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No one can deny it. There is a major need for students to have more and more flexibility in how they attend graduate school. Advanced learners are working while they pursue master's and doctorate degrees. Often they have family and other commitments.

Megan Krantz, a fourth-year Clinical Psychology PhD student in the Department of Psychology, has been announced as a winner of the Sleep Special Interest Group student poster competition at the Society of Pediatric Psychology Annual Conference (SPPAC). Along with student co-authors and faculty mentors, Dr. Cameron Neece and Dr. Tori Van Dyk, Megan examined differences in, and risk factors for, sleep difficulties in preschool youth with autism compared to typically developing youth.

I have been honored to lead the Department of Counseling and Family Sciences Writing Center for the last two years. My role in this capacity is to provide training, support, and encouragement to enhance students' professional and academic writing skills, and to help them feel more comfortable with writing. Many students have shared that they have received negative messages about their writing performance in their earlier academic careers, which decreased their confidence in their writing ability and affected their view of themselves as successful students.

In light of Autism Awareness Week, we're excited to feature some research by Dr. Cameron Neece and her lab on the mental health of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Hadley McGregor, a Clinical Psychology PsyD student in Dr. Neece's lab, recently published an article on internalizing problems in children with ASD.

Play Therapy is a theoretical treatment modality that engages children through play in a manner that allows them to resolve psychological distress while also promoting wellness and optimal development. This approach views play as the language of young children and attends to the types of play that children use to express their emotions and behaviors. Treatment modalities include directive and non-directive approaches as well as a number of therapeutic orientations, such as Child-Centered, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Gestalt.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, Latinos/Hispanics not only experience significant health disparities overall but also have a much higher risk for COVID-19 infection. Among the health disparities that increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, one that is rarely discussed is the fact that Hispanics have been experiencing disproportionately high rates of depression when compared to other populations.

What a challenging year we've all had! At the end of our Homecoming event in 2020, COVID-19 was just beginning to take hold of the world. We were starting to quarantine, and at the time I wondered if it would last more than five weeks. This pandemic has impacted the entire globe and directly changed our professions. From higher education to outpatient psychotherapy, there have been changes. In a few short months we all got a crash course in video conferencing.

"Certified Child Life Specialists [CCLS] are educated and clinically trained in the developmental impact of illness and injury (ACLP, 2021)." Their role in the hospital helps to improve patient and family care, increase hospital satisfaction, and enhance the overall experience. As a specialized field, child life specialists work in hospitals on pediatric units such as acute care, the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), the Emergency Department, organ transplant units, and other inpatient and outpatient areas that treat children, youth, adolescents, and families.

Olivia (Liv) Triplett, a second-year Clinical Psychology PhD student in the Department of Psychology, has won a prestigious Student Conference Award for the Society of Pediatric Psychology Annual Conference (SPPAC).

During the month of March, I would like to celebrate our world's social workers. Many of us come into our field eager to help others and do our part to support, assist, and empower those who need us. Many times, we are in the trenches of the field, helping those without resources, knowledge, support, or linkage. We strive to get their needs met or obtain the change they require to have the quality of life and dignity we all deserve. We are warriors of change.