Visiting Assistant Professor

Jodie is a graduate of UConn with a PhD in Human Development and Family Sciences. She also holds a law degree from Quinnipiac University School of Law. Jodie has worked at UConn for the past 12 years, teaching at the Storrs, Hartford, and Waterbury campuses.  She has taught numerous HDFS courses, with her favorite the policy courses.  She also developed and teaches two new courses at Quinnipiac University School of Law. One of the courses is a seminar that introduces law students to the use of social science research in the context of family/juvenile courts, including understanding social science research methods, an intensive examination of child and adolescent development research findings, and effective application of such research in legal settings. The other course examines the problem of racial disproportionality and disparate outcomes in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems.

In addition to her teaching experience, Jodie was a practicing attorney for ten years primarily in the areas of family and juvenile law. She worked at the Children’s Law Center of Connecticut as an advocate for children of low-income and high-conflict families in the family courts. She also worked at a private law firm representing clients in all matters including family law, juvenile law, and elder law. Although she prioritized alternative dispute resolution methods such as mediation, Jodie litigated numerous custody and divorce trials. In the classroom, Jodie frequently uses examples and stories from her years as a lawyer to bring various course concepts to life for students.

Jodie’s research interests lie at the intersection of social policy, law, and children/families.  Jodie’s previous research has focused on the effectiveness of standards in the family and juvenile courts, including the standards for Guardians ad Litem and the best interest of the child standard. She has presented her research at various national conferences and is frequently an invited speaker at local conferences and trainings including the State of Connecticut trainings for attorneys representing children. Most recently, Jodie has been working on a research project investigating racial disproportionality in the child welfare system, as well as a study investigating the impact of COVID-19 on the aging population.

Jodie and her family live in Westbrook, CT where she is actively involved in her community.  Jodie is the Chair of the Board of Directors for Westbrook Youth and Family Services, is a member of the Westbrook Juvenile Review Board, a member of the PTO at her children’s school, and a member of the Board of Directors for Connecticut Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA).

When not working, Jodie spends her time with her husband Elliot, their three young children, and her two stepchildren. She enjoys visiting her family in Maine, trips to visit friends, baking, elaborate holiday celebrations, and dreaming of future travel plans.

Professor Keith Bellizzi was interviewed for a story in the UK, “Masters of uncertainty: Pandemic’s unpredictability is making us adaptable, stronger and more creative, say experts”. Read the story here.

Professor Rebecca Puhl was featured in an article in ConscienHealth on Weight Stigma. Read the article here.

Rebecca Puhl was featured in an article in the Charlotte Sun on weight stigma around the world. Read the article here.

Leah Lessard and Rebecca Puhl’s research, on how adolescents report increased weight stigma on social media during the pandemic, was featured in UConn Today. Read the article here.

Professor and Department Head, Human Development and Family Sciences

Eva Lefkowitz moved to UConn in Summer, 2016 to become Department Head of HDFS. She recently agreed to a second five-year term as Department Head. Over the past five years, Eva has enjoyed getting to know the faculty, staff, and students in HDFS, CLAS, and around UConn.

Prior to coming to UConn, she served as a professor of Human Development and Family Studies at the Pennsylvania State University for 18 years, including roles as Professor-in-Charge of the HDFS Graduate Program and Professor-in-Charge of the Undergraduate Program. She earned her Ph.D. from University of California, Los Angeles in Developmental Psychology.

Eva’s research focuses on sexual health, using a developmental perspective to examine predictors of negative and positive aspects of sexual health, and the broader health and relationship implications of sexual health. Her research demonstrates that a range of individual and contextual factors, from the couple level of who the partner is up to the institutional level of identification with a religious institution, are associated with sexual health. In addition, her research highlights the importance of sexual behaviors beyond their implications for physical health, demonstrating that by young adulthood, sexual behavior can positively contribute to well-being. Eva views mentoring as the most important and rewarding aspect of her career, and her students strongly influence the direction of her research. In Spring 2020, she and her students received pilot funding to collect data on LGBTQ+ college students around the country as they adjusted to the COVID-19 pandemic. This project has sparked further interest in how LGBTQ+ students’ experiences with family, peers, romantic partners, and close others affect their well-being.

