The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), the nation’s leading philanthropy on health and health care, has awarded Cindy A. Crusto, PhD, associate professor of psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine a grant through the New Connections program.
Crusto is affiliated with the Yale Department of Psychiatry's Psychology Section and the department's Division of Prevention and Community Research.
The 12-month grant will allow Crusto to evaluate the relationship between young children’s (birth through 11 years) exposure to psychological trauma and their mental and physical health and development. The project will further two lines of Crusto’s work assessing the impact of: 1) typical forms of psychological trauma (e.g., child abuse/neglect; home, school, community violence; natural disaster) on young children’s health and 2) maternal experiences of racial/ethnic discrimination (race-related stress), a newly conceptualized form of psychological trauma, on their young children’s health and development.
New Connections is a national program designed to introduce new scholars to RWJF and expand the diversity of perspectives that inform the foundation’s programming. New Connections seeks early to mid-career scholars who are historically underrepresented ethnic or racial minorities, first-generation college graduates, or individuals from low-income communities.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Crusto to a program that reflects the Foundation’s commitment to increasing the diversity in our grant making and in the broader fields of health research,” says Debra Pérez, PhD, MPA, MA, assistant vice-president for research and evaluation at RWJF.
“More than a grant opportunity, New Connections serves as a lifelong professional network for diverse researchers and evaluators,” says Pérez.
“I am extremely proud to be among the Midcareer Consultants honored with this prestigious grant," said Crusto. "This award will connect me to a network of established experts in research and evaluation related to health and health care, while providing me with an opportunity to conduct research that has far-reaching implications for young children’s health and development."