harvard University interested in developing and analyzing methods for joint modeling of longitudinal and time-to-event data.

WHEN: Friday, April 20 | Noon to 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: ITR Offices, 1100 S Washington Avenue, Suite 102 (map)
WHO: Dr. Walter Dempsey, Harvard University
RSVP: z.umn.edu/dempsey

Free parking is available and light refreshments will be served.

Full abstract: A just-in-time adaptive intervention (JITAI) is an intervention design aimed at providing the right type/amount of support, at the right time, by adapting to the changing state of the individual. In the first half of this talk, we discuss the scientific motivation of JITAIs and define their key components. We present several mobile health trials in substance use and mental health that generate data that can then be used to inform the construction of JITAIs.

A critical question in the development of JITAIs is, when and in which contexts, is it most useful to push intervention content to the user. This question concerns time-varying dynamic moderation by the context on the effectiveness of in-the-moment interventions on user behavior. In the second half of this talk, we discuss the stratified micro-randomized trial (sMRT) design and present a smoking cessation sMRT designed to assess nested effects of momentary interventions.

CEHD ranked #19 by U.S. News & World Report for graduate education

March 20, 2018

The University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) continues to climb in the latest U.S. News & World Report graduate school rankings, breaking the top 20 this year with a ranking of 19, a move up from a ranking of 21^st last year.

CEHD was also recently recognized as the top public school of education in the 2017 Academic Ranking of World Universities.

For the U.S. News & World Report rankings, 385 schools that grant doctoral degrees were surveyed. Schools were rated on 10 measures including peer assessment, educational professionals’ assessment, student selectivity, faculty resources, and research activity.

“We are pleased to continue to rise in the rankings, said CEHD Dean Jean K. Quam. “It’s validation for our work moving forward in educational equity, teaching and learning innovations, and children’s mental health and development.

CEHD is a world leader in developing programs with a positive impact on child development, teaching, and learning. CEHD laboratory preschool, for example, bases its instruction on the idea that children are the agents of their own learning, encouraging hands-on, child-directed experiences. CEHD researchers bring real-world data collection to the classroom to help teachers in Minnesota and beyond. We are also developing new programs and technology, such as Check & Connect, to help educators improve student outcomes and keep at-risk kids on track to graduation.

For more information about the college, visit www.cehd.umn.edu/, where you can also find information about our top-rated master’s and doctoral programs.

The mission of the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development is to contribute to a just and sustainable future through engagement with the local and global communities to enhance human learning and development at all stages of the life span.

DEXALYTICS™ partners with Hologic to offer body composition analysis software for athletes

February 22, 2018

Massachusetts based Hologic, Inc. announced it has signed an agreement with the University of Minnesota to be the exclusive provider of Dexalytics:TEAMS™ in North America. Dexalytics is a cloud-based software developed by Educational Technology Innovations (ETI) in the College of Education and Human Development.

Dexalytics leverages best-in-class body composition data and more than 30 years of DXA research to provide critical measurements that extend beyond the traditional metrics of body fat percentage, total lean mass, and total fat mass used in the past. DXA—short for dual x-ray absorptiometry—is the most accurate way to determine body composition.

“A lot of time and resources are spent understanding what an athlete’s body can do, without a good understanding of what an athlete’s body is made of,” said Tyler Bosch, Ph.D., co-founder and head of research and development for Dexalytics.

The software reinvents the way data is reported, using a proprietary system to look at the measurements in new ways. As a result, pages of clinical data are transformed into a manageable athlete score that can be directly connected to sport performance.

“We’re thrilled to be working with Hologic to ensure this brand new software we’ve worked so hard to develop will reach as many athletes as possible,” said Don Dengel, professor and director of the Laboratory of Integrative Human Physiology in the School of Kinesiology.

Read full press release.

Read more about DEXALYTICS in the Spring 2017 issue of CEHD Connect magazine.

See the story in Twin Cities Business.

OLPD grad Sara Zanussi leads youth choir in Super Bowl performance

February 4, 2018

A youth choir performs behind singer Leslie Odom Jr. on the field of U.S. Bank Stadium during the 2018 Super Bowl in Minneapolis. — ComMUSICation singers perform with Leslie Odom Jr. during the NFL Super Bowl LII on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018 in Minneapolis. Photo by Ben Liebenberg, NFL.

