For more than 20 years, the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools has worked to make a positive difference in people’s lives through research in the social, behavioral and educational sciences.
Building on this foundation, the center is launching the second round of its Signature Research Impact Program — a funding opportunity designed to support high-impact research that benefits Nebraska’s children, families, schools and communities.
The Nebraska Academy for Methodology, Analytics and Psychometrics (MAP Academy) is awarding $10,000 through a competitive funding opportunity created to enhance the rigor of field-based human subjects research at the University of Nebraska.
These awards were made possible by a grant from the Nebraska Research Initiative.
For autistic people — especially those with intellectual disabilities, or others with extensive support needs — communicating needs and ideas can be difficult. Many rely on intense individualized support and educational interventions.
When spoken words are not enough, alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) is often needed to meet their daily needs and wants. Common methods include gestures or facial expressions, sign language and speech-generating mobile apps for iPads or phones. While these methods can be helpful, they can also be costly and tricky to use effectively as treatments.
For children with severe speech and physical impairments (SSPI), the inability to share their thoughts and feelings can deeply affect their quality of life and well-being.
Researchers and engineers continue to seek new ways to help these children communicate, including an experimental technology that enables thoughts to control communication devices, known as communication brain-computer interfaces (cBCIs).
For more than two decades, the Getting Ready research program has promoted healthy development for children age 5 and younger by bringing evidence-based parent engagement strategies to early childhood programs throughout Nebraska.
As one of the first projects launched by CYFS in 2004, Getting Ready has focused on cultivating and fortifying relationships in children’s lives, including relationships among parents, children and the early childhood educators connected to the family.
For many Nebraska families, finding affordable child care can seem like piecing together an impossible puzzle.
Parents juggle waitlists, long commutes and tough choices between work and staying home — all while early childhood teachers themselves face low pay, long hours and stress.
Autism is the fastest-growing disability category in Nebraska. About 30% of autistic children do not develop vocal speech by age 4 and require augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) — non-verbal methods such as gestures, facial expressions, picture cards and tablets to communicate.
Children who are breastfed as infants are less likely to develop obesity. However, despite recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 25% of infants in the U.S. are exclusively breastfed for the first six months.
As many as 70% of mothers experience problems with breastfeeding, contributing to lower rates — particularly among Black Americans (17.2%) and rural residents (18%). Research suggests these low breastfeeding rates may compound potential nutrition-related health disparities from the start of life.
