Grant Awards

Ji-Young Choi, Associate Professor, Department of Human Sciences

With recent funding from ACF’s Secondary Analyses of Data on Early Care and Education Grants program, Choi and her team will investigate patterns and outcomes of Head Start children’s additional public early care and education (ECE) use. Her team will utilize and expand Iowa’s integrated data system that includes state administrative records from education, public health, and human services. The project will highlight patterns of public ECE use that best relate to positive school readiness and identify groups of families who have limited access to public ECE services. Researchers, integrated data system (IDS) experts, and community partners will work together for this project.

Natasha Slesnick, Professor, Department of Human Sciences, HDFS; EHE Associate Dean for Research

The literature is characterized by a dearth of information on how to reduce risk for suicide among marginalized substance using youth experiencing homelessness (YEH). Suicide is the leading cause of death among YEH and most youth do not access services that may be available to them. Therefore, this study seeks to address this gap in the research literature with the goal to identify an effective intervention that can be readily adopted by communities that serve these youth.

Brian Focht, Professor, Kinesiology

The current study aims to determine if the Congenital Heart Disease Physical Activity Lifestyle (CHD-PAL) intervention increases time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity as compared to an attention control condition among teens (ages 15-18) and young adults (ages 19-25) with moderate or complex forms of congenital heart disease. Additionally, the current study will examine durability of intervention effects and explore changes on biomarkers of cardiovascular health in this population.