From the Director

The greatest honor of my professional career was when Dr. Margaret Owen asked me to take on the role of Executive Director of the Center for Children and Families after nearly two decades as a faculty member in UT Dallas’ School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. Although I had been heavily involved with CCF since its inception, this role has given me a much deeper understanding of the critical need for scientists, especially those of us who want our research to support the healthy development of all children, to get outside of the lab to work with the community.  

CCF is a truly unique place in the way we merge outreach, research and student training such that each component enriches and expands the others. CCF faculty and researchers work with our outreach program managers, not only to evaluate programs, but to infuse the latest research from their labs and others around the world into every aspect of our initiatives. This approach improves our Play With Me curriculum and empowers Grow With Me to make data-drive, research-informed decisions that best support the families we serve.   

I can say for myself, it is empowering as a traditional lab scientist to have the opportunity to actively improve the lives of hundreds of children and families in our own community each year through the work CCF’s outstanding programs do throughout North Texas. This is what keeps me inspired to continue to grow CCF and expand in new and exciting ways.  

I especially love the unique perspective that working out in the field with the incredibly diverse and vibrant communities surrounding Dallas has on our students and faculty.  

Our students are trained with a lens of cultural humility, with the core understanding that all families are just looking to do what is best for their children. The students learn how, as professionals, they can use the most up-to-date science to help families reach that goal across a range of situations and needs. The faculty involvement in Play With Me and Grow With Me helps keep their research grounded, taking into account what the parents in our community most want science to address about how their children can thrive.   

I am continually inspired by the families we serve, the students at UTD who work in our programs, the faculty here and the amazing staff we have. Through working with this community, I know the center will continue to grow in exciting and important ways. I plan to use this space on our website to tell our followers about our new initiatives, whether that is moving our programs into new communities, offering new student training programs or starting large, new research projects. You can also follow us on social media to keep up to date on all we are doing. Thank you for taking the time to learn more about CCF!

Dr. Mandy Maguire
Professor of Speech, Language, and Hearing
School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences
Director of the Center for Children and Families
Robinson Family Professor