Sara Zanussi, ’18, and middle-school members of a youth development music program she founded had the opportunity of a lifetime on February 4—to perform for an audience of thousands, and a broadcast audience of millions, at the Super Bowl in Minneapolis.

Zanussi founded ComMUSICation in 2013 with a mission to empower youth through music, service, and community. Serving St. Paul’s most vulnerable youth, ComMUSICation runs a tuition-free, rigorous music-making experience for second through eighth graders using music as the vehicle for character skill development.

The group poses for a photo at the 2018 Super Bowl. Photo by Sara Zanussi.

For the Super Bowl, Zanussi’s group partnered with another local youth choir and sang “America the Beautiful” along with Broadway star Leslie Odom Jr. After the performance, the young singers watched the big game—and the halftime show—from the field.

“Our choir is not a choir that would usually be auditioned for big opportunities like this,” says Zanussi, “so the fact that Leslie Odom Jr. and the NFL had this vision to really represent the diversity and true representation of the Twin Cities the way they did was an incredible honor.”

Zanussi just completed her master’s in comparative and international development education. In 2017 she received the University’s prestigious Judd Fellowship to conduct qualitative research at two music programs in Colombia that use ensemble-based music to improve the lives of vulnerable children.

Students learn and earn credit over winter break in Cuba

January 27, 2018

Students from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities pose on their winter break trip to Cuba. Photo by Keitha-Gail Martin-Kerr.

Eleven students from the Twin Cities campus spent their winter break taking the CEHD course History and Culture of Education in Cuba (EDHD 3100/5100). They were paired with students from Cuba’s University of Pedagogical Sciences to promote cultural, language, and disciplinary exchange, and they participated in conferences on culture, history, and pedagogy with local faculty.

In Havana and Matanzas, they visited cultural sites to experience events related to the anniversary of the Cuban revolution. Students called the experience unforgettable and life- changing, citing the power of homestays. “I loved staying in a house with Cubans and getting to see what life here is really like,” was a common response.

Keitha-Gail Martin-Kerr in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction led the group and taught the course with Laura Koch, associate professor and director of CEHD international initiatives and relations. It grew out of CEHD global initiatives and will be offered again based on this year’s success.

Colloquium: Trauma in Autism Spectrum Disorder

January 19, 2018

While the path from trauma exposure, to effect, to treatment is relatively well understood for typically developing children, we know much less about this path for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).

As part of ITR’s colloquium series, we are excited to host researchers Dr. Adriana Herrera and Dr. John Hoch to discuss their recent work on identifying trauma exposure and traumatic stress among children with ASD.

WHEN: Monday, February 26 | Noon to 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: ITR Offices, 1100 S Washington Avenue, Suite 102 (map)
WHO: Dr. Adriana Herrera, ITR, and Dr. John Hoch, Fraser
RSVP: Register through Eventbright

Free parking is available and light refreshments will be served.

Drs. Herrera and Koch looked at currently identified prevalence and risk factors for trauma
exposure in ASD in order to understand the prevalence of trauma reporting among a clinical population.

The project aimed to improve detection of trauma exposure and traumatic stress reactions in children with ASD and to better understand their risk factors and behavioral expression of trauma. The results of the research will inform treatment of trauma among children with ASD.

The research was funded by ITR’s seed grant program, which seeks to kickstart innovative ideas that have a likely chance of becoming larger, sustained research projects with external funding to improve mental health outcomes among Minnesota’s children.

Colloquium: High-risk drinking among adolescents and young adults

November 7, 2017

The Institute for Translational Research in Children’s Mental Health (ITR) is excited to host Dr. Megan E. Patrick, Ph.D., from the University of Michigan to discuss her research on high-risk drinking among young people. Her talk, “High-risk drinking among adolescents and young adults: Motivations, expectancies, and opportunities for intervention” will highlight implications for prevention and intervention.

The colloquium will take place on Tuesday, November 21 at 9 a.m. at ITR’s offices (1100 S Washington Ave). Refreshments will be provided. To RSVP, e-mail bornx040@umn.edu.

