Rachel began her time at UConn in Fall 2017. It took her until her junior year to realize she wanted to major in HDFS. When not in class or studying at the library, you would find Rachel running all over campus. She was on the cross country, indoor, and outdoor track teams for 4 years. […]

Yuyang Hu completed his PhD in Spring 2025. He started his academic journey as an undergraduate student majoring in law with a minor in applied psychology. He learned that he did not want to work as a prosecutor, judge, or lawyer, as most of his schoolmates did. Instead, he was attracted by the human mind […]

Preston Britner is a Professor of HDFS who has been on the faculty at UConn since 1997. “Brit” has been active in many service roles at department, college, university, state, and national professional organization levels throughout his time in Storrs. Brit was born in Washington, DC, and grew up in Northern Virginia. A first-generation college […]

Kim Gans and Beth Russell were featured in UConn Today for their participation in InCHIP’s Community Engagement Research Core’s networking event.

Five HDFS faculty and six graduate students will be giving seven presentations at the 2025 American Psychological Association conference in Denver. See the full list here

Rebecca Puhl gave the keynote address at the national American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. This conference brings together 3,000 surgeons, integrated health professionals, and industry leaders from over 40 countries. Her presentation, Confronting Weight Stigma: Understanding its Harms and Embracing Pathways for Change centered on the primary […]

Ron Rohner and Sumbleen Ali (PhD ’21)’s new book was featured in a UConn Today article. Learn more about it here! https://today.uconn.edu/2025/07/the-ability-to-give-and-receive-love-researchers-look-at-effects-of-acceptance-rejection/

Kim Gans grew up near Philadelphia in Havertown, Pennsylvania. She went to Duke University as a first-generation college student and earned a BS in Biology. She took all the pre-med courses, but switched her interests after taking a course on food and hunger. She completed a Master’s degree in Public Health, with an emphasis in […]

Dr. Georgia Powell earned her Bachelor of Science in HDFS with a minor in Gerontology from UConn in 2000. Since then, she has dedicated her career to improving health outcomes and advancing mental wellness across vulnerable populations. With over 25 years of experience, she has held leadership roles in the healthcare and insurance industries. Her […]

Amy Watkins (BA ’99), was featured in a project that recently won a New England Emmy! In the documentary, Ghost Shoes, tells the story of this unique project and the victims it honors, thus putting faces and names to those most affected by pedestrian deaths. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vQ4nuIRfWI.  Amy now works at Connecticut Children’s […]