Science and Innovation Fellows

2021–2022 Fellows

Ryan Keen is a doctoral student in population health sciences, a program offered by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in collaboration with the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. His research aim is to investigate the social epidemiology and biological embedding of childhood homelessness. He intends to translate his findings into innovative pediatric interventions focused on early childhood development among children experiencing homelessness. Ryan received a B.S. in chemistry with a specialization in biochemistry from the University of Virginia. He is simultaneously pursuing his S.M. in epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His mentor will be Henning Tiemeier, Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences and the Sumner and Esther Feldberg Professor of Maternal and Child Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Mary Kathryn Poole is a doctoral candidate in population health sciences, a program offered by the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in collaboration with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research focuses on evaluating early childhood nutrition policies in the U.S. She aims to identify best practices and innovative approaches to strengthen public health initiatives intended to improve diet, alleviate food insecurity, and promote healthy weight for children. Mary Kathryn received her B.S. in psychology from Davidson College and her M.P.H. in community health sciences at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Her mentor will be Erica Kenney, Assistant Professor of Public Health Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Wendy Wei is a doctoral student in human development, learning, and teaching, a program offered by the Harvard Graduate School of Education in collaboration with the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Her research falls at the intersection of early child development and policy, and her dissertation focuses on the antecedents and outcomes of school absenteeism among preschoolers. Through her research, Wendy aims to identify pathways for promoting access to high-quality early childhood education, and ultimately, children’s school readiness skills. Wendy received a B.S. in human development from Cornell University and an Ed.M. in human development and psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Dana Charles McCoy, Marie and Max Kargman Associate Professor in Human Development and Urban Education Advancement at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Photo of Ryan Keen by Kedie Pintro; Photo of Mary Kathryn Poole by Mark Dixon; Photo of Wendy Wei by Shira Chu.

2020–2021 Fellows

Jorge Cuartas is a doctoral student in human development, learning, and teaching, a program offered by the Harvard Graduate School of Education in collaboration with the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. His research focuses on disparities in child development and parenting practices in global contexts, and the effects of corporal punishment on children’s neural, cognitive, and socioemotional development. Jorge’s research aim is to develop evidence that can inform scalable programs to prevent corporal punishment and promote positive disciplinary approaches in prevention efforts and policy. He is co-founder and co-director of Apapacho, a non-profit organization aimed at fostering positive caregiving and child development in Colombia. Jorge received a B.Sc. in economics at Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, an M.Sc. in economics from Universidad de los Andes, as well as an Ed.M. in human development and psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Dana Charles McCoy, Assistant Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.  Read this article from The Harvard Gazette that features Jorge’s research: How Spanking May Affect Brain Development in Children.

Rosa Guzman Turco is a doctoral student in human development, learning, and teaching, a program offered by the Harvard Graduate School of Education in collaboration with the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Her research interests lie in the intersection between language, literacy, and technology. Her research aims to understand how technology is shaping children’s literacy and language development in order to help parents and practitioners make better decisions about the use of technological devices, especially in disadvantaged communities. Rosa is a research assistant in the Early Learning Study at Harvard, affiliated with the Saul Zaentz Early Education Initiative, as well as Reach Every Reader. She received a B.A. in psychology from Wellesley College, and an Ed.M. in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Nonie Lesaux, Academic Dean and the Juliana W. and William Foss Thompson Professor of Education and Society at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Michelle Lee is a medical student at Harvard Medical School. Her research aims to contribute to a fuller understanding of the barriers and strategies in accessing and engaging in early intervention programs and services among families experiencing homelessness. Her research has the potential to inform best practices and guidance to practitioners and policymakers in designing programs to reach populations who may be in the greatest need of early intervention services. Michelle received her A.B. in psychology from Harvard University, and a M.P.H. in health and social behavior from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her mentor will be Dr. Avik Chatterjee, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program; Instructor, Harvard Medical School; and Clinical Associate at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Christine Junhui Liu is a doctoral student in Speech and Hearing Bioscience and Technology, Division of Medical Sciences, a program at Harvard Medical School. Her research aims to increase understanding of the neural mechanisms of auditory plasticity. She is driven by the implications of identifying new ways to stimulate brain rewiring for the treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders. She seeks to understand the impact of early sound and language on child brain development and to help children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Christine received a B.A. in neuroscience and a B.M. in music theory from Northwestern University. Her mentor will be Anne E. Takesian, Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School.

