Monica Molgaard ’17 and Mari Shigemasa ’17 attended the Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Conference in April to present research completed at Whittier. The conference, which is typically geared toward graduate students, was a great learning opportunity for the child development majors who had the opportunity to expand their research, meet colleagues from around the country, and overall enhance their knowledge, which will help them prepare for their future careers.
Molgaard and Shigemasa were accompanied by Professor of Child Development Kay Sanders. The two students worked with Sanders on her research, analyzing data on peer play for preschool age children who attend urban community centers with a majority of Mexican American and African American children.
“[The students] met experts in the field they read about in their classes and they experienced, firsthand, policy discussions and debates related to the wellbeing of children and families at a national and international level,” said Sanders.
Attending the conference made Molgaard certain that a career in academic research is the right path for her. As for Shigemasa, she is pursuing a career in teaching and is currently working at The Broadoaks School as a graduate fellow.
