May 2021 Newsletter

 
 

Network Member Spotlight: Christina Mondi-Rago

 

Dr. Christina Mondi-Rago is a member of Cohort Eight of the Doris Duke Fellowships. She found the Fellowships and the many relationships that came out of it as huge supports for her during several major milestones (writing her dissertation and moving across the country for clinical internship). The Fellowships also gave her resources and dedicated space to reflect on her professional goals and how she wanted to use her training to serve children and families.

Dr. Mondi-Rago graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2020 with a PhD in Developmental & Clinical Psychology. She is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Brazelton Touchpoints Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. Within this role, she is co-leading several community-based research projects in early care and education settings (e.g., Head Start, home visiting). Outside of her research at Brazelton, she is also the Co-Principal Investigator (with colleagues at American University) on COVID-Forward, a national study examining child and family coping during the COVID-19 pandemic; and continuing several projects at the University of Minnesota. Across projects, she has been fortunate to work with wonderful mentors (Drs. Catherine Ayoub, Arthur Reynolds, Elizabeth Carlson) who care deeply about children and families, and about doing high-quality research to support their healthy development.

She is also a Clinical Fellow in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, working towards licensure as a clinical psychologist. She conducts psycho-diagnostic assessments and outpatient therapy with children and adolescents, with a focus on trauma, depression, and anxiety. She also provides supervised mental health consultation to local Head Start sites. She finds significant reward in building relationships with children and their caregivers, and it also plays a major role in how she thinks about research and policy issues.

Outside of research and clinical work, she is a part-time lecturer in the Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health program at the University of Minnesota. She loves interacting and learning together with our students, many of whom work directly with young children and families (i.e., as early care and education providers, clinicians, caseworkers).

The Doris Duke Fellowships continue to play a big role in her life, both professionally and personally. Christina is collaborating with Dr. Alison Giovanelli (Cohort Six) on several research projects, including recently accepted papers at JAMA Pediatrics and the International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy. In the week that she wrote this piece, she met up with another fellow, Dr. Kelli Dickerson (who recently started a postdoc in Boston!) and Zoomed with her fellowships small group. In the coming months, she will also be participating in the Child Well-Being Research Network’s Pilot Mentor Program. She is excited to “pay forward” the support that she has received as a Doris Duke fellow (especially since she was part of the final cohort).

Christina is so grateful to Deb, Lee Ann, Colleen, and all the folks who continue to make this such an amazing and supportive community. Her time in the Fellowships has really reinforced for her that none of us can do this work alone, and that good colleagues and friends make all the difference.

 

Network Member Updates:

Anika Schenck-Fontaine has recently started a new position as a Social Scientist at the Division of Epidemiology of the Maternal and Child Health Bureau in the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

Jennifer Daer Shields has two updates.

  • She has received a grant from the Presbyterian Health Foundation to conduct a randomized clinical trial evaluating an evidence-based engagement strategy for youth with problematic sexual behavior.

  • She has also been appointed to the Board of Directors for the Pier34 Foundation, a non-profit in Oklahoma City that provides mental health services to uninsured and underinsured individuals in our community.

 

Lindsey Rose Bullinger has two new updates.

 

Tova Walsh has several updates:

 

Lisa Schelbe co-authored a new publication in the Children and Youth Services Review, titled “Factors associated with post-college success for foster care alumni college graduates”. The study examines during-college factors associated with better employment, financial, and mental health-related outcomes for college graduates who are foster care alumni. The study found supportive relationships, life skills, and physical/mental health were key. Additionally, race was found to predict post-college outcomes, suggesting the role of systemic racism.

 

Byron Powell has a new publication in the Journal of Implementation Research and Practice, exploring strategies for implementing high priority mental health care practices within the US Department of Veterans Affairs.

 

Staff Updates:

The Doris Duke Fellowships team at Chapin Hall is bidding a fond farewell to Mickie Brown and welcoming three new staff members. Mickie will be focusing on her Master’s in Public Health at University of Illinois at Chicago, working with faculty on several policy projects. We welcome Ticia Brown, who will focus on the R2A Grants and overall project coordination; Raya Kenepp, who will handle the website and newsletter; and Tiffany Burkhardt, who will be directing the R2A Grants evaluation. Deb, although enjoying semi-retirement, is still here to share advice and support, and Colleen and Lee Ann continue their work as usual!