ShowMe Healthy Relationships (SMHR) is a 5-year project funded by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. It is a partnership between the University of Missouri Extension, University of Missouri Department of Human Development and Family Science, and three Community Family Agencies who have come together to help singles and couples have happy and healthy relationships. We actively recruit members of the general public into our project, with an emphasis on reaching low-resource families and individuals in 21 counties across Missouri. Under the leadership of Dr. Chelsea Garneau-Rosner, we utilize surveys to examine changes in participants’ behaviors related to their couple relationships, family and personal well-being, as well as household stability.
- Can comprehensive services reduce the negative spill-over of stressors low-income individuals experience?
- Can we improve relationship quality and stability with these interventions?
- Does strengthening relationships have implications for future socioeconomic status?
- Can booster sessions promote the effectiveness of these interventions over time?
- Can we identify specific moderators to program success?
- What aspects of our services were most beneficial to families’ long-term success?
- Strengthen families across Missouri.
- Provide experience working on a multi-year federally funded grant to undergraduate and graduate students.
- Extend knowledge on best practices in bridging the gap between basic and applied research in a community setting.
- Build relationships with community agencies across the state of Missouri.







Jeremy Kanter (Graduate Research Assistant & Educator) is currently working towards his doctoral degree in Human Development and Family Science. His general interests include strengthening couples’ relationships throughout the life-course. He has had previous experience working with relationship education on a multi-state initiative and is part of a team of scholars developing a relationship education App.
Nate Stoddard (Graduate Research Assistant & Educator) received a BS in Family Science in 2013 and a MS in Marriage, Family, and Human Development 2015, both from Brigham Young University. He is currently working toward a PhD in Human Environmental Sciences. His research focuses on family processes that help relationships be healthy, so he is excited to teach classes using that kind of research in order to help people work on improving their own relationships.
Carrie Lehman (Graduate Research Assistant & Educator) received her BS in Human Development and Family Science from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2016. She is currently working towards a PhD in Human Environmental Sciences. Her general interests include kin support in the LGTBQ community, aspects of older adults lives, and strengthening family and interpersonal relationships, particularly stepfamilies. She is excited to explore and promote research within the community on strengthening relationships.
Caroline Sanner (Educator) obtained a Master’s Degree in Human Development and Family Science from the University of Missouri in 2016. Her research interests focus on relational dynamics in divorced and remarried families. Specifically, Caroline’s interests involve identifying positive stepfamily processes and extending that knowledge to the community to promote healthy relationships in complex family networks.
Sarah Almalki (Educator) received her MA (2011) and BA (2007) in Family and Consumer Science/ Home Economic Education from King-Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Currently, Sarah is a Ph.D. student in the department of Human Development and Family Science at the University of Missouri, Columbia. Her research interests include family life education and enrichment, intimate and romantic relationships, and multicultural feminism. She wants to explore the unique challenges that arise from developing and implementing family life education programs specifically for populations that are culturally diverse. She is excited about her work with ShowMe Healthy Relationships as it relates to her own area of study and aims to promote healthy family function and provide strength to the family unit through an educational approach.
Emily Manning (Educator) received her BS in Family Consumer Science Education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2016. Emily is pursuing a MA in Lifespan Development at the University of Missouri-Columbia. She is interested in rural communities, adolescent development, and family processes. She is excited to teach classes that help promote healthy relationships as it relates to her interest of applying research for the benefit of families and individuals.
Department of Human Development and Family Science
Gentry Hall
Columbia, MO 65211
Phone: (573) 882-4035
E-mail: garneauc@missouri.edu
SMHR E-mail: admin@showmehealthyrelationships.com