Preschool hours are what I look forward to every week. My Tuesday mornings are punctuated by a chorus of little voices calling out "Miss Claudia!" and running up for hugs, which is an incredible way to start a day, and I would recommend it to anyone. I really love giving these kids some one-on-one attention during Center Time that the teachers sometimes are unable to give them when trying to handle the entire classroom. I also get to help out during lunch and snack time in managing the chaos that is 11 hungry four-year-olds. I love getting to know each child individually and understand each of their strengths and areas that need strengthening. I also have the amazing opportunity to work in this class with children on the autism spectrum, with many different IEPs (individual education plans), and some non-verbal children. This mixed classroom full of neurotypical and non-neurotypical children has taught me so much and I've really fallen in love with each and every child in this class. For part of my service learning project, I'm helping to create an organizational tool to help the teachers organize center time and help hold the children accountable for their activities. I really feel like my presence in the classroom is a help to the teachers and is a fun new experience and adult to interact with for the children. 

My work as a research assistant with Project DIRECT has varied significantly in the past two years, providing an assortment of experiences that will inform my future career in research. In my first semester in Dr. Baker’s lab, I had the opportunity to participate in data entry associated with program evaluations regarding the teacher training that had been in progress at several of our partner schools. In this process, I had the ability to learn from teachers’ experiences with our program from their own words, suggestions, and critiques. These lessons have informed my current participation in “Helping Hands,” a Project DIRECT program focused on collaborating directly with teachers in our partner schools to establish long-term and community-informed relationships. One morning once per week, I have the opportunity to provide any assistance that a teacher may need with her kindergarten class. From a trauma-informed lens, I have been able to provide specialized and extended interactions with students that often show behavioral problems, and I have developed incredibly positive relationships with children that may otherwise perform poorly. Teachers have also given me the opportunity to lead small groups with some kindergartners, giving them more free time to focus on their class and plan. Overall, working as a “Helping Hand” has given me a firsthand experience in understanding the strengths and challenges teachers and students face, doing so in a way that provides any aid needed. Through a bottom-up approach, these qualitative lessons, in turn, can inform the trauma-informed research we conduct at Project DIRECT. Participating in research that seeks to translate our current literature into effective interventions and public policy has been a defining experience in my own pursuit of a career in evidence-based policy, and I am incredibly thankful to Dr. Baker and Project DIRECT for the opportunity to participate in this work.