Tag Archives: Bronfenbrenner

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urieTND50 years later, recalling a founder of Head Start                                                                          A half century ago, Cornell developmental psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner gave Congressional testimony that eventually led to the creation of the Head Start program.
Language-loss study reveals early signs of AAlzheimersWord_465x170lzheimer's disease                                               Loss of early childhood language skills, rather than those skills attained later in life, might be a predictor for Alzheimer's disease, according to a new Cornell study.

Ceci-TND70x70Stephen Ceci elected to National Academy of Education                                             Stephen Ceci, Cornell’s Helen L. Carr Professor of Developmental Psychology, has been elected to the National Academy of Education for his outstanding scholarship on education.
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Urie: The scientist who remade the field of human development                                                                     Fifty years after the launch of Head Start, Urie Bronfenbrenner-one of the architects of the federal program for underserved families-is remembered as a giant in his field. Former students, research partners, and Cornell faculty members share their thoughts on the late Bronfenbrenner's legacy as a scholar, mentor, researcher, and champion for youth and families. Also in this issue: A tour through 150 Years of Big Red fashion; gerontologist Karl Pillemer's latest book, sharing elder wisdom on love and marriage; long-running, legendary courses in the College of Human Ecology; alumni and campus updates and special sesquicentennial content.
> The Memory Factory

 

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Reprinted from Human Ecology Magazine, Spring 2015

Human Ecology's Translational Research Institute for Pain in Later Life, a New York City-based center that helps older adults prevent and manage pain, received a five-year, $1.95 million renewal grant from the National Institute on Aging.

TRIPLL unites social and psychological scientists at Cornell's Ithaca campus and Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research, researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College, and community-based health care practitioners to study innovative, nonpharmacological methods to ease persistent pain.

In its first five years, TRIPLL funded 30 pilot studies on innovative treatments, protocols, and interventions for improved pain management. With the grant renewal, TRIPLL adds a focus on behavior change science, seeking to apply insights from psychology, sociology, economics, and communications to develop optimal pain management techniques.

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By Sharon Tregaskis
Reprinted from Cornell Chronicle, May 15, 2015
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A half century ago, Cornell developmental psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner gave Congressional testimony that eventually led to the creation of the Head Start program.

 

Testifying before Congress in 1964, Cornell developmental psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner urged lawmakers to fight “poverty where it hits first and most damagingly – in early childhood.”

Intrigued by his work, Lady Bird Johnson invited Bronfenbrenner to tea at the White House, where he shared his findings on early childhood programs he had observed abroad. In January 1965, as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, Sargent Shriver empaneled 13 experts – including Bronfenbrenner – to develop a federally funded preschool program for the nation’s poorest children.

In May 1965, federal Head Start was born, announced in a Rose Garden speech by Johnson. “Five- and six-year-old children are inheritors of poverty’s curse and not its creators,” the president said. “Unless we act, these children will pass it on to the next generation, like a family birthmark.”

In its first summer, the six-week program reached 500,000 youngsters; in the 50 years since, it has provided 32 million infants, toddlers and preschoolers with health, educational and family support services. On May 18, the National Head Start Association will mark the milestone by planting rose bushes at programs nationwide and celebrating with members of Congress.

Among Head Start’s architects, Bronfenbrenner stood out for his dynamic systems theory of human development – which became synonymous with the field of human ecology and inspired the renaming of Cornell’s College of Human Ecology in 1969. A champion of field-based observations in children’s homes, schools and neighborhoods, Bronfenbrenner upended the conventions of mid-20th century developmental psychology, which had taken a decontextualized, sterilized approach.

For Bronfenbrenner, it wasn’t enough to look narrowly at children. To understand the effect of a mother’s employment on a child’s development, for example, he urged investigators to consider the child’s age, the quality of daycare in the mother’s absence, her attitude toward her work, the family’s race and income level and the father’s employment status and attitude toward his partner’s work and family duties.

On the Cornell faculty from 1948 until his death in 2005, Bronfenbrenner formulated a theory of human development that reflects not only individual personalities and potential, but also the dynamic interplay among members of the family, the family’s place in their neighborhood and community, that community’s place and the pervasive influence of macrosystem factors, including social policy, the legal system and economic trends.

“He wanted us to include the real-world messiness that we were intent on excluding, because at that time we thought of it as methodological noise,” said longtime collaborator Stephen Ceci, the Helen L. Carr Professor of Developmental Psychology.