Dr. Patrick’s work focuses on the development and consequences of adolescent and young adult risk behaviors, including alcohol use, drug use, and risky sexual behaviors. Her interests include motivation and decision-making, the prevention of health risk behaviors, statistical methods for modeling behavior and behavior change, and web-based survey methodology.

Abstract:
High-risk drinking among adolescents and young adults: Motivations, expectancies, and
opportunities for intervention

Alcohol is the most commonly used substance of abuse among youth. Drinking often begins during adolescence and then escalates in frequency and quantity into early young adulthood. Research has typically focused on binge drinking (i.e., having 5 or more drinks in a row), but recent studies have highlighted that drinking also often far exceeds that quantity threshold. In this talk, Dr. Patrick will present an overview of her research on “high-intensity drinking” (i.e., having 10 or more drinks in a row) among adolescents and young adults, the extent to which motivations for drinking and expectancies of drinking consequences are associated with later alcohol use and problems, and implications for prevention and intervention.

The colloquium will take place on Tuesday, November 21 at 9 a.m. at ITR’s offices (1100 S Washington Ave). Refreshments will be provided. To RSVP, e-mail bornx040@umn.edu.

CEHD start-up partners with game maker to improve school readiness

October 31, 2017

Reflection Sciences, a Minnesota start-up founded by two CEHD professors, has announced a new partnership that aims to measure and improve school readiness through games developed specifically for early learners. The collaboration pairs an Executive Function (EF) measurement tool developed by Reflection Sciences with Kiko’s Thinking Time^TM games in order to track students’ progress in EF as they play.

Executive Function capabilities are key developments in the preschool years. Sometimes called the “air traffic controller of your brain,” EF is the set of neurocognitive functions that help the brain organize and act on information. These functions enable us to pay attention, control behavior, and think flexibly—abilities necessary for success in kindergarten and beyond.

Kiko Labs, which worked with University of California–Berkeley and Harvard neuroscientists to develop educational games for young learners, offers activities targeting skills essential to cognitive learning and school readiness for children ages 3 to 7.

Reflection Sciences—founded in 2014 by child development professor Stephanie Carlson and professor Phil Zelazo of the Institute of Child Development—provides professional development, training, and tools for assessing and improving Executive Function skills. Their Executive Function measurement tool, called the Minnesota Executive Function Scale (MEFS^TM), is the first objective, scientifically based, and normed direct assessment of executive function for ages 2 and up.

MEFS^TM is already used by educators in 32 states to track growth in EF and effectiveness of methods and curriculum. This new partnership hopes to bring schools and early child advocacy organizations a complete solution for building and measuring skills essential to school success.

“We pride ourselves on having the first nationally normed objective measure of EF for preschool children, but caregivers also want solutions they can try to help improve children’s EF skills and prepare them to succeed in school,” Carlson says. “I am delighted to be able to recommend Kiko’s Thinking Time^TM games as a natural complement to the MEFS.”

Study on pre-kindergarten program shows strategies for reducing the achievement gap

October 27, 2017

A new study shows that successful implementation of preschool-to-third-grade programs yields benefits in increasing school readiness, improving attendance, and strengthening parental involvement in school education—strategies that can close the achievement gap for children at risk.

“Scaling and sustaining effective early childhood programs through school–family–university collaboration” was published in the September/October 2017 issue of Child Development by Arthur Reynolds, professor of child development, and colleagues in the Human Capital Research Collaborative (HCRC).

The Child–Parent Center Preschool to Third Grade program (CPC P–3) is a collaborative school reform model designed to improve school achievement and family engagement from ages three to nine. The program provides small classes, intensive learning experiences, menu-based parent involvement, and professional development in co-located sites. In the study, investigators evaluated evidence from two longitudinal studies, the Chicago Longitudinal Study, begun in the 1980s, and Midwest CPC, which started in Minnesota and Illinois in 2012.

“We found that organizing preschool to third grade services through partnerships with schools and families creates a strong learning environment for ensuring that early childhood gains are sustained, thus reducing the achievement gap,” said Reynolds, HCRC co-director.

