Our STEPS Study Team

Principle Investigator

Dr. Portia Miller

Portia Miller is a developmental psychologist and is an expert in examining how income and poverty shape children’s development. Her research goals focus on investigating how economic disadvantage impacts child and adolescent development, with a particular interest in examining factors that contribute to or can alleviate income disparities in school readiness. In pursuing these goals, Portia has studied how children’s early contexts, like neighborhoods and child care, shape the academic and behavioral development of ethnically-diverse and socioeconomically disadvantaged children. She uses an interdisciplinary approach that integrates theories and methods from psychology, developmental psychopathology, economics, and sociology. Portia earned a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Pittsburgh. She also received a J.D. and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Pittsburgh. In her spare time, Portia enjoys reading and spending time with her family.

Co-Investigators

Dr. Elizabeth Votruba-Drzal

Dr. Elizabeth Votruba-Drzal is a professor of psychology and a senior scientist at the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh. She is also a faculty affiliate at the University of Pittsburgh’s Center on Race and Social Problems. Dr. Votruba-Drzal’s research focuses on how dimensions of socioeconomic status, including income and education, shape child and adolescent development. Additionally, Dr. Votruba-Drzal addresses a range of research questions with relevance for characterizing and addressing inequality in children’s life chances. She received a Ph.D. in human development and social policy from Northwestern University. She graduated from Michigan State University with a bachelor’s degree in social relations. Outside of her work life, Dr. Votruba-Drzal enjoys spending time with her family as well as reading, running, hiking, skiing, and practicing yoga.

Dr. Jamie Hanson

Dr. Hanson is an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh, a developmental scientist, and a stress neurobiologist, with considerable expertise in cognitive, clinical, and affective neuroscience in children, youth, and adults. His research program examines how different adverse experiences or negative developmental contexts influence the emergence of psychopathology. This work has primarily centered on brain alterations in relation to different early life adversities (e.g., abuse, neglect, the stressors associated with poverty). Dr. Hanson has connected these neurobiological metrics to variations in mental health (i.e., depression; anxiety; externalizing and rule-breaking). In his spare time, Jamie enjoys trying new restaurants in Pittsburgh, biking, and spending time with his daughter.

Dr. Christina Gibson-Davis

Dr. Christina Gibson-Davis is a professor of public policy and the Principal Investigator for the Duke site of the STEPS study. She is a family demographer who studies the health and well-being of low-income families and their children. In her work, she concentrates on factors that determine familial and child flourishing, including economic and policy inputs and family structure. Her most recent work has concentrated on the contours of wealth among households with children. Dr. Gibson-Davis earned her B.A. in Philosophy from Bates College, and her M.A. and PhD in Human Development and Social Policy from Northwestern University. Outside of her work life, Christina enjoys playing tennis, running, reading, knitting (and unknitting), and watching too many Law & Order reruns!

Research Scientist

Dr. Emily Jones

Dr. Emily Jones is a staff research scientist and a research associate of the STEPS study. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from the College of New Jersey, Master’s degrees in Counseling from the University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD in Biobehavioral Health from Penn State University. Before becoming a research scientist, she was recently a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry’s Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine T32 training program. As a postdoctoral fellow, she conducted literature reviews and secondary data analysis; oversaw data collection for an R01 project; co-taught a course on health inequities; and published multiple first author publications, as well as an NIH grant proposal. In her free time, Emily enjoys anything outdoors, especially running and biking all around Pittsburgh. She also loves reading and listening to podcasts.

Staff

Amber Liller

Amber Liller is the project manager for the Pitt site of the STEPS study. She manages all aspects of screening, consent, recruitment, and data collection for the project. Amber graduated from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor’s degree in psychology and English. During her undergraduate degree, Amber worked as a research assistant in the Early Development Lab with Dr. Lillard at the University of Virginia and as a preschool teacher. Last year, Amber spent her time working as a research assistant under the Parents Promoting Early Learning Study with Dr. Libertus, Dr. Bachman, and Dr. Votruba-Drzal at the University of Pittsburgh. Outside of the lab, Amber enjoys reading, playing trivia or board games, and attending sports games.

Hannah Parker 

Hannah Parker is the research coordinator for the STEPS Study. She will manage and assist all aspects of screening, consent, recruitment, and data collection for the project. Prior to her role here, Hannah received her BA in Biopsychology Cognition and Neuroscience with a minor in the Sociology of Health and Medicine from the University of Michigan. During her time in undergrad, Hannah worked under Dr. Rona Carter within the Adolescent Interpersonal Relationships (AIR) Lab.

Terrique Morris

Terrique is the project manager for the Duke site of the STEPS study. He is involved with recruitment, consenting, data collection and screening for the Duke site. Terrique graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Cognitive Sciences. As an undergrad at UNC, Terrique exclusively volunteered in research labs studying adolescent development, including Dr. Mitch Prinstein’s Peer Relations Lab and Dr. Jon Abramowitz’s Anxiety Lab. Terrique spent the last year working in the Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up lab at the University of Delaware under Dr. Mary Dozier as a Project Coordinator. In his free time, Terrique enjoys spending time with friends, working out, and spending time with his little brother.

