December 2019 Newsletter

Spotlight: Bridget Cho, Cohort Seven Fellow

Bridget Cho, Cohort Seven fellow, will begin her tenure-track position as an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department of the University of South Carolina Aiken in August 2020. She will provide clinical supervision to masters-level clinical trainees in the Applied Psychology Program, teach undergraduate and graduate psychology courses, and continue her research. Bridget’s research centers on parent-child relationships in the context of adversity, with the ultimate goal of informing culturally relevant evidence-based interventions for families experiencing adversity and trauma. Specifically, she plans to conduct mixed-methods research on parenting among families living in rural poverty, to partner with a local Child Advocacy Center to conduct clinical research on trauma treatments for youth exposed to maltreatment, and to implement and evaluate a brief parenting intervention for young children involved in child welfare services.

Bridget is currently a predoctoral psychology intern at the University of California Davis Children’s Hospital CAARE Center in Sacramento, CA. In line with her interest in maltreatment that initially drew her to the Doris Duke Fellowships, Bridget provides treatment and assessment for children and adolescents who have experienced abuse, neglect, and other forms of trauma. Specifically, she is working toward national certification in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Parent-Child Interaction Therapy. Bridget also completes psychological evaluations for parents referred by Child Protective Services to help determine service recommendations for parents to successfully reunify with their children. In addition to her clinical work, Bridget collaborates with researchers at UC Davis on a large-scale study of PCIT among historically disadvantaged communities with a specific focus on parenting behaviors that relate to treatment outcomes for children.

Bridget’s long-term career goal has always been to contribute to the education and training of psychologists, and to the field of maltreatment research, in academia – which has been actualized through her new position at USC Aiken. The Doris Duke Fellowships was instrumental in helping her to reach this goal. Bridget says, “Being a Doris Duke fellow has shaped my career in so many ways. The amazing network of peers and mentors in the fellowship provided me with excellent training, especially in child maltreatment. Maybe more influential than the training, though, was how the fellowship gave me the inspiration and confidence to tackle big projects that will really make a difference in the lives of kids and families. I am so grateful for the fellowship and look forward to continuing to develop these relationships!”

Leadership Committee December Meeting

The Doris Duke Fellowships Leadership Committee convened at Chapin Hall on December 10-11, 2019. The meeting began with feedback and updates from Lee Ann Huang and continued with robust discussions amongst the Leadership Committee over the two-day period. The Leadership Committee will be circulating details from the meeting to fellows via email and will continue to have monthly calls focused on defining goals and planning the SRCD workshop.

Mid-Year Meeting 2020 Interest Request

Fellows: If you are in Cohorts One-Seven and plan to attend (or would like to present your work) at the Mid-Year Meeting in Baltimore, MD on April 22 – 24, 2020 please fill out the Google form circulated by Mickie Anderson (manderson@chapinhall.org) to confirm your plans and to be sure we have a hotel room reserved for you!

Fellows Updates:

Judith Scott, Cohort Five fellow, has a recent publication in Child Development: Family preparation-for-bias messages and racial coping reported by Black youth.

Aislinn Conrad and Katherine Paschall, Cohort Four fellows, recently published an article in Children and Youth Services Review: Persistent economic insecurity and hard parenting: A latent transition analysis.

Brianna Lemmons, Cohort Four fellow, has a recent publication in Children and Youth Services Review: Examining Multiple Dimensions of Father Involvement as Predictors of Risk-Taking Intentions among Black Adolescent Females.

Upcoming Dates:

Doris Duke Fellowships Mid-Year-Meeting at The University of Maryland, School of Social Work: April 22 - April 24, 2020: Baltimore, MD