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Welcome to the team, Mia Penner

Name: Mia Penner

Title: Grants coordinator

Hometown: Council Bluffs, Iowa

Where did you work prior to joining CYFS? What was your role there, and what did it entail?

“Prior to joining CYFS, I worked at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in the Radiology Department as an administrative research associate. I supported a variety of research administration activities. I worked closely with both clinical and research faculty. My responsibilities included coordinating grant submissions, assisting with project management and monitoring research workflows. Through this experience, I gained valuable insight into the research lifecycle and developed a strong foundation in research support.” Full Article

Coaching model ensures sustained support for Nebraska’s early childhood interventionists

Birth to age 3 are critical years for development, especially for children with disabilities who need extra support. Early interventionists meet with families and provide services such as occupational, speech or physical therapy to help children learn and grow. Full Article

Project identifies, enhances alternative communication opportunities for children with autism

For the nearly 7 million American children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and have not developed functional vocal speech, communication can be difficult — and frustrating.

One promising option is augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), including speech-generating devices that support, supplement or replace vocal speech. Research suggests that using AAC in early interventions through play and other everyday activities may enhance language, social communication and play skills in children with autism. Full Article

Research collaboration aims to streamline children’s motor skills evaluation

Michaela Schenkelberg, associate professor of health and kinesiology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, is collaborating with MAP Academy personnel to make it easier to evaluate young children’s gross motor skills — the basic, whole-body movements that lay the foundation for lifelong physical activity. Full Article

CHIME enhancing well-being among Head Start, Early Head Start educators

For many, work-related stress is often seen as part of the job, with emotional exhaustion, burnout and turnover reported across nearly every industry in the U.S.

For the early childhood workforce, however, such stress can reach beyond teachers’ well-being and into the classroom. Research shows that when educators are navigating ongoing stress and emotional exhaustion, it can affect how they respond to children and families, shaping the tone of interactions and the overall learning environment. Full Article

Study finds intergenerational co-parenting benefits children’s well-being

Family dynamics among caregivers tend to be complicated. They can become even more complex when grandparents take on co-parenting roles.

Weiman Xu, postdoctoral fellow at the Nebraska Academy for Methodology, Analytics and Psychometrics (MAP Academy), recently explored the association between intergenerational co-parenting and children’s social-emotional development. Funded by a graduate scholars grant from the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, Xu investigated the role grandparents play in raising children and how co-parenting between grandparents and parents relate to children’s well-being. Full Article