Eva has served as a principal investigator, co-investigator, or faculty mentor on projects funded by the NICHD, NIAAA, NIDA, NIA, and the WT Grant Foundation. She has published 90 peer reviewed articles and book chapters. At the national level, Eva has been in leadership roles for the Society for Research on Adolescence (SRA) and the Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood (SSEA). She has contributed to the review process as Associate Editor for Developmental Psychology, on the editorial boards of Journal of Research on Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood, as a reviewer for 25 other journals, and as a Review Panel Chair and Reviewer for SRA and SRCD. She also has reviewed grant proposals for NIH National Institutes of Health, and for similar federal agencies outside the United States. In 2008 Eva received the Evelyn R. Saubel Faculty Award from the Penn State College of Health and Human Development.

At UConn, Eva’s favorite classes to teach have been the 350 student lifespan individual and family development class (for many students, their first college class ever), and a small graduate seminar on professional and career development.

When not working, Eva spends time with her husband Eric, also a UConn professor, and her teenage twins, who are frequently delighted by her extensive knowledge of adolescent development (not exactly). Eva spent the first 18 years of her life in Fairfield County, Connecticut and after living in Massachusetts, California, and Pennsylvania was excited to return to Connecticut. She loves cooking and baking, barre class and walking, beach vacations, and listening to audiobooks.

Professor Rebecca Puhl is featured in news articles about talking to kids about weight, and how the pandemic changed how we eat and shop.

Read the article in CNN: The Pandemic Changed the Way we Ate and Shopped – Not Always for the Better

Read the article in MPR News: How to talk to kids about weight

Read the article in WTOP: La pandemia cambio nuestra forma de comer y hacer las compras

Associate Professor Laura Mauldin was quoted in a story published in The Intercept, about the reproductive rights of disabled people- “There’s a Legal Term for What Britney Spears Says Is Happening: Sexual Violence”. Read the story here.

Professor Rebecca Puhl is quoted in the news for her work on doctors’ role in weight stigma

• • MedPage Today: Most Patients with Obesity Face Stigma From Doctors Too
  • She Knows: Yes, Fat-Shaming is a Legitimate Public Health Issue
  • Prevention: Is Your Doctor Judging You? Inside the Dangerous World of Patient Shaming
  • GDA: El estigma es el prinicpal enemigo de la salud para las personas con obesidad
  • MedScape: Be Their Cheerleader:’ Docs Should Try to Reduce Weight Stigma

Professor Rebecca Puhl is featured in various outlets for her recent international work on weight stigma:

• • Metro UK: Fat Phobia is “Universal” Because Obese People Face Stigma Around the World
  • UConn Today: International Study of Weight Stigma Reveals Similar, Pervasive Experiences Across Six Countries
  • Daily Mail: More than HALF of Overweight People Say They Face Prejudice
  • Medical Xpress: International Study of Weight Stigma Reveals Similar, Pervasive Experiences
  • London Evening Standard: Majority of adults say they have suffered stigma about weight, research shows
  • TechRegister: Fatphobia is ‘universal’ as obese people face bigotry across the world
  • InfoBae: Salud. – Un estudio internacional sobre el estigma del peso revela experiencias generalizadas, tambien en la atencion sanitaria
  • Daily Star: Fatphobia is ‘universal’ as people face discrimination around the world, study says
  • London Daily Mirror: Fat Prejudice Heavy Burden Around the Globe
  • Baller Alert: Survey shows people around the world experience fat-shaming from family, friends, doctors, and others
  • Bariatric News: More than half of adults experience weight stigma
  • Eat This: This Weight Stigma Has Become a Global Health Problem
  • ARCHYDE: People around the world are stigmatized for their weight, even in healthcare
  • Le Droit: La grossophobie, un phénomène mondial aux conséquences néfastes pour tous