Implementation in five Saint Paul Public Schools serving high proportions of dual language learners led to gains in literacy of nearly a half a year at the end of preschool. The gains were sustained in kindergarten with further evidence of increased parent involvement and attendance. Small classes and engaged instruction contributed to these gains.

“Thanks to the support of the CPC P-3 program, family rooms at the five Saint Paul Public School sites are vibrant and welcoming environments,” said Kathleen Wilcox-Harris, chief academic officer of the Saint Paul Public School District. “It is not uncommon to see a hub of activity in these spaces promoting the bridge between the home, community, and school environments. The program with guidance from HCRC has led to a menu of family engagement opportunities known as the Families First Menu of Opportunities that is being implemented at other sites. The small classes and preschool to third grade alignment of instruction has also been of substantial benefit.”

In collaboration with Saint Paul Public Schools and other implementation sites, guiding principles of the effectiveness of program expansion are shared ownership, committed resources, and progress monitoring for improvement. The addition of Pay for Success financing in the Chicago Public School District shows the feasibility of scaling CPC P-3 while continuing to improve effectiveness. Each dollar invested in the CPC P-3 program has demonstrated a return of $10 in reduced need for remedial services and improved well-being.

Findings from the study support increased investment during the early grades. As Reynolds documented in a recent Education Week commentary, spending on early childhood development in the first decade of life is a smart investment.

“Since only about half of young children are enrolled in public preK programs, and less than 10 percent participate in P–3 programs that follow the key principles of CPC, increased access to high-quality education and family support services can make a big difference in reducing the achievement gap,” Reynolds said. “Nationally, only one third of fourth graders read proficiently on national assessments, and preschool or school-age programs alone are not enough to raise these rates to acceptable levels, especially for the most vulnerable children. CPC not only helps children be school ready, but improves reading and math proficiency over the school grades, which led to higher rates of graduation and ultimately greater economic well-being.”

Human Capital Research Collaborative, an interdisciplinary research institute in the Institute of Child Development, College of Education and Human Development, offers a multitude of resources for CPC P-3 implementation, including monitoring tools, manuals, and extensive resources on the website CPCP3.org.

Funding for the study is from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, U. S. Department of Education, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

CEHD hosts first Symposium on Civic Renewal

October 25, 2017

More than 200 civic-minded Minnesotans gathered for the first Minnesota Symposium on Civic Renewal, hosted by CEHD with funding from the Spencer Foundation. Panels and discussions at the event focused on topics such as depolarization, equity in education, and immigration.

“Lots of people have good communication skills but struggle to use them in political conversations,” said family social science professor Bill Doherty, who gave a lunchtime address. Doherty cofounded the organization Better Angels, a bipartisan effort to bridge the United States’ red–blue political divide.

“We can all aspire to the habits of political friendship,” said keynote speaker Danielle Allen, a leading political theorist at Harvard. “In a democracy, people lose all the time, but the same people should not be losing again and again. We need to learn to be good losers and also to recognize that loss has weight—good winners are needed, too.”

Learn more about Bill Doherty’s work.

Mom Enough, U of M College of Education and Human Development team up to help kids, parents

August 23, 2017

Two organizations that are committed to healthy child development and parenting have formed a partnership to expand their promotion of easy-to-understand tips and resources for moms, dads, and professionals.

Mom Enough®, founded by Twin Cities child and family health professionals Marti and Erin Erickson, and the University of Minnesota’s College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) are joining forces to present evidence-based research on effective child-rearing at a time when myth-busting and innovative solutions are needed more than ever.

The Mom Enough/CEHD partnership will expand the dissemination of world-class research from the University of Minnesota through all Mom Enough communications, including CEHD experts featured in weekly podcasts (available on iTunes and MomEnough.com), e-newsletters, events, and social media. CEHD experts also will create new tips and resources that will be available through both University and Mom Enough websites, social media, and in print.

Mom Enough aims to provide reliable, research-based information on child development, parenting, and maternal health and well-being. Often delivered with personal anecdotes from the mother-daughter co-hosts, the information is accessible and useful for helping all moms and dads become the parents that their children need.

CEHD is focused on the value of every child as an individual with unique talents and challenges. The college features more than 180 faculty members engaged in research, teaching, and service across Minnesota and around the world. They are represented in the departments of child development; curriculum and instruction; educational psychology; family social science; kinesiology; organizational leadership, policy, and development; and social work.