As the extended family of the 19th century gave way to increasingly fractured variants, Bronfenbrenner campaigned for policies to bolster and sustain the family as society’s most vital building block through programs like Head Start; minimum income programs for impoverished families; paid leave for new parents and flexible work hours for those with older children; affordable, high-quality childcare; gun control; and universal health care.

“Urie was a grand theorist whose theories were reflected in the comprehensive nature of Head Start, in the recognition of the need to support families and enrich the educational experiences of children and take care of children’s emotional and physical well-being,” says Jeanette Valentine, Ph.D ’76, co-author of “Head Start: A Legacy of the War on Poverty.”

A proponent for the power of family ties to help children reach their full potential, Bronfenbrenner saw Head Start as a buffer against the stress experienced by impoverished parents. Day care would allow parents to spend more time with their children, forming the passionate attachments he saw as a cornerstone of lifelong success.

“Every kid,” Bronfenbrenner frequently declared, “needs at least one adult who is crazy about him.”

Adapted from a spring 2015 issue of Human Ecology magazine by freelance writer Sharon Tragaskis.

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By Ted Boscia
Reprinted from Cornell Chronicle, Jan. 12, 2015

Cornell gerontologist Karl Pillemer, the Hazel E. Reed Professor in the Department of Human Development, will become director of the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research (BCTR) Jan. 15.

Pillemer succeeds John Eckenrode, professor of human development and BCTR director since its founding in 2011, who will continue as director of the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect.

Named for the late Cornell developmental psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner, whose research helped to inspire the federal Head Start program, the BCTR brings together Cornell social and behavioral scientists and real-world practitioners to disseminate research findings to community programs supporting human health and development and to develop, evaluate and disseminate innovative social and behavioral interventions. Home to more than 20 projects focused on nutrition, youth development, parenting, health care, aging and related issues, the center includes more than 120 Cornell faculty affiliates.

“Human Ecology has embraced translational research as its approach to extension and outreach, and the Bronfenbrenner Center is creating a better marriage between science and service,” Pillemer said. “It is a great honor to lead a center associated closely with Urie, whose human ecological approach set the standard for many of us working to create a seamless connection between research and practice.”

Pillemer joins the BCTR with extensive experience guiding translational research projects. He co-directs the Translational Research Institute on Pain in Later Life, a joint project with Weill Cornell Medical College researchers and community-based health-care partners to help older adults prevent and manage pain, and the Translational Research Priorities in Palliative Care Project. He founded the Cornell Legacy Project, a national social science survey to collect elder wisdom on love and marriage, work and careers, parenting and other topics.

“Karl is well-positioned to lead the center thanks to his deep ties with community partners across the state and with Cornell Cooperative Extension, the Cornell Office for Research and Evaluation and Weill Cornell Medical College, all of whom are vital partners in achieving the college’s translational research goals and in fulfilling Cornell’s land-grant mission,” said Alan Mathios, the Rebecca Q. and James C. Morgan Dean of the College of Human Ecology. “I am excited to see how the center will evolve under Karl’s direction, and I am grateful for John Eckenrode’s tremendous guidance of faculty, staff and students to deliver translational programs in its first three years.”

Under Eckenrode, the center developed an Innovative Pilot Study Program, awarding up to five grants annually to faculty teams leading research intended to influence real-world practice and policy. Its Research Navigator Initiative, which builds ties between faculty experts and CCE partners, has reached more than 100 extension educators and executive directors.

“It has been a tremendous honor to help launch the BCTR and work with our talented faculty and staff,” Eckenrode said. “I am sure the center will flourish under Karl’s leadership given his experience, skills and vision for the future.”

Pillemer intends to build on the center’s successes and to recruit more faculty members from across Cornell to pursue translational research. He also wants to deepen ties with Cornell University Cooperative Extension-New York City, calling it an “on the ground research-ready organization reaching thousands of city residents,” and the statewide 4-H program, which, he said, “can serve as a living laboratory to better understand and promote positive youth development.” Finally, he wants to enhance the center’s communications platforms, using social media and other nontraditional channels to deliver research findings to the public.

“The center is in a strong position, with a number of excellent projects with a broad community base and solid grounding in research,” Pillemer said. “I’m excited to help continue and strengthen this excellent work.”

Ted Boscia is director of communications and media for the College of Human Ecology.