MEET THE HOSTS

Dr. Sheretta Butler-Barnes is a developmental psychologist and has expertise and scholarly work on the impact of racism and the use of culturally strength-based assets on the educational and health outcomes of Black American families. She is an Associate Professor at the WUSTL Brown School of Social Work. Butler-Barnes received her PhD and MA from Wayne State University in psychology and a BS in psychology from Michigan State University. The two lines of her research agenda include Black families and Racial Justice Project, which is a mixed methodological investigation of Black families' vulnerability to or resilience against marginalization, focusing on parenting practices and adolescent developmental trajectories, and Equity for Black Women and Girls Project which focuses on advancing equity for women and girls of color by identifying risk and protective factors in learning spaces and creating culturally responsive programming that promotes resiliency.

Dr. Valerie N. Adams-Bass is a Developmental Psychologist, an Assistant Professor of Childhood Studies at Rutgers University, and a faculty affiliate of the Racial Empowerment Collaborative at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education and the Youth-Nex Center to Promote Effective Youth Development in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on how Black children see themselves and related outcomes. Dr. Adams-Bass is most interested in examining how media exposure influences inter-personal interactions and self-concept. Her research also examines how racial/ethnic socialization experiences and racial identity are related to the process of identity development and the social and the academic experiences of Black children and youth. She was a Digital Promise Post-doctoral fellow at the University of California Davis in the School of Education investigating Ed-Tech learning resources. She also held the position of 4-H State Program Leader for Cornell Cooperative Extension where she focused on integrating evaluation into 4-H programming and increasing professional development resources available to 4-H educators and volunteers on how to effectively serve the growing population of ethnically and racially diverse youth across New York state. She holds a doctorate in Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Development from University of Pennsylvania and a master’s of education in Urban Education from Temple University. As an applied researcher, Dr. Adams-Bass regularly trains youth development professionals and teachers to use culturally relevant practices when working with Black children and youth