<strong>Human</strong> <strong>Development</strong> & <strong>Family</strong> Studies Administration -Department Head, Professor Ronald M. SabatelliAssociate Department Head for Graduate Studies, Associate Professor Preston A. BritnerAssociate Department Head for Undergraduate Studies, Associate Professor Jane A. Goldman<strong>HDFS</strong> <strong>Communicator</strong><strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2008</strong>Photo by Preston BritnerTable of ContentsNew FacultyHonors <strong>and</strong> AwardsFaculty UpdatesSelected Presentations & PublicationsEditorsMolly BahrePreston Britner, Ph.D.Lainie HillerGraphic DesignJanice BerriaultCenter NewsEarly Childhood EducationStudent Spotlights & AchievementsAlumni NewsSave the Date!University of ConnecticutDepartment of <strong>Human</strong> <strong>Development</strong> & <strong>Family</strong> Studies348 Mansfield Road, Unit 2058Storrs, CT 06269-2058Phone: 860.486.4720FAX: 860.486.3452www.familystudies.uconn.edu
New Faculty in <strong>HDFS</strong>Assistant Professor Keith Bellizzi, joins <strong>HDFS</strong> after spending five years at the National CancerInstitute in Bethesda, Maryl<strong>and</strong> as a Health Scientist in the Office of Cancer Survivorship, Divisionof Cancer Control <strong>and</strong> Population Sciences. Keith received his Ph.D. in <strong>HDFS</strong> at the University ofConnecticut in 2003 <strong>and</strong> subsequently completed a three-year postdoctoral training fellowship incancer prevention <strong>and</strong> control at the National Cancer Institute. He also received his Master’s inPublic Health (epidemiology) in 2004 from George Washington University. His research <strong>and</strong>publications have focused on underst<strong>and</strong>ing the health related quality of life of older cancersurvivors; the role health behaviors play in attenuating late health effects of cancer; resilience <strong>and</strong>posttraumatic growth in the aftermath of cancer; <strong>and</strong> caregiver/family issues. Keith’s work oncancer survivorship has received national <strong>and</strong> international recognition <strong>and</strong> has been featured indiverse media outlets, including The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The AustralianFinancial Review, The Yomiuri Shimbun, <strong>and</strong> CURE Magazine. Keith is currently teaching the undergraduate course <strong>HDFS</strong>2004W Research Methods in <strong>HDFS</strong>. Keith was a member of the Bristol-Myers Squibb 2005 Tour of Hope National CyclingTeam, a nine-day, 3,300 mile cross-country bike ride with Tour de France champion, Lance Armstrong, to raise publicawareness about cancer research <strong>and</strong> survivorship issues. In recognition of his commitment to cancer control efforts,manifest in his research, public speaking <strong>and</strong> outreach activities, Keith received a Governor’s Citation from Governor Robert LEhrlich, State of Maryl<strong>and</strong>, in 2006. Keith has also been featured in UConn’s “40 Under 40” publication (see p. 12).Assistant Professor Annamaria Csizmadia, joins <strong>HDFS</strong> at the Stamford regional campus this fallafter recently completing her doctoral degree in <strong>HDFS</strong>, with graduate minors in Black Studies <strong>and</strong>International <strong>Development</strong> at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Annamaria’s research to datehas encompassed four areas: social-emotional adjustment of children of color ; multiracial youth;racial identification; <strong>and</strong> immigrant <strong>and</strong> low-income children <strong>and</strong> families. She is interested inpredictors of development that are culturally relevant for a specific group (e.g., racial identity,group-specific parenting behavior, <strong>and</strong> other distinct individual, family, <strong>and</strong> community-levelcharacteristics). Her most recent <strong>and</strong> present work focuses on the developmental trajectories ofBlack-White biracial children between kindergarten <strong>and</strong> fifth grade. In her research she examinesrelations between parents’ racial designation of their biracial offspring <strong>and</strong> children’s socialemotionaldevelopment over time. In addition, Annamaria is also interested in exploring thepotential moderating effects of child-, parent-, <strong>and</strong> school-level factors on these links.As part of the <strong>HDFS</strong> faculty at the Stamford regional campus, this fall she is teaching <strong>HDFS</strong> 2004W: Underst<strong>and</strong>ingResearch Methods in <strong>HDFS</strong>. Next semester she will be teaching <strong>HDFS</strong> 2001: Diversity Issues in <strong>Human</strong> <strong>Development</strong> <strong>and</strong><strong>Family</strong> Studies <strong>and</strong> <strong>HDFS</strong> 1070: Individual <strong>and</strong> <strong>Family</strong> <strong>Development</strong>. Annamaria is looking forward to teaching a graduatecourse at the Storrs campus during fall 2009. A native of Hungary, Annamaria has also lived in Germany <strong>and</strong> is fluent in threelanguages! She <strong>and</strong> her six-year-old daughter Sarafia are new residents of Stamford, CT.Assistant Professor Rachel Tambling, joins <strong>HDFS</strong> after spending the past four years atthe University of Georgia where she received her Ph.D. in Child <strong>and</strong> <strong>Family</strong> <strong>Development</strong> withan emphasis in Marriage <strong>and</strong> <strong>Family</strong> Therapy. Rachel’s research centers on factors that influencesuccessful outcomes in couple therapy, <strong>and</strong> she is most interested in client factors that influencechange across the course of therapy. Currently, Rachel is examining clients’ expectations abouttherapy <strong>and</strong> how those expectations are formed, communicated to others, <strong>and</strong> influenced byothers early on in therapy. Her other current projects examine the influence <strong>and</strong> conceptualizationof client motivation to change in couple therapy. Rachel is currently teaching <strong>HDFS</strong> 5762:Practicum in MFT <strong>and</strong> <strong>HDFS</strong> 5763: Individual Supervision in MFT. In the spring she will teach<strong>HDFS</strong> 3319: <strong>Family</strong> Pathology <strong>and</strong> <strong>HDFS</strong> 5320: Special Issues in <strong>Family</strong> <strong>Development</strong>. Rachelloves animals <strong>and</strong> has five cats, three dogs, <strong>and</strong> three birds, all rescued from situations of animal neglect or cruelty.1
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