2019–2020 Fellows

Jacob Beckerman-Hsu is a doctoral candidate in population health sciences, a program offered by the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in collaboration with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research interests lie in early childhood nutrition, obesity prevention, and the social determinants of health. His current research focuses on the timing of weight gain in early childhood to inform when is best to intervene, as well as the relationship between neighborhood context and early childhood obesity. Jacob is also investigating the impacts of a peer-led health promotion program for the parents of preschool-aged children in low-income communities. Jacob received a B.S. in biology with a minor in Spanish from Georgetown University, and an M.P.H. in community health sciences from the University of California, Los Angeles. His mentor will be Kirsten Davison, Donald and Sue Pritzker Associate Professor of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan Departments of Nutrition and Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Emily Hanno is a doctoral candidate in education policy and program evaluation, a program offered by the Harvard Graduate School of Education in collaboration with the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Through her research, Emily seeks to unpack the processes of common professional development interventions aimed at improving caregiver practices, to understand what about coaching interventions works and what doesn’t. Emily received a B.A. in economics and international relations from Tufts University, and an Ed.M. in human development and psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Dana Charles McCoy, Assistant Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Read the NDF’s interview with Emily about the challenges faced by educators and caregivers.

Gabriel Schwartz is a doctoral candidate in population health sciences, a program offered by the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in collaboration with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research in social epidemiology examines links between neighborhoods, social policy, and racial and health inequities. Currently, Gabriel’s work explores the impact of eviction on children’s well-being and the relation between discriminatory policing regimes and birth outcomes. Gabriel received a B.A. in human biology and sociology from Brown University. His mentor will be Lisa Berkman, Director of the Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Director of the Ph.D. Program in Population Health Sciences, and Thomas D. Cabot Professor of Public Policy, Epidemiology, and Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Read Gabriel’s newest blog post: “Eviction is a Perfect Storm for Children.” 

Michele Zemplenyi is a doctoral candidate in biostatistics, a program offered by the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in collaboration with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research examines the intersections of genomics, environmental science, and children’s health. Michele wants to explore how prenatal exposure to toxins can affect long-term health outcomes for children. Michele received a A.B. in statistics and a Secondary Field in chemistry from Harvard College, and an A.M. in biostatistics from Harvard University. Her mentor will be Brent Coull, Professor of Biostatistics, Associate Chair of the Department of Biostatistics at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.

Photo of Jacob Beckerman by Lisa Rau; Photo of Emily Hanno by Tan Pham; Photo of Gabriel Schwartz by Matthew Boccuzzi

2018–2019 Fellows

April Boin Choi is a doctoral candidate in Human Development, Learning, and Teaching at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research interests lie in investigating neural and behavioral development in infants at risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and early interventions that can promote positive long-term outcomes in children with or at risk for ASD. April received a B.A. in Biological Sciences from Cornell University, and an Ed.M. in Mind, Brain, and Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, Professor of Pediatrics and Neuroscience, Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Professor of Education, Harvard University; Richard David Scott Chair in Pediatric Developmental Medicine Research, Boston Children’s Hospital. For more on April’s research, see Silent Gestures, a news story by the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Scott Delaney is a doctoral candidate in Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research investigates the social determinants of health and child development with an emphasis on neurodevelopmental and behavioral outcomes. His research aims to identify risk and protective factors that can be leveraged directly through innovative public health policy and programming to support children and families facing adversity. Scott received his B.S. in Finance at the University of Illinois College of Business, his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law. He also earned a M.P.H. from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Laura Kubzansky, Lee Kum Kee Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences; Co-Director, Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness, at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Read an interview with Scott by ATP World Tour.

