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
Jennifer aims to conduct interdisciplinary, community-engaged research that supports helping professionals working with trauma; focusing trauma-informed intervention and support to the helping professional and improve client outcomes.
Examines the factors that increase risk of engaging in nonsuicidal self-injury or suicidal behaviors. Explores aspects of counseling that are effective in decreasing or preventing NSSI.
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
children’s social attitudes, their reasoning about social and cultural groups, food preferences and eating behavior, and early health concepts.
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