Faculty
Celene Domitrovich
Ph.D., The Pennsylvania State University, 1998
Assistant Director, Prevention Research Center for the Promotion of Human Development
Research Assistant Professor of Health and Human Development, Penn State
Adjunct Faculty, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, College of Health and Human Development, Penn State
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Program Areas: School-based Prevention Research (Leader); Translation, Dissemination & Implementation
Contact Information
S108B Henderson Building
Phone:
814-865-2616
Fax Number:
814-865-2530
Awards
Joseph E. Zins Award for Action Research in Social and Emotional Learning, CASEL
Online News Articles
Preschool Program Improves Standardized Test Scores through Grade 5
Penn State Newswire, October 6, 2011 Science Newsline October 6, 2011
Harrisburg Patriot-News, October 6, 2011
Research Interests
Developmental psychopathology, interventions, school readiness, mental disorders, development of social and emotional competence in young children, the role of parents and teachers in children’s acquisition of skills, relationship between skills and school success
Examples of Current Prevention Projects
Harrisburg Preschool Program (HPP)
W. K. Kellogg Foundation
Start Date: 2002
We are evaluating a comprehensive preschool program
that provides classroom programming, high-quality daycare, parent
education, and health services to 3- and 4-year-old children
and their families in the Harrisburg School District.
Head
Start (Head Start REDI––Research-based, Developmentally
Informed)
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Start Date: 2003
This project will evaluate the impact of infusing current Head
Start programs with social-emotional support curricula (Preschool
PATHS® Curriculum ) and language and emergent literacy skill support curricula.
A randomized trial will examine the impact on child school readiness
at the end of Head Start and on adjustment and achievement in
kindergarten and first grade.
Prevention Research Center and Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, Penn State
The aim of this project is to determine the feasibility and specific value of an Integrated Data System that will provide relevant actionable information (academic, social/emotional skills, and attendance) to school personnel so they can manage limited resources optimally.
Harrisburg Character Education Evaluation
U.S. Department of Education
Partnerships in Character Education Program (PCEP)
State Date: 2006
The project involves implementing two evidence-based character education programs in the district’s 7th- and 8th-grade classrooms: Developmental Designs (DD); and Facing History and Ourselves (FHAO) is a classroom-based character education curriculum.
Underlying Regulatory Mechanisms of Prevention Outcomes in the School-based PATHS® Curriculum Program (Greenberg, PI on Penn State Subcontract; Fishbein, RTI International, PI)
Start Date: 2010
This study is the first in-depth school-based intervention trial to infuse relevant aspects of cognitive neuroscience with existing theories of developmental psychology and prevention science. The ultimate goal is to identify underlying conditions (inhibitory control and emotional regulation) that may serve to both mediate and moderate intervention effects in the early years of schooling. We are conducting a theory-driven examination of Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS), an evidence- based model with replicated outcome effects, to understand how the intervention works and for whom. The PATHS program is being implemented in kindergarten classrooms through first grade in 2-3 schools (Ne150) with an additional 2-3 schools as an active control condition (Ne150) using a randomized trial design.
Recent Publications
Greenberg, M. T., Domitrovich, C. E., Graczyk, P. A., & Zins, J. E. (2004). The study of implementation in school-based preventive interventions: Theory, research, and practice. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services. Final project report. [Project Report]
Domitrovich, C. E., Cortes, R., & Greenberg, M. T. (2007). Improving young children’s social and emotional competence: A randomized trial of the Preschool PATHS Program. Journal of Primary Prevention, 28(2), 67–91. PMID: 17265130 [PDF]
Bierman, K. L., Nix, R. L., Greenberg, M. T., Blair, C. & Domitrovich, C. E. (2008). Executive functions and school readiness intervention: Impact, moderation, and mediation in the Head Start REDI Program. Development and Psychopathology, 20, 821–844. PMID: 18606033 [online]
Bierman, K. L., Domitrovich, C. E., Nix, R. L., Gest, S. D., Welsh, J. A., Greenberg, M. T., Blair, C., Nelson, K., & Gill, S. (2008). Promoting academic and social-emotional school readiness: The Head Start REDI program. Child Development, 179, 1802–1817. PMID: 19037951 [PDF]
Domitrovich, C. E., Bradshaw, C. P., Poduska, J. M., Hoagwood, K., Buckley, J. A. Olin, S., Romanelli, L. H., Leaf, P. J., Greenberg, M. T., & Ialongo, N. S. (2008). Maximizing the implementation quality of evidence-based preventive interventions in schools: A conceptual framework. Advances in School Based Mental Health Promotion, 1, 6–28. [PDF]
Domitrovich, C. E., Gest, S. D., Gill, S., Jones, D. J., & DeRouise, R. S. (2009). Teacher factors related to the professional development process of the Head Start REDI intervention. Early Education and Development, 20, 402–430. [PDF]
Ransford, C. Greenberg, M. T., Domitrovich, C. E., Small, M., & Jacobson, L. (2009). The role of teachers’ psychological experiences and perceptions of curriculum supports on implementation of a social emotional curriculum. School Psychology Review. [PDF]
Bierman, K. L., Torres, M., Domitrovich, C. E., Welsh, J., & Gest, S. (2009). Behavioral and cognitive readiness for school: Cross-domain associations for children attending Head Start. Social Development, 18, 305–323. [PDF]
Domitrovich, C. E., Gest, S. D., Gill, S., Bierman, K. L., Welsh, J. A., & Jones, D. J. (2009). Fostering high quality teaching with an enriched curriculum and professional development: Head Start REDI. American Educational Research Journal, 46, 567–597. [PDF]
Domitrovich, C. E., Bradshaw, C. P., Greenberg, M. T., Embry, D., Poduska, J. M., & Ialongo, N. (2009). Integrated models of school-based prevention: The logic and theory. Psychology in the Schools. [PDF]
Rhoades, B. L., Greenberg, M. T., & Domitrovich, C. E. (2009). The contribution of inhibitory control to preschoolers’ social-emotional competence. Applied Developmental Psychology, 30, 310–320. [PDF]
Domitrovich, C. E., Gest, S. D., Jones, D., Gill, S., & DeRousie, R. S. (2010). Implementation quality: Lessons learned in the context of the Head Start REDI trial. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 25, 284–298.
Denham, S. A., Brown, C., & Domitrovich, C. E. (2010). "Plays nice with others": Social-emotional learning and academic success. Early Education and Development, 21, 652–680.
Schultz, D., Ambike, A., Stapleton, L. M., Domitrovich, C. E., Schaeffer, C. M., & Bartels, B. (2010). Development of a questionnaire assessing teacher-perceived support for and attitudes about social and emotional learning. Early Education & Development, 21, 865–885.
Rhoades, B., Warren, H. K., Domitrovich, C. E., & Greenberg, M. T. (in press). Examining the link between preschool social-emotional competence and first grade academic achievement: The role of attention skills. Early Childhood Research Quarterly.