Zhihui Li is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Zhihui’s dissertation investigates the impact of prenatal exposure to sand-dust on fetal and child health and development. Sand and dust storms (SDS) are a worldwide phenomenon affecting roughly two billion people living in the Middle East, Central and South Asia, Central and North Africa, and Australia. Her research aims to understand the mechanisms of how SDSs affect child health, so that interventions can be designed and implemented to mitigate the negative effects. Zhihui received dual Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Engineering Degrees from Peking University, along with a M.S. in Global Health and Population from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her mentor will be Jessica Cohen, Associate Professor of Global Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Photo of April Boin Choi by Mark Wilson Images

2017–2018 Fellows

Sonia Alves is a doctoral candidate in the Human Development and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research examines the longitudinal associations of adverse experiences, specifically of childhood community violence exposure on children’s academic trajectories. Sonia’s research aims to gain a deeper understanding of the underlying mechanisms and protective factors that can drive the strategic targeting of interventions to help youth manage their exposure to trauma, resulting in better outcomes overall. Sonia holds a B.A. in Psychology and Education & Child Study from Smith College. She expects to receive an Ed.M. in Prevention Science and Practice, Adolescent Counseling, from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in May 2017. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Stephanie M. Jones, Marie and Max Kargman Professor in Human Development and Urban Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Read Sonia’s blog post: Childhood Community Violence Exposure.

Read an interview with Sonia Alves

Joshua Jeong is a doctoral candidate in Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research seeks to understand how fathers’ parenting practices and paternal roles within families relate to children’s early development outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. His research aims to inform programs and policies that support both mothers and fathers and strengthen families for promoting early childhood development. Joshua holds a B.S. in Human Development and Psychology from Cornell University, and an M.P.H. in Global Health and Population from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His mentor will be Aisha Yousafzai, Associate Professor of Global Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Read Joshua’s blog post: Engaging Fathers in Parenting Interventions in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Read an interview with Joshua Jeong

Rebecca Lebowitz is a doctoral candidate in the Human Development and Education department at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Rebecca’s research explores instructional coaching in early childhood education, particularly the development of adult capabilities through professional development, and the impact of such programs on caregiver and student outcomes. Her dissertation seeks to identify best practices in instructional coaching, and investigate the extent to which an instructional coach builds relationships with early childhood educators to facilitate adult learning. Rebecca seeks to identify innovative intervention strategies to enhance early childhood caregiving and integrate the findings to design effective professional learning interventions for early educators. She hopes to conduct and apply research with early childhood practitioners in order to promote system-level improvements in early childhood outcomes. Rebecca holds an A.B. in Urban Studies and Hispanic Studies from Brown University, and an Ed.M. in Education, Language and Literacy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Dana Charles McCoy, Assistant Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Read Rebecca’s blog post: Moving Forward with Instructional Coaching in Early Childhood.

Read an interview with Rebecca Lebowitz

Linda Zhao is a doctoral candidate in sociology at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Linda’s research explores inequality in birth outcomes, including time-sensitive pathways that precede preterm birth, connecting individual risk factors, social environment, and biological indicators of preterm birth. Her research seeks to determine the extent to which neighborhoods are indicators or causes of low birth weight, and whether different neighborhood contexts might increase or diminish certain types of individual risk. Her research will further investigate whether different social risks translate to different types of pregnancy abnormalities leading up to preterm birth, helping to translate knowledge between sociology and clinical medicine. Her novel approach may help guide policymakers on specific actions or interventions to improve child health. Linda holds a B.A. in Economics from Princeton University, and expects to receive an A.M. in Statistics from Harvard University in 2017, while simultaneously pursuing her Ph.D. Her mentor will be Jason Beckfield, Professor in the Department of Sociology at Harvard University.

Read an interview with Linda Zhao

2016–2017 Fellows

The following four students were recipients of Richmond Fellowships for the 2016–17 academic year:

Kelley Fong is a doctoral student in sociology and social policy at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Fong’s research examines patterns of distrust and disconnection among low-income parents, asking how and why parents disengage from services and systems aimed at supporting their children’s health, well-being, and development.(Read about Kelley’s work in Social Forces: “Concealment and Constraint: Child Protective Services Fears and Poor Mothers’ Institutional Engagement”) Her research will broaden understanding about parents’ ideas about the child welfare system and their interactions with health and social service providers to provide insight into how to reform systems to reach children more effectively. Fong holds a B.A. in American studies and history from Stanford University, and expects to receive an A.M. in sociology from Harvard University in 2016, while simultaneously pursuing her Ph.D. Her mentor will be Devah Pager, Professor in the Department of Sociology and the Kennedy School of Government. Pager is the Susan S. and Kenneth L. Wallach Professor at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, as well as the Director of the Multidisciplinary Program in Inequality and Social Policy at the Kennedy School.

