HDFS faculty member Elizabeth Sharp has typically conducted her research on women’s singlehood and transition to marriage either through in-depth qualitative interviews or quantitative analysis of survey attitude scales. Either way, there is some sort of verbal expression from each participant, whether a telling of her life story or selecting “strongly agree” regarding some opinion. In collaboration with a colleague from the arts, however, Dr. Sharp has found a new modality for expressing her research participants’ views of singlehood, weddings, and marriage — dance! Dr. Sharp has shared transcripts of her qualitative interviews with Theatre and Dance faculty member Genevieve Durham DeCesaro and other choreographers, who converted the verbal text into dance movements. The result is a performance titled “Ordinary Wars.” This website summarizes the collaboration between Elizabeth and Genevieve, and includes embedded YouTube videos of the performance. Along with the performance, the fruits of this project have included grant funding, journal articles, and a book contract.
End-of-Semester Notes (Spring 2013)
Some developments from our faculty:
- Jeff Wherry’s Children’s Justice Act grant application, “Training in Evidence-Based Assessment of Abused Youth,” has been approved for funding, it was just announced. Dr. Wherry is Principal Investigator and will serve as the primary trainer in this online training and supervision project. Over 200 licensed professionals across the entire state of Texas will receive training and supervision using a variety of online technologies. This training in assessment of abused children will result in better treatment for this population in Texas.
- Alan Reifman was quoted in this USA Today article about parents’ relationships’ with their emerging-adult (age 18-29) children.
- Du Feng, who spent 17 years with us on the HDFS faculty, announced that she will be moving to the School of Nursing at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. With her background in quantitative psychology, Du taught many of our statistics courses and applied advanced analytic techniques to research topics such as intergenerational processes in families and (in collaboration with the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center) evaluation of childhood obesity-prevention programs. We will miss her and we wish her the best.
SRCD 2013 in Seattle
Several Texas Tech HDFS faculty, graduate students, and alumni presented their research at the biennial conference of the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD), held April 18-20 in Seattle. Here are some photos (click on them to enlarge)…
-
- Graduate students Anuradha Sastry (left) and Jennifer Harris, presenting their poster “Interactive Repair During Reunion Following Differential Treatment Among Infants of Mothers with Depressed Symptoms” (co-authored by Dr. Sybil Hart).
-
- Anuradha with fellow grad student Paulina Velez-Gomez and University of Sussex Professor Andy Field, a hero to many statistics students!
-
- Ph.D. alum Kim Corson (left, now a faculty member at Louisiana Tech) and Dr. Malinda Colwell, beside their poster “Contextual Characteristics and Learning for Young Children” (co-authored with Torey Griggs, Nora “Felix” Phillips, and Debbie Neckles).
-
- Ph.D. alum and current HDFS instructor Shera Jackson (at podium) chaired a session on “Breastfeeding Exposed: Exploring the Psychological and Biological Factors That Influence Breastfeeding Success.” Shera presented two papers within the session, one co-authored with Gail Bentley and the other, with Drs. Mallory Boylan (TTU Nutrional Sciences) and Sybil Hart.
-
- Paulina stands with Dr. Yvonne Caldera and former Texas Tech faculty member Eric Lindsey, in front of their poster. Dr. Lindsey moved to one of the Penn State University campuses several years ago.
Mid-Semester News Briefs (Spring 2013)
Five Texas Tech faculty and staff members associated with HDFS were recognized at the annual Length of Service Awards Ceremony last Thursday, March 28. The ceremony recognizes employees who have completed 15 or more years of service at Texas Tech (in increments of five years). Professors Sybil Hart and Alan Reifman received their 15-year pins, as did two of our Ph.D.-program alumni, Jim Childers, who teaches in Forensic Sciences, and Andrea McCourt, who specializes in distance/online education. HDFS office manager Sidney Fleming was honored for 25 years at the university (which includes time in other departments before joining us). A full list of recognized employees is listed here.
Elizabeth Trejos-Castillo was honored as one of “14 Hispanic Professors Making a HUGE Difference in Texas.”
The annual Texas Council on Family Relations conference gets underway tomorrow in Austin. Janis Henderson, a Ph.D. student in our department, has served this past year as Vice President of the organization in charge of planning the conference.
