Maureen Weiss, professor of kinesiology, recently gave an invited lecture and participated in a research seminar with faculty and students in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The presentation titled, "Sport as a social context for promoting youth development," was the focus of the developmental psychology scholarly lecture series and invoked interest from individuals pursuing research on and outreach with after-school programming.

Department of Family Social Science graduate students and founders of The Hoarding Project Jennifer Sampson and Janet Yeats presented at the 15th Annual International Conference on Hoarding and Cluttering in San Francisco May 2.
They presented two posters, "Firearms and Hoarding: A Case Study: Public Safety, Ethics and Legalities" and "Development of a Facilitator's Support Group Manual for Family Members of People Who Hoard" as well as the following workshops: "Safety Day: A New Approach to Hoarding Clean-Outs," "The Application of Psychological First Aid to Hoarding - Safety Day," and "The Impact of Trauma on Hoarding Behaviors" (with Dr. Suzanne Chabaud).

Ezra Hyland, teaching specialist in the Department of Postsecondary Teaching and Learning, is pleased to work with Best Academy serving as chair of the school's Board of Directors. Best Academy is a K-8 Minneapolis based school and one of five schools to be awarded the 2013 Coalition of Schools Educating Boys of Color (COSEBOC) School Award. COSEBOC is a national organization of schools and respected educators, researchers, policy makers, and advocates who focus on promoting and sharing innovative approaches that improve education at schools with significant populations of young men of color. The annual COSEBOC School Awards are awarded to schools with proven success for closing the achievement gap among boys of color. In the award announcement, it was noted that "Best Academy has succeeded in creating an environment that promotes academic success, self-respect, and self-determination for its male students of color". Using a "gap-closing" educational framework, 82% of Best Academy's male students scored proficient in reading and 83% scored proficient in math. Best Academy was also recognized because it considers student learning a high priority and a school-wide matter. Everyone takes responsibility and initiative to ensure the well-being of the entire school community. In addition to the award, Best Academy will receive a $10,000 grant. Congratulations to Ezra, the students, and the many stakeholders who have made Best Academy the successful school it is.

Murray Jensen, associate professor in the Department of Postsecondary Teaching and Learning, recently hosted the spring 2013 Golden Femur competition. The competition is a culminating event for students participating in the PsTL 1135: Essentials of Human Anatomy and Physiology College in the Schools program. The UCare grant supported program is a year-long curriculum designed to raise awareness about how dietary and life style choices impact health and disease. Nearly 600 juniors and seniors from 20 high schools across Minnesota gathered at the University to compete for the coveted Golden Femur Award. Teams of students presented to judges via table-top displays on the relationships between food choices, obesity, and public health issues such as type II diabetes and atherosclerosis. After evaluating each team's work, the judges announced the winners. Congratulations to Dover-Eyota High School, the 2013 Golden Femur recipient. Eastview High School was awarded the Silver Scapula and Minnehaha Academy was awarded the Bronze Ulna.

Download "The Intersection of Child Welfare and Disability: Focus on Children"

The Spring 2013 issue of CW360°, "The Intersection of Child Welfare and Disability: Focus on Children," from the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare (CASCW) is now available online. This CW360° explores issues impacting children with disabilities in child welfare and provides examples of policy solutions and practice strategies for working with this population.

It is essential for child welfare workers and advocates to understand and be aware of the prevalence of disability in child welfare. As Traci LaLiberte and Tracy Crudo state in their letter from the editors,

"There is not a child welfare worker, supervisor, or administrator practicing in the field today that has not or will not come into contact with children with disabilities. Indeed, it is likely that many of the children on any given child welfare worker's caseload have some form of disability."

CASCW's annual CW360° magazine provides comprehensive information on the latest research, policies, and practices in a key area affecting child well-being to communities, child welfare professionals, and other human service professionals. CASCW will also produce a special issue this summer focusing on parents with disabilities in the child welfare system.

To view the current and past issues of CW360°, visit the CW360° webpage on the CASCW website.

The Star Tribune featured department of Family Social Science professor Bill Doherty in an article titled "Done right, many couples benefit from counseling." Doherty gives tips on what to look for in a couple's therapist, such as how much of the practice is devoted to couples. He also points out things to watch out for that can help couples to avoid inexperienced therapists.
Doherty is the project lead for Minnesota Couples on the Brink, which just launched a Directory of Discernment Counselors for people across the nation to find therapists in their state who are trained in discernment counseling.

In March, The Shirley G. Moore Laboratory School hosted 75 early childhood educators who are members of the Reggio Inspired Network of Minnesota for a half day conference at the Institute of Child Development.

The Lab School lead teachers led a panel presentation entitled: Teaching To Create Powerful Connections: How We Transformed The Way We Organize Our Day To Include A Regular Pattern Of Small Group Guided Experiences, which generated a lot of interest in the early childhood education community about using the Cycle of Teaching and Learning, teaching with intention, and the Reggio method.

The Lab School teachers then took their show on the road, traveling to University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie to present at the 2013 Early Childhood Education Conference there on April 26.

Stephanie Carlson, associate professor at the Institute of Child Development, recently had her research on links between executive function and creativity featured in Ideas To Go's March newsletter in an article entitled: Why You Should Have a Child-Like Imagination (and the Research that Proves It).

Ambit Network in the department of Family Social Science, will be starting a new Learning Collaborative in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in August 2013.
Interested applicants must complete the Learning Collaborative Application and submit to fles0035@umn.edu by April 29.

Department of Family Social Science doctoral candidate Erica Kanewischer published an article in the Journal of Creativity in Mental Health.
Her article "Do You Ever Feel That Way? A Story and Activities About Families and Feelings" provides an intervention to be used with young children in the foster care or adoption system.
Kanewischer finished her dissertation in December and will graduate in May.