About / July09 / Dowdy & Quirk awarded Hellman Fellowships

July 21, 2009
For immediate release

Erin Dowdy and Matt Quirk of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School awarded 2009-10 Hellman Family Faculty Fellowships

Erin Dowdy and Matt Quirk of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School have been awarded 2009-10 Hellman Family Faculty Fellowships. Dowdy’s research project is entitled “Methods for Early Identification of Emotional and Behavioral Problems in Schools;” Quirk’s research project is entitled “Early Identification and Intervention of Students At-Risk for Academic Problems.”

Established in 1995 by Warren and Patrician Christina Hellman, the fund for these fellowships helps ensure that important research by junior faculty receives needed support. For many past recipients, the Hellman has played a critical role in their careers — leading to publication, important new contacts, research funding from other sources, or new research directions.

Erin Dowdy is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology. She received a B.S. from Florida State University and a M.Ed. and Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from The University of Georgia. Following completion of coursework, Dowdy completed an internship at the University of Southern California/Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, receiving specialized training in pediatric and clinical psychology. After earning a California School Psychology Credential, she worked as a school psychologist in a broadly diverse school district south of Los Angeles. Dowdy has conducted research in the areas of behavioral assessment, specifically early identification of child behavior problems and classification methods. She is currently conducting research investigating optimal screening methods for detecting the pre-cursors of emotional and behavioral problems in children and youth. She hopes to offer insight into ways to accomplish both early identification and early intervention in schools.

Matthew Quirk is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology. After receiving a B.S. in elementary education from Penn State, he taught at both the pre-k and 2nd grade levels. His experiences teaching in schools that served students from low SES backgrounds had a significant influence on his interest in children’s early literacy development and academic motivation. Quirk’s post-graduate work at the University of Georgia focused on the interplay between the development of students’ early reading skills and their motivation for engaging in reading related activities. After receiving a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia in Educational Psychology, he spent two years as an Assistant Professor at California State University, Long Beach. Since coming to UCSB, Dr. Quirk has been primarily engaged in research that has focused on Response to Intervention (RTI) and early screening for academic problems.

[Erin Dowdy and Matt Quirk are available for interviews; contact George Yatchisin at 805 893 5789]
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Erin Dowdy and Matt Quirk of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School awarded 2009-10 Hellman Family Faculty Fellowships