Recent Accomplishments by Grad Students Engler, Brooks-Hurst
Karen Roberto Cited in Texas Tech Alumni Magazine
Karen Roberto, a professor of Human Development at Virginia Tech who received her graduate HDFS degrees with us at Texas Tech (MS, 1981; PhD 1984), was cited in the latest (March/April 2013) issue of the Texas Techsan alumni magazine. According to the magazine, “While serving as the 2012 Gary Andrews Visiting Fellow, [Roberto] delivered the keynote address at the Australian Association of Gerontology National Conference… She was also awarded the Distinguished Mentorship in Gerontology Award by the Gerontological Society of America.” In reaction to the magazine item, Dr. Jean Scott, current Texas Tech HDFS department chair and Karen’s advisor back in the day, noted Karen’s extensive involvement in international studies.
Brief Items as We Begin Spring 2013 Semester
Welcome back to all HDFS faculty, instructors, students, and staff. Here are some brief items that you may find of interest:
- Our longtime colleague and current instructor Lane Powell was featured in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, in conjunction with her textbook being translated into Japanese.
- Two of our Ph.D. recipients from recent years published articles from their graduate work. Brittney Schrick, now a faculty member at Southern Arkansas University, had her work appear in Sex Roles. Kim Corson, now a faculty member at Louisiana Tech, had a paper accepted in Early Child Development and Care, which has been published online first (her topic is a “secret”).
- Faculty member Elizabeth Sharp, who is on leave in England but still teaching teleconference-based courses here at Texas Tech, e-mailed to say that, “I have given two talks here and I have an honorary Fellowship at Durham University.”
- Faculty member Alan Reifman and graduate student Tim Oblad just had an article come out on “helicopter parenting,” in the AHEPPP Journal (from the Association of Higher Education Parent/Family Program Professionals). Access via the AHEPPP website is limited to members, so please contact Dr. Reifman for a reprint, if interested.
If you have any news, please e-mail Dr. Reifman, the Associate Chair of the department, so he can include it in future postings on this blog.
December 2012 HDFS Bachelor’s Graduates Excel
An article in today’s Lubbock Avalanche Journal, the local newspaper, previews this weekend’s graduation ceremonies (link). The listing of “highest ranking December graduates for each college” shows that the six top grads in the College of Human Sciences all studied within the Human Development and Family Studies Department (either in the “regular” HDFS major or Early Childhood education). These students are as follows (with their hometowns):
- Dawn Marie Abbot, HDFS, Whitehouse;
- Meagan Lee Blair, HDFS, Pharr;
- Rachel Rene Burden, EC, Lubbock;
- Sara Elizabeth Moffett, EC, Houston;
- Kaitlyn Michelle Pinkerton, EC, Midland; and
- Olivia Diane Segulja, EC, Midland (also the College banner-bearer)
Congratulations to these students and all of our other graduates!
Grad Students Kostina-Ritchey and Chawla Win Awards at TTU Arts and Humanities Conference
The discipline of Human Development and Family Studies primarily falls within the social sciences. That didn’t stop two of our graduate students, Erin Kostina-Ritchey and Manju Chawla, from winning awards at the university’s recent Arts and Humanities Graduate Student Research Conference, however. The official entries for Erin and Manju are as follows:
Kostina-Ritchey, Erin, College of Human Sciences, Panel: The Individual and Representation (first place)
“Representation of Birth Families in Children’s Books about Adoption”
Chawla, Manju, College of Human Sciences, Panel: Childhood and Parenting (second place)
“Parenting Style as a Correlate of Aggression Among Rural Adolescents in Different Socio-Economic Strata in India”
A list of all winners is available here.
Michael O’Boyle Interviewed in PBS “NOVA” Program
HDFS professor Michael O’Boyle was among the brain researchers featured on last night’s PBS broadcast of “NOVA scienceNOW: How Smart Can We Get?” It was a very cerebral episode! In his segment, Dr. O’Boyle talked about his research using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to study the brains of math-gifted students. There was also an accompanying scene illustrating a participant being slid into the magnetic scanner at Texas Tech’s Neuroimaging Institute (TTNI). Here are some links for visitors who would like to read further on the topic.
*Official PBS “NOVA Science NOW” webpage. (The page has links to full episodes, but the one on the brain and intelligence is not yet up.)
*Lubbock Avalanche-Journal article on Michael’s appearance.
*Dr. O’Boyle’s research page.