“CEHD is uniquely positioned to address many of our toughest challenges in society, such as teaching and learning innovations, children’s mental health and development, family resilience, and healthy living across the lifespan,” said Dean Jean K. Quam. “This partnership with Mom Enough is another step in our efforts to collaborate with important community organizations that are dedicated to improving lives.”

Mom Enough’s Marti Erickson, who earned her master’s degree and Ph.D. from CEHD, said, “CEHD was my academic home throughout my long career at the University of Minnesota and is where I developed my passion for bringing research-based information to parents and other caring adults. So it is especially exciting for me to enter into this formal partnership to help Mom Enough’s large and diverse audience tap into CEHD’s extraordinary resources.”

For more information on this new partnership, contact Steve Baker (s-bake@umn.edu, 612-624-3430) or Stacy Downs (stacy@momenough.com, 763-234-4054).

U of M Twin Cities education program ranks #1 among public universities in the world

August 21, 2017

The University of Minnesota’s education program in the College of Education and Human Development ranks #3 in the world, according to the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) 2017 report. Only prestigious private universities Harvard and Stanford are ranked higher, making CEHD the highest rated public education program in the world.

The results are produced by ShanghaiRanking Consultancy, an independent organization dedicated to research on higher education that has published rankings since 2009.

ARWU uses six objective indicators to rank world universities, including the number of alumni and staff winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals, number of highly cited researchers selected by Thomson Reuters, number of articles published in journals of Nature and Science, number of articles indexed in Science Citation Index – Expanded and Social Sciences Citation Index, and per capita performance of a university.

More than 1,200 universities are ranked by ARWU every year and the best 500 are published. See more ARWU education rankings.

2017 ITR Seed Grants Announced

August 10, 2017

We are excited to announce the recipients of the 2017 Collaborative Seed Grant Program. These grants — $20,000 or less with a one-year time frame — support small research projects that advance the use of evidence-based practices in addressing pressing issues for children’s mental health. Each project partners with community organizations in Minnesota. The goal of the program is to kickstart innovative ideas that have a likely chance of becoming larger, sustained research projects with external funding to improve mental health outcomes among Minnesota’s children.

Our mission at the Institute for Translational Research in Children’s Mental Health (ITR) is to advance quality research, train practitioners in evidence-based practices, and disseminate information to help bridge the gap between research and practice in our field.

Mindfulness Training for Juvenile Diversion Youth

Community Principal Investigator: Hal Pickett, Director of Client Services, Headway Emotional Health Services

ITR Principal Investigator: Timothy Piehler, Assistant Professor, UMN Department of Family Social Science

This exciting project aims to reduce conduct disorder among adolescents in juvenile justice diversion programs. The study seeks to adapt a mindfulness-focused intervention called Learning to Breathe for this audience in order to improve adolescent self control. The project will use an experimental design known as a “microtrial” to gauge specific effects of the intervention, which could be a precursor to a full randomized control trial.

Excerpt from the abstract:

“Juvenile diversion programs serve as an important gateway in identifying youth at high risk for escalations in conduct problems. However, the vast majority of diversion programming currently being provided is not evidence-based, in part because there are few evidence-based programs developed specifically for this population and setting…The proposed research seeks to innovate conduct disorder prevention in the context of juvenile diversion through several strategies…The proposed microtrial will evaluate the ability of mindfulness-based skills training to impact self-control within an adolescent diversion population. …

The proposed research project represents a collaboration between a University of Minnesota research team and Headway Emotional Health Services, a community mental health agency that provides pre-court juvenile diversion services for youth offenders. The study will involve a randomized trial investigating an evidence-based mindfulness intervention (Learning to Breathe; LTB) for juvenile diversion-referred youth.”

Foundational Research for a Parenting Mobile App with Biofeedback for Latine Parents

Community Principal Investigator: Roxana Linares, Executive Director, Centro Tyrone Guzman and Veronica Svetaz, Medical Director, Aqui Para Ti

ITR Principal Investigator: Jennifer Doty, Postdoctoral Fellow, UMN Department of Pediatrics

This project will build and test a mobile app version of Padres Informados, a skills-based parenting intervention for Latine immigrants. The work will lay the groundwork for a robust app that includes wearable technology to provide biofeedback to parents as they go through the program.