Abena Subira Mackall is a doctoral student in the Culture, Communities and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Mackall’s research is broadly focused on the intersection of education systems and juvenile and criminal justice systems. Her dissertation will explore the lived experience of juvenile probation, and how adjudicated youth sentenced to probation interpret and understand this experience within the social context of their daily lives and development. Her research will offer new insights into fostering supportive familial and peer relationships, promoting positive school experiences, and preventing future incarceration and court sanctions for at-risk youth. Mackall holds an A.B. in politics, with a certificate in African American studies from Princeton University, a master’s in childhood special education: learning disabilities from Hunter College in New York, a master’s in science in race, ethnicity, and post-colonial studies from the London School of Economics, as well as a master’s in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Natasha Kumar Warikoo, Associate Professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Farah Qureshi is a doctoral student in the social and behavioral sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research investigates the early life origins of cardiometabolic disease, focusing specifically on psychosocial pathways by which social adversity gets under the skin. Her research will contribute to a growing body of work exploring the interplay between social environments, children’s emotional functioning, and cardiometabolic risk, and the ways in which positive assets may buffer children against poor health over the life course. Farah holds a B.A. in writing from Johns Hopkins University and a master’s of health science in child health and development from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Laura Kubzansky, Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

S. Lynneth Solis is a doctoral student in the Human Development and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE). Her research explores the influence of sociocultural context and the nature of play interactions on young children’s learning and development in formal and informal settings. (Read an HGSE article about Lynneth’s work: “The Diversity of Play”) Her research seeks to improve understanding of how children develop by examining play as a phenomenon ripe with potential to foster positive relationships and stimulate early childhood experiences in diverse settings, and to enrich national and international conversations about early childhood research, practice, and policy. Currently, she studies the play experiences of indigenous children in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia. Solis has a B.A. in psychology and a M.A.T. in curriculum and instruction from La Sierra University, and a master’s in the Mind, Brain, and Education program from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Meredith Rowe, Associate Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Photos of Kelley Fong and Abena Subira Mackal by Sally Pfitzer; photo of Farah Qureshi by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; photo of S. Lynneth Solis by Anna Duong Van Ornam

2015–2016 Fellows

The following four students were recipients of Richmond Fellowships for the 2015–16 academic year:

Kathryn G. Andrews is a doctoral student in the Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Andrews’s research examines how individual, family, and environmental factors impact the risk of adverse birth outcomes, such as low birth weight. She holds a B.A. in English, modified with Public Health Studies from Dartmouth College, and a Masters of Public Health from the University of Washington in Seattle. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty membe Günther Fink, associate professor of international health economics in the Department of Global Health and Economics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Anne E. Berens is a medical student at Harvard Medical School. Berens is interested in developing and implementing tailored assessment tools to measure childhood adversity in low-income countries. She received a B.A. in Human Biology with a Global Health concentration from Stanford University, an M.S. in Public Health in Developing Countries from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and an M.A. in Philosophy, Politics and Economics of Health from University College London. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, the Richard David Scott Chair in Pediatric Developmental Medicine Research at Boston Children’s Hospital, professor of pediatrics and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School, and professor of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Maleka Donaldson Gramling is a doctoral student in the Human Development and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Donaldson Gramling’s research focuses on how teachers and students respond to student mistakes made during classroom learning. Her work will build on insights from neuroscience and psychology to illuminate the nuanced social workings of young children’s educational environments. She holds an A.B. in Biology from Harvard College and Ed.M. degrees in Human Development and Psychology and Learning and Teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her mentor will be Tina A. Grotzer, associate professor of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Donaldson Gramling’s research is featured in this news article from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Jessica Schleider is a doctoral student in Clinical Science in the Department of Psychology at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. She is interested in identifying, improving, and disseminating treatments for anxiety and depression in youth. Her research will test whether a single-session intervention teaching incremental theories of personality can strengthen recovery from social stress and prevent the development of internalizing problems in early adolescents. Schleider holds a B.A. in Psychology from Swarthmore College and an A.M. in Psychology from Harvard University. Her mentor will be Center-affiliated faculty member John R. Weisz, professor of psychology in the Department of Psychology of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Read articles about Jessica’s research in the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, U.S. News & World Report, the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Behaviour Research and Therapy.

