Honors | Office of Undergraduate Research

Opportunity Description
Community-Based Participatory Research in Obesity Prevention – This 5-credit course is intended to be taken as part of a year-long sequence; part II will be offered in Spring 2015.

This course provides a unique opportunity to study a complex health problem – obesity – from a social ecological perspective and to work with community partners to assist in the development, implementation, and evaluation of a statewide obesity prevention campaign using community-based participatory research methodology. Lectures focus on current obesity trends, causal factors of excessive weight, and the consequences of obesity. Community-based participatory research skills include focus groups, interviews, and environmental audits to develop an obesity prevention program that meets the needs of a diverse population. This is a unique learning opportunity that will allow students to work with a national health care consulting firm and a statewide media company to develop and test an obesity prevention program. To learn more about this research and how the course will fulfill Plan of Study requirements, please see: http://undergrad.psych.uconn.edu/2014/07/15/psyc-3885/ or contact Dr. Amy Gorin at amy.gorin@uconn.edu.

Student Qualifications
Interest in applied research, nutrition, physical activity, and health behavior change.

How to Apply
Please contact Dr. Amy Gorin at amy.gorin@uconn.edu as soon as possible to receive a permission number to register.

Mentor: Amy Gorin, Associate Professor
Department: Psychology
Email: amy.gorin@uconn.edu
Timing: Fall 2014, Spring 2015
Campus: Storrs

Opportunity Description
Dr. Kearns’s work focuses on word reading difficulties in children in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. He studies the basic processes involved in word reading in children (links to cognitive and developmental psychology) and designs interventions to improve reading outcomes in these struggling readers. Work in his lab involves two kinds of tasks:
1) Work in schools with children, either testing them (links to school psychology) or delivering instruction to struggling readers (links to special education).
2) Work on campus to enter data and validate its accuracy (links to most social science research).

It is an expectation that students will work at least 10 hours per week. All students work as volunteers for one semester, and opportunities to conduct funded research are possible if the first semester is successful. Dr. Kearns was previously an assistant professor at Boston University. You can contact Michael Li (milkeli@bu.edu) if you would like to learn about Dr. Kearns, his lab, and his previous work mentoring undergraduates.

Student Qualifications
Qualified candidates will be willing and able to do both kinds of work. Important qualifications include these:
* Organizational skills
* Problem-solving skills and the ability to figure out complex tasks
* Flexibility
* Consistency and punctuality
* Hard work.
Other research skills are not required; most skills will be taught on the job.

How to Apply
Applicants should write to Dr. Kearns directly (devin.kearns@uconn.edu). Include your resume and your schedule for Fall 2014 in your inquiry. Review of applications is ongoing. Interviews may be scheduled via Skype as early as August 1, 2014. We look forward to hearing from you!

Mentor: Devin Kearns, Assistant Professor of Special Education
Department: Educational Psychology
Email: devin.kearns@uconn.edu
Timing: Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Summer 2015, Ongoing
Campus: Storrs