Lab Activities

Lab Meetings

We have lab meetings several times a month. Our lab meetings provide support for both the research projects Dr. Ford is conducting, we are conducting together, as well as an opportunity to support the work of graduate students in our lab on their thesis and dissertation research.  Lab meetings are a chance for students to talk about and set goals for their own research as well as learn about the research process. With students at different stages in their programs and often in different graduate programs,  lab meetings allow for students to get to know each other as colleagues, support each other, provide peer mentorship, and build a community within our lab.

We also discuss seminars around campus or readings related to work we are doing in the lab. On occasion others outside the lab join us and share their work and experiences.  Lab meetings also provide an opportunity to practice thesis, dissertation, and conference presentations and get feedback before going public with their presentation.  Guests and visitors who want to learn more about our lab happenings are welcome.  More than anything our lab meetings provide a way to not only learn but also celebrate and support the work we are doing

A schedule of upcoming lab meetings is posted on the home page of our website.

Conference Attendance & Participation & Participation in Professional Organizations

Students working in our lab are active in local, provincial/state, national, and international conferences through attendance, paper and poster presentations, workshop and symposium presentations, and roundtable discussions.  Some lab members have been engaged in conference proposal reviews and several serve a student representatives to professional organizations.  Conferences where students have presented at in recent years include:

Local/Provincial

  • Investigating our Practices
  • British Columbia Association of School Psychologists
  • Early Childhood Assessment Conference

National/International

  • American Psychological Association
  • Canadian Psychological Association
  • Canadian Council for Studies in Education
  • International Association of Special Education
  • National Association of School Psychologists
  • Society for Research on Child Development
  • Society for Research on Adolescence

Service and Social Activities

These activities vary from year to year. Often we give presentations or volunteer in the schools and communities where we are doing our research. We also try to remind ourselves to have some fun with a few lab social events. Some examples of previous lab social and service activities include:

  • School supply drives
  • Parenting workshop at Family Place & Child development centres
  • Movie or book readings and dinner discussions with other labs
  • Child development presentations for local agencies
  • Assessment workshops for schools and community groups
  • Volunteer support at local conferences
  • Flying burrito dinner and research talks
  • End of semester holiday pizza social
  • Summer barbeque