News
Haleigh Brown is awarded the Provost's Grant at TC and presents at the Provost’s Grant Research Expo!
Haleigh Brown was awarded the Provost's Grant for Conference Presentation & Professional Development at Teachers College. She also presented two posters titled, "Associations between Infant Nutrition and Functional Brain Activity at 12 months" and "Socioeconomic Status and Newborn Brain Development: A Cross-National EEG Investigation in the United States and South Africa" at the Provost’s Grant Research Expo hosted by TC NEXT.
Caitlin Aloisio receives the NSF GRFP Honorable Mention!
Caitlin Aloisio received an Honorable Mention from the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP). This is considered a significant national academic achievement. Congratulations, Caitlin!
Sonya V. Troller-Renfree, Haleigh Brown, and Josué Rico-Picó present at the NYC Conference on Developmental Science Agenda 2026!
On March 6th, our Principal Investigator, Sonya V. Troller-Renfree, our PhD Student, Haleigh Brown and our post-doc, Josué Rico-Picó, gave their presentations titled, “Give It a Rest: Is Resting EEG a Reliable Biomarker or Just Background Noise?”, “Emerging Strengths from Early Adversity: Evidence from Prosocial Empathy”, and “Re-evaluating the Neural Impact of Unconditional Cash Transfers in Childhood: The Role of Aperiodic and Oscillatory Activity Background ” at the NYC Conference on Developmental Science Agenda 2026.
Active Research Projects
Building Understanding of Developmental Differences across Years (BUDDY)
A growing body of research has found socioeconomic disparities in children's language and memory development in early childhood. The BUDDY Study first followed approximately 200 children through the first three years of their life understand how brain function, language, and memory develops during this important period. The second phase of the BUDDY Study will follow these children until age 4.5.
Development of Cognitive Control Strategy Use
Throughout the first decade of life, children become increasingly adept at planning ahead for and complete goals. The ability to manage activational and motivational resources in order to complete a goal is known as Cognitive Control. The Development of Cognitive Control Project aims to understand why children elect to use different cognitive control strategies to prepare for the same goal. To better understand the use of cognitive control strategies, I examine behavioral performance, brain activity (EEG), and executive functioning (a grouping of cognitive skills