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Art TEAMS promotes teaching innovation through arts, emerging media

An Art TEAMS participant teacher’s students co-create a “Learning Wall” — a method of “making thinking visible” and collaborative learning. View photo gallery.

As technology continues to rapidly evolve, a group of Nebraska researchers is collaborating with the state’s K-12 educators, artists and administrators to imagine the future of education.

The Teaching with Arts and Emerging Media (Art TEAMS) project is underway in classrooms throughout Nebraska. The five-year pilot project is designed to promote teaching innovation through arts and emerging media in Nebraska public schools. Full Article

TAPP project delivers strong results for Latinx students, parents

From left, Lorey Wheeler, MAP Academy director, and Sue Sheridan, CYFS director, led the TAPP para Familias Latinas project. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

Traditionally, minoritized ethnic-racial groups have been excluded or significantly underrepresented from participating in research. According to some estimates, 96% of psychological studies come from countries with only 12% of the world’s population, and tend to include mostly white participants. Full Article

‘Homegrown’ training program fills need for rural mental health professionals

Beth Doll and Matthew Gormley are leading a virtual training program that can be accessible to anyone interested in a career in school psychology, no matter where they reside. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

For small towns scattered throughout Nebraska, mental health professionals are hard to come by. Recruiting and retaining such professionals is crucial to ensuring these rural populations have access to quality mental health care.

Because mental health trainees are more likely to remain and work in the rural communities where they live, Beth Doll, professor of educational psychology, and Matthew Gormley, assistant professor of educational psychology are leading a virtual training program that can be accessible to anyone interested in a career in school psychology, no matter where they reside. Full Article

Study reveals many American atheists hide their non-belief

Research by Dena Abbott, assistant professor of counseling psychology, reveals that because American atheists continue to experience a variety of social challenges, many are uncomfortable about disclosing their non-belief. Learn more about this project in the CYFS Research Network.

The religiously unaffiliated, including atheists, are the fastest-growing (non)religious population in the United States. But the social stigma associated with atheism leaves this population vulnerable to isolation and poor mental health outcomes.

Dena Abbott, assistant professor of counseling psychology, recently completed a yearlong study to investigate the psychological well-being of two groups of atheists — rural-residing and woman-identified atheists — in the context of anti-atheist discrimination in the U.S. Full Article

Get SET Nebraska addresses special education teacher shortage

From left, HyeonJin Yoon, Pam Brezenski, Kris Elmshaeuser and Amanda Witte are leading the Get SET project to help retain special education teachers in Nebraska. Learn more about this project in the CYFS Research Network.

As in other states, Nebraska’s ability to deliver high-quality instruction to students served in special education depends on the availability of qualified teachers.

Unfortunately, shortages of special education teachers — both statewide and nationally — leave many students in individualized education programs at further risk for compromised educational outcomes. According to the U.S. Department of Education, 49 states and the District of Columbia reported shortages of special education teachers in 2021. Full Article

Project affirms voices of Indigenous LGBTQ and two-spirit youth

A recent study found that although Indigenous LGBTQ2S youth experience a wide range of challenges, they also possess moderate to high levels of strength and resilience. Learn more about this project in the CYFS Research Network.

Indigenous youth with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two-spirit (LGBTQ2S) identities experience high rates of violence, which may lead to harmful outcomes, such as mental health problems and substance abuse.

But despite the issues faced by Indigenous LGBTQ2S youth, a recent study suggests reasons for optimism. Full Article

Child care study examines whether kids eat healthier when mealtimes are positive

Jasmin Smith, graduate student in Human Sciences–Child Development/Early Childhood Education at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, is working with Dipti Dev, associate professor of child, youth and family studies and Nebraska Extension specialist, to explore the impact of mealtime emotional climate on child care providers’ feeding practices and children’s dietary outcomes. Learn more about the project in the CYFS Research Network.

As any parent knows, children and vegetables aren’t always a natural match. Research shows preschool-aged children are not meeting dietary recommendations, particularly when it comes to eating fruits and vegetables.

Dietary preferences are set early in life and carry throughout the lifespan, and poor diet is a risk factor for obesity, cancer, type II diabetes and other chronic diseases. Full Article

Study explores pathways to atheism among communities of color, LGBTQ+

Dena Abbott, assistant professor of counseling psychology, is exploring pathways to atheism by examining commonly held notions of what causes unbelief among demographic groups that are underrepresented in atheism studies. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

Nonreligious people are a fast-growing demographic in the United States. For some atheists, the stigma of their unbelief is compounded by other factors.

Adopting an “unbelieving” worldview is a complex process for people of color, members of the lesbian, gay or bisexual community, and the gender-diverse, such as transgender or nonbinary individuals. Full Article