Racial, ethnic, and cultural influences on youth development and family functioning; Racial socialization processes, racial identity development; Prevention of youth problem behavior and promotion of resilience; Culturally relevant and evidenced-based approaches to parenting; Intervention development and community dissemination in diverse cultural contexts
My lab leverages novel methodologies and modern tools (i.e. Ecological Momentary Assessment via smartphone, text message analysis, social media) to better understand the ways in which young people’s social contexts and relationships impact their mental health and risk taking behaviors. We focus closely on the role of parents and the cultural environments within which families are embedded.
My work focuses on teaching and teacher education, community engagement, and language, literacy and culture, particularly with minoritized communities.
Racial socialization; racial discrimination; racial identity beliefs, academic motivation, psychological well-being; resilience; African American adolescents and emerging adults
I study risk and protective factors for low-income and ethnic minority children including school readiness, family engagement in education and ECE utilization by Hispanic families.
My work on social inequalities looks at race and ethnic inequality and relations in k-12 and higher education educational polices (structural) and interactions