Policy Committee

Components
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Committee Charge

The Policy Committee, originally established in 1977 and renamed in 2024, is responsible for ongoing consultation to SRCD regarding its activities in the following areas:

  1. Supporting implementation of SRCD’s strategic plan,
  2. Linking research with global, national, and state/local policies that affect children and families,
  3. Keeping membership apprised on policy to inform science,
  4. Informing governmental decision-making regarding research on child development,
  5. Encouraging the development of leaders in the translation of research to policy and practice, and
  6. Enhancing the effective dissemination of developmental science.

The committee works through direct participation in activities and through close consultation with the SRCD Policy Director. In order to carry out this responsibility, the committee is organized in the following subcommittees:

  • Fellowship: Assist with the annual selection of the SRCD U.S. Policy Fellowship program.
  • Science Policy: Inform decision making on funding levels for research on child development, how science is conducted (e.g., human subjects and clinical trial regulations), and opportunities for future research. Ensure that developmental researchers are kept informed of science policy issues that are relevant to their ability to conduct research. For example, this work may include attending advocacy days on Capitol Hill, nominating SRCD members to distinguished federal positions and committees, and joining with other scientific societies on joint actions.
  • Social Policy: Increase the visibility and impact of developmental research for example, by providing brief summaries of key research for policymakers through the Child Policy Briefs program. Provide support and input on the Child Policy Connect program, to facilitate greater networking and relationship building between scholars and policymakers. Keep members appraised of relevant policy knowledge and training to improve partnerships between scholars and policymakers. 
  • Conference: Facilitate relationship-building connections between SRCD members, policymakers, and practitioners at SRCD meetings, and build the discipline’s policy capacity through regular trainings. 

Committee Roster

Caitlin Lombardi, Co-Chair 2019-2025 University of Connecticut
Sara Vecchiotti, Co-Chair 2023-2027 Foundation for Child Development
Jennifer Brooks 2020-2025 Jennifer L. Brooks, LLC
R. Gabriela Barajas-Gonzalez 2021-2025 New York University School of Medicine
Susan Jekielek 2021-2025 University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Amy Marks 2021-2025 Suffolk University
Ana Whitaker 2022-2025 University of Delaware
Dalal Katsiaficas 2022-2027 University of Illinois at Chicago
Dara Blachman-Demner 2023-2027 National Institutes of Health
Guadalupe Diaz-Lara 2023-2027 California State University - Fullerton
Steven John Holochwost 2023-2027 Lehman College City University of New York
Morgan Crossman 2024-2027 Building Bright Futures of Vermont
Alaina Flannigan 2024-2027 Child Trends
Marisa Morin 2024-2027 Office of Child Care, Administration of Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Matt Stagner 2024-2027 Mathematica
Tanya Tavassolie 2024-2027 Office of Child Care, Administration of Children and Families, U.S Department of Health and Human Services
Qingyang Liu, SECC Representative 2023-2025 Syracuse University
Lisa Berlin, Ex Officio 2023-2026 University of Maryland School of Social Work
Emilie Smith, Governing Council Representative, Ex-Officio 2021-2027 Michigan State University 
Saima K. Hedrick, Ex Officio 2021- Society for Research in Child Development
Lindsay Turner Trammell, Ex Officio 2022-  Society for Research in Child Development
Isabel Aaron, Staff Liaison 2024- Society for Research in Child Development