Chapin Hall recently welcomed Angela Valdovinos D’Angelo as the first Harold A. Richman Postdoctoral Fellow.

Her research focuses on understanding the normative parenting processes of disadvantaged Latino and immigrant families, the influence of immigrant parenting on the developmental trajectories of young children, and how culture shapes parenting behavior. Angela’s other research interests include childhood poverty, father involvement, and parental involvement in child school success.

She completed her Ph.D. in Human Development and Social Policy at Northwestern University in Chicago in June 2009. Her dissertation Parenting in Immigrant and Latino Families: Implications for Child Development received Northwestern’s Alumnae Dissertation Recognition Award. Angela received her M.A. in Human Development and Social Policy, also from Northwestern University. In 2007, Angela contributed to the chapter A Multidisciplinary Perspective on the Development of Young Children in Immigrant Families in Immigrant Families in Contemporary Society by The Guilford Press.

Through the Harold A. Richman Fellowship, which was established in 2008, Angela will receive advanced research training and mentoring, develop independent research ideas, and participate in educational exchanges with scholars at Chapin Hall and the University of Chicago, all under the supervision of a Chapin Hall research fellow.

"I plan to pursue two areas of research: understanding the dropout epidemic and academic underperformance among Latino adolescents; and examining the links between early childhood program use, including fathers' involvement in programs, and the school readiness of very young children in immigrant families," Angela said.

Chapin Hall established the Harold A. Richman Postdoctoral Research Fellowship as a tribute to its founding director and his commitment to inspiring and guiding scholarship that betters the lives of vulnerable children and families.

"Chapin Hall has the task of ensuring the legacy of Harold Richman and a healthy future for the children’s policy research field," said Matthew Stagner, executive director of Chapin Hall. "This fellowship, offering guidance to a researcher starting out in a career, is one step in that direction."