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Nebraska researchers expand reach of TAPP family-school intervention

From left, Amanda Witte, CYFS research assistant professor, and Susan Sheridan, CYFS director, are leading efforts to expand the reach of TAPP. Learn more about this project in the CYFS Research Network.

A family-school intervention program that has seen success in Nebraska and surrounding states is expanding its reach.

Susan Sheridan, director of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools, and Amanda Witte, CYFS research assistant professor, are working with University of Wisconsin researchers to bring the Teachers and Parents as Partners (TAPP) intervention to schools in their state, along with ongoing studies in the region. Full Article

Misperceptions may increase problem drinking, dating violence among LGBTQ+ youth

Recent surveys found LGBTQ+ teens tended to overestimate the level of alcohol consumption by their LGBTQ+ peers. The results shed light on the influence of social norms and misperceptions among sexual minority teens. Learn more about the project in the CYFS Research Network.

As researchers strive to develop and expand affirming prevention and intervention efforts for sexual and gender minority youth, an ongoing project’s preliminary findings are bringing into focus the impacts of dating violence and problem drinking — and the strengths of LGBTQ+ youth. Full Article

Research assessing impacts of, solutions to sex trafficking of Native Americans

Researchers in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota are using two U.S. Department of Justice grants — one from the National Institute of Justice, the other from the Office on Violence Against Women — to examine the impacts of sex trafficking on Native American survivors and communities. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

Although Native American women and girls experience disproportionally high rates of sex trafficking, little is known about the impact that sex trafficking has specifically on Native survivors — or what Native survivors need to heal and achieve safety and justice. Full Article

2022 Summit on Research in Early Childhood helps connect research, practice, policy

Participants gather during the 2022 CYFS Summit on Research in Early Childhood at the Nebraska Innovation Campus Conference Center on April 13. View photo gallery.

Creating connections among early childhood research, practice and policy — and how each can enhance the lives of young children and their families — provided the central theme of the 2022 CYFS Summit on Research in Early Childhood.

Nearly 200 attendees, including researchers from across the University of Nebraska system, practitioners, administrators, community partners and policymakers, gathered April 13 at Nebraska Innovation Campus for the daylong, sixth biennial summit, which highlighted the latest research to advance early childhood education and development, and implications for practice and policy. Full Article

Study exploring school climate experiences of adolescent immigrants

Researchers are exploring how newcomer immigrant adolescents perceive school climate — and how those perceptions affect their academic and social-emotional outcomes. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

Adolescents who have recently immigrated to the United States comprise a large, growing population that faces a variety of academic and social-emotional risk factors.

A healthy school climate — norms, goals, values and relationships within schools, along with teaching and learning practices, and organizational structures — is a key factor in protecting these newcomer immigrant adolescents from risk and promoting their success in school and life. Full Article

Resource toolkit enables Nebraska Extension personnel to Reach Out for Wellness

Nebraska researchers have developed a toolkit of resources to help Extension professionals cope with the challenges of their work — and seek support — through better understanding of their own well-being. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

As frontline caregiving professionals, Nebraska Extension professionals provide vital assistance to communities during the state’s disaster response and recovery efforts, and offer a lifeline for many struggling to cope during times of crisis.

Holly Hatton-Bowers, assistant professor of child, youth and family studies, is the program director of a national project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and housed at CYFS, focused on supporting the wellness of Extension personnel following natural disasters. Full Article

Community-based research aims to improve support for sex trafficking survivors

Researchers and practitioners are collaborating to better understand sex trafficking survivors’ perceptions of services they are receiving — and to learn what services they find most helpful in supporting their recovery. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

Katie Edwards, director of the Interpersonal Violence Research Laboratory and associate professor, CYFS and educational psychology, is leading research to better understand how sex trafficking survivors regard the services they receive — and to learn what services they find most helpful. Full Article

Study examines bonds between babies, parents

Patty Kuo, assistant professor of child, youth and family studies, is leading a pilot project to explore how attachment security to mothers and fathers develops in a baby’s first 18 months — and how those attachment configurations predict outcomes in the child’s first three years. Learn more about this project in the CYFS Research Network.

It may seem obvious, but the emotional bond babies develop with their parents is crucial — not only for their survival, but also to ensure positive outcomes throughout life.

Less-obvious, however, is how this bond — known as attachment — develops. Full Article