Laurie is interested in how families, schools, and communities work together to support children and youth. She has a strong interest in both the strengths and needs of children and their families. The role of family, school, and community are central to much of the research she conducts and supervises. Broad research interests include: understanding child, family, school, and neighborhood/community factors that promote early school readiness and success; the developmental (cognitive, social, and emotional) assessment of young children; community-based (health, mental health, school) services for preschool and school-age children and their families; student-family-school-professional relationships; and student, family, educator, and professional engagement in activities that promote success in school. Her research involves studies with children (and their families) with special needs such as ASD and learning disabilities, chronic health conditions such a paediatric Crohn’s and Inflammatory Bowel Disease, and culturally linguistically diverse backgrounds.
