Gregory is having a bad day. A school field trip has been canceled, and he is angry.
He is joined by a teacher and a kindergartner, who together discuss ways Gregory might cope with his emotions and keep his behavior under control.
“These are some things he might want to do,” the teacher says. “But there are other things he could do instead.”
The Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools presents the first Signature Event of the 2018-19 academic year, featuring Nancy Gonzales, foundation professor of psychology and dean of natural sciences in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Arizona State University.
Name: Cassie Hermiller
Hometown: Ottawa, Ohio
Program: School Psychology
Year: First year (just completed)
Project: Concussion and mTBI Management Traineeship
What have you been doing with the project?
With the traineeship, I have been learning about various aspects of concussions and accommodations in school for kids with concussions. We visited the Brain Injury Conference in Kearney and spoke with concussion and TBI survivors and other practitioners in the field, and learned what it was like to live or work with survivors.
Name: Renata Trefiglio Mendes Gomes
Hometown: São Paulo, Brazil
Program: Early Learning Network
Year: First year (just completed)
Project: My Ph.D. project is “Professores e Pais como Parceiros: A Cross-cultural Adaptation and Implementation Effectiveness of the Teachers and Parents as Partners Program to a Brazilian sample.” As a graduate research assistant, I am supporting both the Early Learning Network and the Nebraska Academy for Early Childhood Research.
Name: Megan Conley
Hometown: Coahoma, Texas
Program: School Psychology
Year: First year (just completed)
Project: Traineeship in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Concussion Management
What are you doing with the project?
The goal of the traineeship is to educate future school psychologists about concussions and brain injury, emphasizing how brain injuries — even mild ones, like concussions — can affect student learning. Our goal is to advocate for students who have sustained a brain injury and bring awareness to those working with students, such as teachers, parents and coaches, to ensure a smooth transition back to the classroom.
Name: Hannah Scholes
Hometown: Liberty, Missouri
Program: School Psychology
Year: First year (just completed)
Project: Toddlers with Autism
What will you be doing with the project?
I am a trainee at the Autism Care for Toddlers (ACT) Clinic in Omaha. We work on understanding, diagnosing and creating interventions for children with ASD. The goal of the traineeship is to educate more professionals in schools to have knowledge and understanding on diagnosis and interventions for these students.
Name: Katelyn Loogman
Hometown: Kearney, Nebraska
Program: School Psychology
Year: First year (just completed)
Project: School Psychology Specialization in Concussion/Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
What will you be doing with the project?
I will be learning about the integral role school psychologists play in managing concussions in schools, including involvement in assessing baseline and post-injury functioning, progress-monitoring during recovery and facilitating a safe return to regular activity.
Take a moment to recall a particularly overwhelming day.
Morning comes way too early after a restless, worry-fueled night of tossing and turning. A knotted, roiling stomach makes eating breakfast difficult. Deadlines loom, with too much to do in too little time.