Author: Janice Berriault

Early Childhood Specializations, Virtual Open House

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Are you interested in a career working with young children and their families?

Many career paths intersect with young children/their development and having a foundation of knowledge of young children’s development can help you be more successful in your career.  If you have questions about career options or want to learn more about this specialized coursework within HDFS, come to a virtual information session!  You can pop into the meeting at any time during the 30 minutes!

  • Wednesday 2/8, 5:00-5:30
  • Wednesday 2/15, 5:00-5:30
  • Wednesday 2/22, 10:00-10:30
  • Monday 2/27, 4:00-4:30
  • Tuesday 3/7, 5:30-6:00
  • Tuesday 3/21, 10:00-10:30
  • Wednesday 3/29 5:00-5:30

Sign-up here using this Google Form or email, mary.tabb@uconn.edu

Marea Tsamaase, HDFS Alumni Spotlight, January 2023

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Marea TsamaaseMarea Tsamaase received her Ph.D. from HDFS in May 2019. Prior to joining the UConn doctoral program, Marea attained a Masters of Science in Family and Consumer Science from Ball State University as a Fulbright Scholar. She also earned a Masters of Education in Educational Management and a Bachelor of Education in Home Economics from the University of Botswana. Marea is an active member of the National Association for Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Her extensive wealth of experience in Early Childhood Development (ECD) training, curriculum development, and program reviews at institutional and national levels is highlighted in her several published articles in early childhood and family studies. Marea has served and made tremendous contributions to communities and the ECD field in Botswana for over 20 years. At the institutional level, Marea has developed courses and programs in ECD. At the national and international levels, she participated in the development of the Botswana 0-3 years and 3-6 years National Early Childhood Curriculum frameworks, which were funded by the Botswana Ministry of Education in partnership with United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). Marea has ample consulting experience; she was contracted by the Botswana Police College to develop a curriculum for their preschool program and to train their teachers. Additionally, she worked as a consultant for Marang Child Network Trust Fund, where she designed a training program for caregivers of orphans and vulnerable children.

After graduating from UConn, Marea served as a human development specialist on multiple platforms. She assumed her position as a lecturer at the University of Botswana, where she continues to teach family and child development courses as well as coordinate the University of Botswana Child Development Laboratory. She has been appointed as her department’s quality assurance team member, and she represents the Department of Family and Consumer Science at the Faculty Executive Board. Marea is also teaching several undergraduate courses and is supervising both graduate and undergraduate research projects.

Since graduation, Marea’s scholarly work has been in multiple areas. For instance, she has published a paper with UConn HDFS faculty Sara Harkness and Charles Super on grandparents’ expectations about early childhood in Botswana. She also participated in a Virtual Round Table at the Society for Research in Child Development in April 2021 with Sara Harkness, Charles Super, Saskia van Schaik, Kofi Marfo, Silvia Koller, and Florrie Ng on avoiding ethnocentrism in behavioral science.

Marea’s passion for quality in ECD has led to her effective involvement in promoting and transforming ECD in Botswana. In June 2022 she successfully reviewed the ECD academic program at the University of Botswana to align it with the new accreditation requirements for Botswana Qualifications authority. Marea has twice been invited by the Department of Rural and Community Development of the Ministry of Local Government as a keynote speaker at the South and Northern regions’ Early Childhood Development Pitso (Forums) to discuss ECD in Botswana. The ministry of local government further engaged Marea in the development of national guidelines for child minding/drop-in services.

Marea’s work has moreover involved participating in live television discussions on topical issues in her country. She was invited twice as a studio guest on Botswana Television to provide expert advice and guidance on the topics of children’s success and COVID-19. Marea also recently collaborated with other ECD professionals and a UNICEF consultant to develop the National Early Learning Standards for Botswana. The knowledge, skills and experience that Marea acquired from UConn- HDFS have opened endless opportunities for driving and directing ECD mandate and fostering quality programs in Botswana.

Madison Mas, HDFS Graduate Student Spotlight, January 2023

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Madison MasMadison Mas is a first year Ph.D. student working with Dr. Beth Russell. Originally from New Mexico, Madison moved to Tucson, Arizona to begin her undergraduate career. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Arizona with a B.S. in Family Studies and Human Development and a B.A. in Psychology. While studying at the University of Arizona, she conducted research under the direction of Dr. Rebecca Gomez in the Tigger Child Cognition Lab studying how children acquire language and the role of sleep in language acquisition. Madison also volunteered in community outreach programs through the university’s Women in Medicine and Science club where she spent afternoons teaching science experiments to elementary school kids. Madison was also very involved with the local Active Minds chapter and gave talks about mindfulness and mental health resources for peers.

In her final year at the University of Arizona, Madison completed her honors thesis exploring the mental health challenges faced by queer individuals and, more specifically, stressors unique to bisexual women that contribute to increased mental health challenges. This area of research led her to the UConn HDFS program where she hopes to continue researching mental health in the queer community. In this new research, however, the emphasis will be on resilience, promoting emotional well-being, and employing strengths-based approaches to research.

When she’s not in school, Madison spends her time pursuing creative outlets and taking care of her two vision impaired cats (Zuko and Azula). She is a very passionate photographer and has shown her work in New York. She has spent the majority of her life dancing and would love to find new places and people to dance with.

Rebecca Puhl, HDFS Faculty Spotlight, January 2023

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Rebecca PuhlDr. Rebecca Puhl is a Professor of HDFS and Deputy Director of the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy & Health. She joined the HDFS faculty in 2015.

Rebecca was born and raised in Ontario, Canada. She completed her BAH in psychology at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, and then moved to Connecticut in 1999 to attend Yale University where she completed her MA and PhD in clinical psychology. She completed her clinical psychology internship at the VA Connecticut Healthcare System, and then returned to Yale as research faculty in the Department of Psychology and as core faculty of the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity (founded in 2005). In 2015, after 10 successful years at Yale, the Rudd Center joined UConn’s Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP). UConn’s commitment to multi-disciplinary scientific collaboration and research on health and wellness provided new and ideal opportunities for the Rudd Center to further its mission and contribute to the national research reputation of the university.

Since 2001, Professor Puhl’s research has addressed weight-based stigma and discrimination. She has authored more than 175 published research articles (most with student/trainee co-authors) and 24 book chapters on topics including weight-based bullying in youth, the impact of weight stigma on emotional wellbeing and physical health, weight stigma in health care and the media, and policy strategies to reduce weight-based bullying and discrimination. As a national research expert on these topics, Dr. Puhl has testified in state legislative hearings on weight discrimination and routinely provides expertise on strategies to reduce weight stigma to national and international health organizations. She has also developed evidence-based trainings to reduce weight bias in health care that have been implemented in medical facilities across the U.S., and her work is frequently cited in the U.S. national media.

Dr. Puhl has received multiple national awards for her research, from organizations like the National Eating Disorders Coalition, the Obesity Action Coalition, and The Obesity Society who selected Dr. Puhl as the 2018 recipient of the national scientific achievement award for excellence in an established research career. In 2021 she received the national Obesity Canada Distinguished Lecturer Award, awarded annually to a researcher whose scholarship has made a significant impact in the obesity field. That same year, she was the recipient of UConn’s CLAS Faculty Excellence in Research Award in Public Scholarship, and was one of 6 UConn faculty named to the World’s Highly Cited Research list.

Rebecca lives in Cheshire, CT, with her husband and two teenage sons. When she’s not attending her boys’ basketball games, swim meets, orchestra and jazz concerts, her favorite ways to spend time are hiking, baking, photography, and collecting sea glass on the coast of Maine.