2014–2015 Fellows

The following five students were recipients of Richmond Fellowships for the 2014–15 academic year:

Daniel Busso was awarded a Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral student in the Human Development and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Busso’s research explores how childhood adversity disrupts cognitive, emotional, and neurobiological development, increasing the risk for mental disorders in later life.

Avi Feller was awarded a Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral student studying statistics in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Feller’s research focuses on the intersection of statistics and public policy, especially on methods for answering policy-relevant questions when an ideal randomized evaluation is not available.

Celia J. Gomez was awarded a Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral student in the Human Development and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Gomez’s project explores how changes in maternal education are related to early childhood development. She is particularly interested in studying how interventions and public policy can support and empower children and families from low-income, minority, and under-served populations.

Beth Truesdale was awarded a Richmond fellowship as a doctoral student in sociology in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and a doctoral fellow in inequality and social policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. Her research examines the relationship between science and child and family policy in the United States and Great Britain. She is interested in analyzing system characteristics and processes that create “sweet spots” where evidence matters to policy.

Zhanlei Ye received a Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral student in the Program in Neuroscience, Division of Medical Sciences, in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Her research explores the cellular mechanisms by which early life experiences shape the neuronal circuits in the mouse prefrontal cortex that control higher-order functions, such as social and cognitive behaviors.

2013-2014 Fellows

The following four students were recipients of Richmond Fellowships for the 2013-2014 academic year:

Soojin Oh received a Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral candidate in the Human Development and Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research explores how social, cultural, and organizational contexts influence early language development among children of low-income families. She hopes to inform policy that addresses social disparities and inequalities of educational opportunity for society’s most vulnerable children.

Alonso Sánchez received a Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral student in the Quantitative Policy Analysis in Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Sánchez’s research focuses on low-income mothers who receive nutritional and health support during their child’s prenatal period and first year of life from a Mexican anti-poverty program called Oportunidades. His research analyzes whether this intervention has long-term effects on the child’s education and cognitive achievement.

Benjamin Sosnaud was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral candidate studying sociology in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. His research explores the association between maternal socioeconomic position and education and infant mortality in the United States. By highlighting policies with the potential to either widen or narrow disparities in infant mortality risk, he hopes to draw attention to the broader consequences of policy decisions and inform future policy debates.

Ashley Winning was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a doctoral student in social and behavioral sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research assesses whether early psychological distress in children influences risk for heart and metabolic problems in adulthood, even when psychological distress is no longer an issue in adulthood.

2012-2013 Fellows

During the 2012-2013 academic year, the Center funded the research of three Harvard students:

Anjali Adukia was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a sixth-year doctoral student studying the economics of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education in the Quantitative Policy Analysis in Education program. Her primary interests concern improving access to education in developing countries, particularly at the intersection of education and health. Read an HGSE article about Anjali’s research.

Madeleine deBlois was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fourth-year doctoral student in the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Madeleine is interested in the diverse and interactive ways that communities, neighborhoods, families, schools, and out-of-school-time programs contribute to child well-being. Her doctoral research examines children’s self-regulation from a social-epidemiological perspective.

Claire Houston was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a third-year doctoral student (S.J.D. candidate) at Harvard Law School. Her research focuses on feminist legal reform projects in the area of family law. She is especially interested in the impact such projects have on children’s interests.

2011-2012 Fellows

During the 2011-2012 academic year, the Center funded the research of three Harvard students:

Todd Grindal was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a 5^th year doctoral student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where he studies the impact of public policies on young children and children with disabilities. His dissertation research is focused on the unionization of home child care providers and its impact on early education policy and practice.

