Publications: Seeds
of Promise
Biographies
Martha
(Marti) Farrel Erickson has been director of CYFC since its inception.
She has a doctorate in educational psychology and a long history as
a child advocate and researcher on preventive intervention with children
and families at risk. She has served as an advisor to a variety of policy
makers, including Vice President Al Gore.
Robert
Blum is a professor in the University of Pediatrics and is the director
of the Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, as well
as the Center for Children with Chronic Illness and Disability. He serves
on the editorial board of three pediatric journals and edits and writes
extensively about child health issues. He is a consultant to the World
Health Organizations, UNICEF and other organizations.
Ann
Masten, who is the associate director and an associate professor
at the University of Minnesota's Institute of Child Development, has
been doing research on children's issues since the mid-70's. Masten
is the director of a study started in 1976 on why some children do well
in unexpected circumstances. She has also done extensive research on
diverse Minnesota children, including survivors of homeless, poverty
and foreign war to learn how children and families overcome the challenges
of today's world.
Byron
Egeland has done research on children and families at the University
of Minnesota for 20 years. He and Alan Sroufe direct a longitudinal
study of 276 high-risk infants and their families, which began in 1975;
the children are now approaching 20 years of age. Egeland has done significant
research on the impact of the relationship between mothers and their
children and has written widely on the effects of maltreatment early
in children's lives.
Michael
Resnick is a professor at the University of Minnesota School of
Public Health and School of Medicine. He has studied the health and
well being of adolescents and health-compromising behaviors of kids
for almost 20 years. Resnick is most interested in distinguishing the
universal, cross-cultural protective factors consistent among all classes,
races, cultures, and genders.
Peter
Benson is president of the Search Institute, a nationally regarded
non-profit organization based in Minneapolis. The Institute conducts
scientific studies of children and adolescents; evaluates programs and
policies affecting these age groups; and translates those findings into
practical resources and services. Search has published many well known
studies of youth issues, including The Troubled Journey: A Portrait
of 6th - 12th Grade Youth.
