Susan Sheridan

Dr. Susan Sheridan, George Holmes University Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Nebraska, is the founding director of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools. She is known nationally and internationally as an intervention scientist whose research expertise includes early childhood education and development, family engagement, evidence-based social-behavioral interventions, family–school partnerships, and rural education. She has dedicated her career to designing, testing, and scaling strengths-based interventions for children and families who are marginalized due to economic, developmental, educational or geographic factors, as well as those who represent cultural or demographic diversity. She is interested in identifying effective and practical interventions that promote culturally-sustaining parenting approaches, create opportunities to advance children’s social-behavioral functioning, and strengthen relationships in support of children’s development. Her research has incorporated all aspects of the translational cycle, from basic processes underpinning children’s social-behavioral functioning to diffusion through social media and practitioner-ready implementation platforms. Issues of cultural sustainability, acceptability, and scalability are germane to her research, making scientifically proven interventions broadly accessible in ways that promote equity and improve the lives of children and families. Sheridan’s research has been generously funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Institute of Educational Sciences, foundations, state/local agencies, and internal sources. She received both the Lightner Witmer Early Career and the Senior Scientist Award from Division 16 (School Psychology) of the American Psychological Association, alumnus awards from the University of Wisconsin, and a Presidential Award from the National Association of School Psychologists.