UMD College of Education and Human Service Professions

The Spring 2026 CEHSP Dean’s List is live! ✨ z.umn.edu/cehspdeanslist

Big congrats to the students who made the list! 👏

From UMD to Croatia! ✈️🌍

Three of our international student teachers—Anya VanAntwerpen, Anna Cmiel, and Rylee Bokelman—recently shared their passion for education on a global stage!

The Integrated Elementary and Special Education majors presented at an education conference in Croatia in early May, alongside participants from China, Poland, and India.

The trio highlighted UMD’s teacher preparation programs, putting a spotlight on our department's emphasis on inclusive education, and shared how UMD trains educators to support diverse learners. 🤝❤️

How do the body and the brain respond when immersive virtual reality (VR) games are added to a workout? https://cehsp.d.umn.edu/articles/enhancing-exercise

A collaborative study at UMD has been exploring such questions, combining VR with aerobic exercise and tracking changes in the brain, cognition, stress, and mood.

Faculty from the Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences program and the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) teamed up on this project with support from a UMD Chancellor's Innovation Grant. Co-investigators include Professor June Lee and Associate Professors Mary Stenson and Sharyl Samargia-Grivette.

Data collection ended in May, and analysis will occur over the summer. The results may have significant practical applications for work in both fields.

On the exercise science side, Stenson is expecting that virtual reality may tire participants out faster. “If they have to think about things while they're exercising, I want to know if that affects their fatigue. That has implications for post-exercise recovery. How do we need to recover people? Are they going to be ready for the next session of exercise?”

Meanwhile, on the neurological side, Samargia-Grivette is optimistic that findings could be translated to other populations. “Moving forward, I might like to try biking with virtual reality as a precursor to therapy for people with disabilities," she says. "To use it as a primer — to prime the brain before we hit them with rehab. This could have potential for therapeutic use in stroke or brain injury patients.”

UMD Department of Applied Human Sciences University of Minnesota Duluth - Communication Sciences and Disorders

May is Stroke Awareness Month. We're so proud of the research on stroke recovery from University of Minnesota Duluth - Communication Sciences and Disorders!🙌

🌿 A UMD-based team is helping to make nature-based learning accessible to young children across Minnesota! 🌿 https://cehsp.d.umn.edu/articles/natural-nurturing

We're excited to announce that Professor Julie Ernst and Assistant Professor Claire Underwood (Childhood Nature Studies), in partnership with Ojibwe Knowledge Keeper Thelma Nayquonabe (EdD, '23), have been awarded a $64,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families.👏

The mission is to develop a statewide coaching initiative to expand outdoor and nature-based learning for young children.

This work builds on years of collaborative research. It represents an important step toward nurturing the capacity among educators, programs, and families to ensure that all children have access to nature-based learning that is culturally sustaining and grounded in reciprocity and connection to the land.

Congratulations to the team! 👏

UMD Department of Applied Human Sciences

A new major at UMD will help to address the nationwide shortage of early childhood educators. The Bachelor of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education offers a flexible path to teacher licensure. It emphasizes holistic child development, play-based learning and cultural responsiveness. https://cehsp.d.umn.edu/articles/early-childhood-education-program

Associate Professor Jodie Riek was enlisted to develop the program through the UMD Paul & Mary Ann Schmidt Endowed Professorship in Early Childhood Development. “We designed this program to be responsive to both the realities of today’s early childhood workforce and the needs of future teachers,” says Riek.

UMD Department of Education

CEHSP alum Meg Carney champions outdoor sustainability through writing and audio journalism. 🙌🫶

UMD Department of Education

Do nutrition tracking apps have a psychological impact?📱🥦🧠 Shaelyn Hostager, a graduate student in psychology, conducted research on this subject in UMD's Healthy Living and Learning Lab. https://cehsp.d.umn.edu/articles/shaelyn-hostager

Psychology Department at UMD

Students in the Childhood Nature Studies program recently had the chance to provide area preschoolers with some hands-on, nature-based learning. We love to see win-win community collaborations like this. 💚