Excerpt from the abstract:

“The long-term goal of this research is to reduce depression, anxiety, and substance use among Latino adolescents through a mobile application with parenting content and personal biofeedback. The goal of this proposal is to build and test a baseline mobile application with a skills-based parenting curriculum for Latine immigrants, Padres Informados. …

The first aim is to build the baseline application and test the prototype that has already been developed in interviews with 20-30 parents who completed an earlier survey. … The second aim is to assess the functionality of the baseline mobile app and the acceptability of using a wearable.

The mobile app will have the potential of increasing community accessibility to evidence-based parenting programs and enhancing existing delivery of the program by providing mobile supplementary information and goal tracking capabilities.”

CEHD embeds educational equity skills in teacher education curriculum

June 27, 2017

The College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) created the Teacher Education Redesign Initiative (TERI) in 2010 to better prepare teachers for the challenges they face in a 21st century classroom. In the seven years since TERI began, CEHD has made important changes to the teacher preparation curriculum. One of these changes is a new emphasis on teaching “dispositions,” which describe the relational skills that teachers need to connect with their students, families, and communities.

By teaching relational skills, helping teachers understand the impact of their own racial identity on their students, CEHD helps teacher candidates develop the knowledge, skills, and mindsets they need to foster educational equity in their classrooms.

Learn more in this blog post from Misty Sato, associate professor and Campbell Chair for Innovation in Teacher Development.

Ambit Network Fall Conference: The importance of parenting in highly stressed children and families

June 13, 2017

A growing body of research has shown how working with parents can improve mental health outcomes for children exposed to traumatic stress, and an upcoming half-day conference from the University of Minnesota’s Ambit Network and Center for Resilient Families will highlight cutting edge work in this field. Reserve your spot at z.umn.edu/parenting.

The conference will take place the morning of Friday, Sept. 15, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Titled The importance of parenting in highly stressed children and families, it will feature keynote presenter Dr. Marion Forgatch, a key developer of Parent Management Training – the Oregon Model (PMTO), a landmark evidence-based prevention intervention that has been implemented around the world. Center for Resilient Families Director Abi Gewirtz and clinical psychologist Dr. BraVada Garrett-Akinsanya will also present.

Dr. Forgatch and her life partner, Minnesota-native Dr. Gerald Patterson, developed PMTO based on analysis of thousands of hours of footage documenting parent-child interactions to understand what leads children astray. PMTO is based on 40 years of research and has been shared with more than 50,000 families from all socioeconomic backgrounds, cultures, and family types throughout the world. It has been adapted by other researchers to serve more specific audiences, including military parents, Latinx immigrants, and parents of traumatized children. Dr. Forgatch is Senior Scientist Emerita at Oregon Social Learning Center and founder of Implementation Sciences International, Inc.

Dr. Abi Gewirtz, director of both Ambit Network and Center for Resilient Families, is one of the many researchers influenced by PMTO and is the lead developer of After Deployment: Adaptive Parenting Tools, a PMTO-based prevention intervention for military families. Dr. Gewirtz will present on her use of mindfulness research in parenting prevention interventions.

Dr. BraVada Garrett-Akinsanya, a licensed clinical psychologist and Executive Director of the African American Child Wellness Institute, will present on an innovative culturally-specific parenting program she is involved in. The program, called Project Murua: A Pre-meditated Parenting Boot Camp, is a 10-week intensive Afrocentric violence prevention and wellness promotion parent education and training program.

Minnesota Department of Human Services Commissioner Emily Piper and Minnesota House Representative for District 60B, Ilhan Omar, will make opening remarks.

The conference will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Hyundai Club room at U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis. Accessible parking is available near the stadium. Refreshments will be served and an optional stadium tour will take place afterward. The registration fee is $25 and space is limited – reserve your spot today at z.umn.edu/parenting.

The conference is part of the Center for Resilient Families’ mission to implement parent-focused interventions and raise awareness about the importance of parenting in children’s mental health. Both the Center for Resilient Families and the Ambit Network are part of the Institute for Translational Research in Children’s Mental Health at the University of Minnesota.

