Human Development and Family Science

Posted: Nov. 13, 2019

The College of Human Environmental Sciences at the University of Missouri welcomes Dr. Brenda Lohman as Chair and Professor of the Department of Human Development and Family Science. Dr. Lohman joined the MU faculty on August 1, 2019, after an extensive national search.

Previous to joining the faculty at Mizzou, Dr. Lohman was Professor and Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education in the College of Human Sciences at Iowa State University. Dr. Lohman provided oversight for research conducted by her former College of Human Sciences students, faculty, and staff, which was backed annually by more than $21 million in external funding. She also oversaw the office of distance learning and IT for the College, as well as supported faculty development programming. "We are extremely fortunate to attract someone with Brenda Lohman’s experience and expertise to be the Chair of HDFS," noted Dean Sandy Rikoon, "She has an amazing track record as both a faculty member and campus leader and I am absolutely confident she will provide the leadership necessary to maintain the high national reputation and standing of Mizzou’s HDFS department."

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Posted: Oct. 30, 2019

Dr. Tashel Bordere, Assistant Professor (HDFS) and State Specialist, Youth Development (HES Extension) is having a webcast on November 8^th at 10:00 am entitled "Ethical Considerations for Grief Support After A Traumatic Death - Suicide, Homicide, Accidents" (with a viewing site at the Family Impact Center) in honor of Children's Grief Awareness month. Registration fee is $20 and includes lunch.

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Posted: Oct. 16, 2019

Assistant Professor, Dr. Antoinette Landor's research on understanding racial trauma and acknowledging skin tone was recently pulished on Mizzou News. Dr. Landor found that the first model for understanding skin-tone trauma indicates that colorist incidents lead to negative effects on health and relationships.

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Posted: Oct. 3, 2019

Assistant Professor and State Extension Specialist Jacquelyn Benson was recently featured on MU News Bureau for her research on tension around autonomy and the increase on family conflict at end of life. Dr. Benson found that communication, support and self-care are critical for caregivers to reduce distress.

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Posted: Aug. 12, 2019

Dr. Antoinette Landor, Assistant Professor at the MU Department of Human Development and Family Science, was recently featured in Psychology Today for her research with colleague Dr. Virginia Ramseyer Winter, Assistant Professor at the MU School of Social Work, on why you need to talk about sex with your partner. Their findings suggest that, "in general, women who reported that they were happy in their relationship and comfortable talking about sex were also more likely to have had conversations with their partners about disease and pregnancy prevention, and they were also more likely to take precautions against them. These findings are consistent with other research showing that open discussions about sex lead to more frequent and consistent condom use."

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Posted: May 15, 2019

Posted: May 1, 2019

Posted: Apr. 15, 2019

The College of Human Environmental Sciences' (HES) Program for Undergraduate Research Experiences (PURE) aims to encourage and support undergraduate participation in research projects across the college. PURE provides opportunities for exceptional students to cooperate actively with faculty mentors, learning firsthand about multiple dimensions of research, creative activity, and scholarship processes. Congratulations to the following HDFS undergraduate PURE recipients:

• KeLa Allen received a PURE Award for her project titled Prejudice or Preference: Does Phenotype Influence Interracial Dating and Mating? (Research Advisor: Dr. Antoinette Landor)
• Madelyn Arends received a PURE Award for her project titled Student-Parent Facilitated Communication: The Effect of Technological Communication on Parent-Child Relationships (Research Advisor: Dr. Sarah Killoren).
• Sophia Bell received a PURE Award for her project titled Gratitude and Resilience among Latino Emancipated Migrant Youth in US Farm Work: Mixed Method Approach (Research Advisor: Dr. Fiorella Carlos Chavez).

Posted: Apr. 3, 2019

Assistant Professor and State Extension Specialist Jacquelyn Benson was recently featured on MU News Bureau for her research on the myth of 'no place like home' when it comes to end of life. Dr. Benson found that home deaths present multiple challenges for caregivers.

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Posted: Apr. 1, 2019

Dr. Fiorella Carlos Chavez was awarded a Margaret Mangel Research Catalyst award from the College of Human Environmental Sciences for her project titled, "Exploring Adult-Like Behaviors and Experiences of Migrant Youth in the U.S. Midwest: Stress, Coping, and Resilience among Latino/a and African Immigrant Youth." Her co-investigators on the project are Dr. Gus Carlo and Dr. Sarah Killoren. Congratulations!

Posted: Mar. 11, 2019

The National Awards for Family Life and Human Development State Specialists are awarded to state Extension specialists who have made important contributions to the work of Cooperative Extension and who provide clear evidence of program impacts. This year Dr. Jacquelyn Benson was awarded the Early Achievement Award, for persons with 6 or fewer years as a state specialist with Cooperative Extension.

Dr. Benson has a dual appointment at the University of Missouri as an Assistant Professor of Human Development and Family Science and State Specialist in Gerontology for the College of Human Environmental Sciences Cooperative Extension. Dr. Benson focuses on conducting and translating research to help older adults and their families age well physically, socially, and emotionally. Currently her work is comprised of several projects focused on repartnering in later life and understanding how these new relationships and the families they create are reciprocally associated with personal health and family functioning. Dr. Benson also studies how aging families interact and communicate about health, caregiving, and end-of-life issues. She was a founding co-chair and is currently an active member of the North Central Region Aging Network. She is also an inaugural member of NIFA’s Adult Development and Aging Workgroup, and a collaborating member of the Hospice Caregiving Research Network—an interdisciplinary team of researchers committed to intervention research to support caregivers.

Posted: Mar. 11, 2019

Sarah Mitchell was selected as one of the Mizzou 18 2019 recipients. This award is dedicated to honoring 18 University of Missouri graduate and professional students in the last year of their degree eligibility. Chosen for their world-class research, collaboration with faculty and staff, and their demonstrated leadership with undergraduate students, the honorees represent a variety of majors, activities and organizations from across campus."

The awardees were revealed during a ceremony at Traditions Plaza on February 26th at 6:39 pm, representing 1839, the year of Mizzou's founding.

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Sarah was also recognized, along with her advisors Drs. Marilyn Coleman and Larry Ganong, at a luncheon held Friday March 8th and at the Men's Basketball game on March 9th.

Posted: Mar. 11, 2019

The Promoting and Engaging in Public Scholarship Program (PEPS) was created by Drs. Kale Monk, Jacqui Benson, and Tashel Bordere to facilitate mutually beneficial partnerships between Extension professionals and non-Extension researchers. PEPS encourages a culture of engagement by (a) increasing the knowledge of public scholarship and highlighting its benefits to Extension and non-Extension stakeholders and (b) identifying barriers to public scholarship and taking steps toward addressing them collaboratively. 

Posted: Jan. 31, 2019

Doctoral candidate Sarah Mitchell was awarded an Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Excellence Grant from College of Human Environmental Sciences for her project titled "Exploring the Lives of Bisexual Women of Color: The Mizzou Experience." This funding initiative provides up to $2,500 for students, faculty or staff to creatively strengthen teaching; pedagogical practices; or research with inclusion, diversity and/or equity implications for our increasingly diverse community and student populations enrolled at MU.

Posted: Jan. 31, 2019

The New York Times featured a story on the government shutdown, featuring commentary from Dr. Gus Carlo about the impact on parents and children. MU News Bureau did a press release featuring the research of Emeritus Professor Larry Ganong. Marilyn Coleman, Curators Distinguished Professor Emerita, co-authored the study along with their former graduate students, Luke Russell and Ashton Chapman. Caroline Sanner and Kwangman Ko also contributed to the study.