Read Todd’s article, Unequal access: Hidden barriers to achieving both quality and profit in early care and education, recently published in American Enterprise Institute (AEI). Access the full article on AEI’s Web site

Sarah Hope Lincoln was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a 4^th year clinical psychology doctoral student in the Department of Psychology at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.  Her research is focused on elucidating the neural mechanisms underlying social cognitive deficits that may relate to impairment in social functioning in children, adolescents, and young adults at risk for schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

Andrew Thorne-Lyman was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a 4^th year doctoral student in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His doctoral research explores the effects of vitamin D and calcium on maternal and child health outcomes, including preterm delivery, preeclampsia, and infant growth and mortality in Tanzania and Denmark.

Read Andrew’s article, Improving Child Survival Through Vitamin A Supplementation, recently published in the British Medical Journal.

2010-2011 Fellows

Erin C. Dunn was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fifth-year doctoral student in the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research is focused on identifying risk and protective factors linked to the onset of mental health problems in children and adolescents.

Read an HSPH news feature about Erin’s work

Sky Marietta was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as an advanced doctoral student in Human Development and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. During her fellowship year, she conducted a mixed-methods study that compares children in rural Appalachia with economically matched peers in New England.

Matthew Ranson was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fifth-year doctoral student in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He is interested in a range of issues related to environmental and behavioral economics, particularly non-market valuation and risk assessment. During his fellowship year, his work examined the effects of prenatal pollution exposure on children’s cognitive ability.

2009-2010 Fellows

In the 2009-10 year, the Center saw a three-fold increase in applications, including the first submissions from students at the Graduate School of Design and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

M. Clara Barata was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fifth-year doctoral student in Human Development and Education at Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research is on the impact of early childhood education on development, particularly in the domain of executive function. Her work involves serving on the evaluation team of an integrated health and education preschool intervention program in Chile.

Dustin Duncan was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a third-year doctoral student at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health. Duncan’s dissertation research seeks to advance scientific knowledge on neighborhood environmental determinants of obesity risk among children and adolescents.

Carmel Salhi was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fourth-year doctoral student in Global Health and Population at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Salhi’s general research area of interest is in understanding the role of displacement on the mental health of children and youth using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods.

Sabrina Selk was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fourth-year doctoral student in the Department of Society, Human Development and Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research as a Richmond Fellow will focus on exploring the association between childhood abuse and adverse adulthood reproductive outcomes.

Amie Shei was awarded the Richmond Fellowship a fourth-year doctoral student in the Health Policy program at Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.  Her research examines the health impacts of Brazil’s Bolsa Família program, a program aimed at reducing poverty, encouraging healthy child development, and building human capital.

2008-2009 Fellows

David Deming was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fourth-year doctoral student in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School. His research used the trajectory of student achievement over the life cycle to test hypotheses about the role of current knowledge in generating future achievement.

Deborah Stone was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fifth-year doctoral student in the department of Society, Human Development and Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Stone’s general research area of interest was on understanding the role of child maltreatment on life course health/mental health trajectories.

Malavika Subramanyam was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a sixth-year doctoral student in the Department of Society, Human Development and Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Subramanyam majored in Social Epidemiology and conducted research on the influence of socioeconomic context in multiple domains and levels on the nutritional status of children under the age of five in India.

Adrienne Tierney was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a fourth-year doctoral student in the Human Development and Education program at Harvard Graduate School of Education. She conducted independent research on the neurocognitive development of children with autism as well as on developing sensitive neural assays that aid in early identification of autism in infants at risk for the disorder.

2007-2008 Fellows

Allison Appleton was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a third-year student at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in the Department of Sociology, Human Development and Health. The Richmond Fellowship supported Appleton’s independent research on how early childhood social and emotional factors may influence later adult health.

Daniel Berry was awarded the Richmond Fellowship as a third-year doctoral student in the Department of Human Development and Psychology at the Graduate School of Education. Berry’s independent research used molecular genetics to assess gene-environment processes in children’s social and cognitive school-readiness.

Ivelina Borisova was awarded the Richmond Fellowship in the fourth year of her doctoral study at the Graduate School of Education in the department of Human Development and Psychology. The Richmond Fellowship funded her in-depth quantitative analyses of potential modifiable protective processes in the psycho-social adjustment of former child soldiers in Sierra Leone.