Announcing ITR summer fellowship recipients

June 5, 2017

The Institute for Translational Research in Children’s Mental Health (ITR) is pleased to announce the recipients of our 2017 Translational Summer Research Fellowships. The four (corrected from an earlier e-mail, which stated three) fellowships help graduate students pursue collaborative research projects involving the development or expansion of evidence-based prevention or treatment interventions in children’s mental health.

The fellowship program supports ITR’s mission to bridge the vast gap between research and practice in children’s mental health. The range of the four projects reflects ITR’s commitment to bringing together researchers from across disciplines to solve problems.

One project will look at the effects of the “Early Risers” intervention on homeless families and identify which family characteristics predict differential responses. In another researchers will examine parents’ cognitive emotion regulation and its impact on child functioning. Using data from the military-parent-focused ADAPT intervention, one fellow will examine how parents’ inhibitory control might boost or lessen benefit from the intervention. A fourth project will investigate how treatments for major depressive disorder affect brain circuits.

Parenting trajectories of homeless parents in Early Risers intervention
Student: Sun-Kyung Lee | ITR faculty advisor: Timothy Piehler

Background: Homeless parents’ life stressors include negative parenting and high risk of exposure to child maltreatment, violence, mental illness and substance use (Gewirtz, Hart-Shegos, & Medhanie, 2008). The behavioral and emotional problems of children in homeless families are greater than children with low socioeconomic status and those in permanently housed communities (Lee et al, 2010). The purpose of this study is to examine intervention effect and identify what family characteristics predict differential responses to the parenting practices outcome in a preventive intervention.

Parent self-regulation, parenting quality, and child behavioral outcomes in homeless families
Student: Alyssa Palmer | ITR faculty advisor: Daniel Berry

Background: The goals of the proposed project are to determine (1) whether parent adversity is related to parent cognitive emotion regulation and parenting quality in families experiencing homelessness, (2) whether parent cognitive emotion regulation moderates the relationships between adversity and observed parenting quality, and (3) whether the aforementioned associations impact child functioning in addition to the predicted direct influences of parent emotion regulation. This project involves secondary data analysis and behavioral coding of parent child interactions. The sample includes 105 caregivers and their 4- to 7- year old children who were recruited over a summer from two urban homeless shelters for a study on parenting and school readiness.

Effects of a military parenting program: Inhibitory control as moderator
Student: Jingchen Zhang. ITR faculty advisor: Abi Gewirtz

Background: The goal of this study is to examine how parents’ inhibitory control might boost or lessen benefit from a military parenting program. Children in military families in which a parent has been deployed may be at increased risk of depression, anxiety and externalizing behavior problems (Chartrand, Frank, White, & Shope, 2008). After Deployment, Adaptive Parenting Tools (ADAPT; PI: Abigail Gewirtz) is a parent training program tailored to the specific needs of military families whose goal is to enhance effective parenting practices, thus reducing children’s adjustment problems (Gewirtz, & Davis, 2014).

Pre-post medication brain functional network changes in adolescent MDD
Student: Shu-Hsien Chu. ITR faculty advisor: Bonnie Klimes-Dougan

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a serious illness that occurs in 11% of adolescents (Avenevoli, Swendsen, He et aI JAACAP, 2015) and is associated with tragic outcomes including chronic adult disability and suicide. While some evidence-based treatments are available such as antidepressant medication and cognitive behavioral therapy, these interventions are only successful in reducing depression in about half to two-thirds of cases. Research is urgently needed to better understand the biological roots of adolescent depression and to develop improved treatments. This project will explore functional network changes exerted by currently-standard treatments.

CEHD in top ten on student satisfaction for education schools

May 30, 2017

A new report from SR (Student Review) Education Group has the University of Minnesota’s College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) at the top of the college rankings in student satisfaction for education schools. Based on the reviews of current and former students, CEHD was rated 8^th best among 19 ranked education colleges offering master’s of education degrees in the United States.

SR Education has created a standardized method to assess institutions based on student satisfaction data. The goal of SR Education is to help prospective students find a college suited to their individual needs.

CEHD News Jeff Webb

CEHD News Jeff Webb