Julija Hetherington

Julija Hetherington is the data manager for the PPEL studies at the Learning Research and Development Center. Julija earned a Master of Science degree in Computer Science and has over 23 years of data management experience on several NIH-funded longitudinal studies including designing, creating, and maintaining databases. Julija has previously worked as a data manager in two different labs in the Psychology Department at the University of Pittsburgh. Outside of her work life, Julija enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, dancing, and doing photography.

Sheri Petrequin

Sheri Petrequin is a Senior Research Data Technician for the STEPS study. She is also a Senior Research Data Technician for the Bridging English Language Learning and Academics (BELLA) study, also at Duke, which is a professional development program for classroom and ESL teachers to support language and literacy growth for their multilingual learners. Sheri earned her B.A. in Social Science from San Jose State University and a CLAD (Cross-Cultural Language Acquisition Development K-8 Teaching Credential) from National University in Santa Clara. Before becoming a data technician, Sheri was an elementary school teacher for the majority of her career. In her free time, Sheri enjoys hiking, reading, and baking.

Teresa Longnecker

Teresa is a Senior Research Data Technician at Duke University. Since 2016, she has worked as a community-based bilingual interviewer in the Durham area for Duke’s Parenting Across Cultures project, a long-term study in nine countries, which researches parenting practices and youth development among different cultures around the world. Additionally, she has worked on the BELLA Study (Bridging English Language Learning and Academics) as a bilingual parent interviewer, classroom observer and language assessment administrator in English and Spanish. She holds a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.A. from George Washington University. For fun she loves to travel most anywhere, especially to Spanish-speaking countries, and she also loves to be active. If she’s not hiking Machu Picchu with her family in Peru or exploring ancient Mayan civilizations in Mexico and Central America, you will find her at the local YMCA or hiking the many lovely trails in North Carolina.

Dorthea Adkins

Dorthea Adkins is the lab manager of Dr. Hanson’s lab and a research coordinator for the STEPS study. She is involved with recruitment, consent, screening, and data collection. She obtained her BA in Psychology from Columbia University, where she interned in Dr. Sheena Iyengar’s lab at Columbia Business School. She also interned in Dr. Mariam Aly’s Cognitive Affective Neuroscience lab in the Department of Psychology, where she designed a study investigating the relationship between language and memorability. She has also previously studied the role of microglia in multiple sclerosis in the VCU Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, under Dr. Jeffrey Dupree. In her free time, Dorthea loves to frequent the local arts scene, read non-fiction books, and sing when she thinks no one is eavesdropping.

Shaughnessea Richardson

Shaughnessea Richardson is a senior undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh and a research coordinator for the STEPS study. She also leads the recruitment strategy for STEPS, with a focus on social media and teen recruitment, and is also involved in the consent, screening, and participant retention processes. Additionally, Shaughnessea (Shaughny) is a research assistant in both the Smart Beginnings Lab, under Dr. Daniel Shaw, and also in the Behavioral Interventions of Children’s and Teens’ Eating (BITE) lab, under Dr. Andrea Goldschmidt. As a senior at Pitt, Shaughny is studying Psychology and Sociology, and is currently applying to graduate schools to pursue a PhD in School Psychology. In her free time, Shaughny enjoys reading, taking yoga classes, and watching rom-coms.

 

Community Outreach Coordinator

Darin Fields 

Darin Fields is a Community Outreach Coordinator for the STEPS study. During his undergrad, he was an undergraduate research assistant in the Understanding Development in Diverse Contexts (UDDCs) lab, and in the honors program at the University of Pittsburgh. For STEPS, he leads the recruitment strategy for the study, and is also involved in the consent, screening, and participant retention processes. Additionally, Darin is leading an independent project under an NIH diversity supplement, in which he will investigate the effects of wealth, discrimination, and social status on teen’s future expectations. In Dr. Daphe Henry’s Understanding Development in Diverse Contexts (UDDCs) lab, he assisted with a longitudinal examination of the Survey of Consumer Finances.  In the near future, Darin intends to go to graduate school where he will continue to study racial wealth disparities, their effects, and mitigation efforts such as policy and welfare reform. In his free time, Darin enjoys playing volleyball and basketball, and participating in the Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity.

Consultant

Daniesha Hunter

Daniesha Hunter, M.S. is a 4th year PhD student at the University of Pittsburgh and a consultant for the STEPS study. She has experience on several prior studies collecting large longitudinal surveys using Qualtrics for remote participants. She formerly managed all aspects of screening, consent, recruitment and data collection for the Family Financial Dynamics (FIND) research study, and now advises the PI team and the project manager for the STEPS study. In addition to being in Dr. Votruba-Drzal’s lab, Dani is also a doctoral fellow in the Race and Youth Development Research (RaYDR) Group, under Dr. James Huguley at the Center on Race and Social Problems. Dani earned her B.S. in Business Administration from Villanova University and her M.S. in Counseling Psychology from Chatham University. In her free time, Dani enjoys baking, spending time with family, listening to books on audible, and spending time in her garden.